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May 20, 2026

The Statute of Limitations for Personal Injury in California

Written by Pointer & Buelna, LLP. Lawyers For The People, reviewed by Adanté Pointer

Key Takeaways

• Courts reject late personal injury cases after the statute of limitations expires.
• The general deadline is two years from injury under California Code of Civil Procedure 335.1.
• Government claims require a tort claim within six months under Government Code 911.2.
• After denial or inaction, six months remain to file a civil lawsuit.
• The medical malpractice deadline is three years from injury or one year from discovery.

California law gives injured victims a limited amount of time to file a lawsuit against the party responsible for their harm. Once that window closes, courts will not hear the case, regardless of how serious the injuries or how strong the evidence. The statute of limitations for personal injury in California, or the legal deadline to sue, controls that timeline and varies depending on who caused the harm and what type of claim is involved.

At Pointer & Buelna, LLP – Lawyers For The People, our California personal injury lawyers have seen strong cases dismissed simply because a victim waited too long. Understanding these deadlines is the first step toward protecting your right to compensation.

The General Two-Year Deadline for Lawsuits

The statute of limitations for personal injury in California covers cases such as car accidents, dog bites, and slip-and-falls. Special rules also apply depending on who caused the harm, particularly when a government entity bears responsibility.

Under California Code of Civil Procedure § 335.1, victims generally have two years from the date of injury to file a personal injury lawsuit against a private party. This rule applies to the most common injury claims, but the deadline shifts depending on the type of harm suffered.

Key California Personal Injury Deadlines:

• General Personal Injury: 2 years from the injury date
• Wrongful Death: 2 years from the date of death
• Medical Malpractice: 3 years from the date of injury or 1 year from discovery, whichever comes first, per California Code of Civil Procedure § 340.5
• Government Claims: 6 months to file an administrative claim against a city, county, or state agency
• Vehicle or Property Damage: 3 years from the date of harm, per California Code of Civil Procedure § 338

Knowing which deadline applies to your situation makes a critical difference in whether your claim moves forward.

Suing the Government: The Strict Six-Month Deadline

Injuries caused by government employees involve stricter deadlines. You must submit a formal government tort claim within six months of the incident to seek compensation, as required by California Government Code § 911.2. Failing to file on time almost always ends the case before it begins.

After the government denies or ignores the claim, the injured party gains an additional six months to file a lawsuit in civil court. This two-step process often surprises victims who assume the standard two-year window applies. It does not.

Why This Matters for Police Brutality Cases

Police brutality cases fall directly under this six-month rule. Victims of excessive force, wrongful arrest, or misconduct by law enforcement officers must file a government tort claim against the responsible agency within six months of the incident.

Injured victims often delay seeking legal help during recovery, unaware that government-related cases have much shorter deadlines. Missing this narrow window can permanently bar your right to compensation. To protect your legal interests, you must act immediately following any incident involving a government employee.

Exceptions: Tolling the Statute of Limitations

California law allows the standard deadline to pause in certain circumstances, a protection known as “tolling.” When tolling applies, the clock stops and preserves the injured party’s right to file beyond the typical deadline.

The Discovery Rule and Claims Involving Minors

Several important exceptions can pause or delay the statute of limitations:

• Delayed Discovery: Delayed discovery occurs when injuries or their causes are not immediately apparent. For example, symptoms from toxic exposure may take months to link to an incident. In such cases, the legal clock might start on the date the injury was discovered rather than when it occurred.
• Minors: When the injured person is under 18 years of age, the two-year period does not begin until they turn 18. A child injured at age 12 would generally have until age 20 to file. This exception does not extend to government claims, where the six-month deadline applies even to minors.
• Incapacity: A victim who suffers legal incapacity, such as a severe traumatic brain injury, leaving them legally unable to act on their own behalf, may have the filing deadline paused until they regain competence.

While these exceptions offer necessary flexibility, assuming they apply without legal counsel is risky. Courts interpret tolling rules strictly, and reasons for missing a deadline that seem valid to a victim may not survive legal scrutiny.

What Happens If You Miss the Legal Deadline?

Missing the statute of limitations for personal injury in California almost always means losing your right to compensation. Courts dismiss cases filed too late, before any evidence gets presented or argued. Insurance companies know this, and they track deadlines closely. Some defense attorneys even count on injured victims running out the clock.

In rare circumstances, an attorney may identify grounds to pause the clock, strong enough to revive a claim. But courts interpret these exceptions narrowly. A missed government claim deadline, for example, leaves almost no path to recovery. The realistic answer: the later you wait, the fewer options remain.

Evidence does not wait. Surveillance footage disappears within days or weeks. Witnesses move, memories fade, and medical records become harder to link to the original incident the longer time passes. Every delay hands the other side an advantage. Getting an attorney involved early means someone fights to preserve the evidence before it is gone.

Don’t Let the Clock Run Out: Contact Lawyers For The People

Pointer & Buelna, LLP – Lawyers For The People, represents injured victims who need help understanding the statute of limitations for personal injury in California. Our attorneys handle personal injury, wrongful death, and civil rights cases on a no-fee basis, meaning you pay nothing unless we win. Free consultations remain available around the clock. Call our personal injury attorneys today at (510) 822-7476 and let our team protect your rights before the deadline passes.

“Law interested me because I always saw it as being a tool to equalize society so that the West Oaklands of the world could have the resources like the Piedmonts or Beverly Hills of the world.”

Adanté Pointer. Founder at Lawyers for the People