The statute of limitations is the deadline for filing a lawsuit. Miss it, and the strongest case in the world is generally worth nothing. Here are the rules — and the exceptions that surprise people.
The General Rule: Two Years
Most California personal injury claims — car accidents, bicycle and pedestrian crashes, dog bites, falls — must be filed within two years of the date of injury. Wrongful death claims generally run two years from the date of death. Property damage claims actually get longer (three years), which is why the car sometimes outlives the injury claim it came from.
The Exceptions That Catch People
- Government entities: six months. If your claim involves a city, county, or state defendant — a government vehicle, a dangerous public road or sidewalk, a public transit collision — you generally must file a formal government claim within six months, before any lawsuit. This is the deadline that quietly ends more good cases than any other.
- Professional negligence: often shorter. Claims against certain professionals can carry a one-year deadline from discovery of the injury. We have filed suit within a one-year window precisely because waiting would have forfeited the claim.
- Minors: generally paused, with traps. The clock for a child's injury claim is usually paused until age 18 — but not for government claims, and waiting years devastates the evidence either way.
- UM/UIM claims: contract deadlines. Claims under your own policy follow different, policy- and statute-driven timing rules — and require careful sequencing with the at-fault claim.
Why "I Have Two Years" Is Still the Wrong Plan
The legal deadline is the last possible moment, not the right one. Camera footage from businesses and neighbors is routinely overwritten within days or weeks. Vehicles get repaired and totaled. Witnesses move and forget. Medical causation is easiest to prove when treatment begins promptly and the record is built in real time. In our practice, the cases that resolve best are almost always the ones where the investigation started early — not because the lawsuit was filed early, but because the evidence was preserved while it still existed.
Not Sure Which Deadline Applies to You?
That's exactly the kind of question a free consultation answers in minutes. Bring the date of the incident and what you know about who was involved — we'll tell you the applicable deadlines and what should happen before they arrive.
Deadlines Don't Negotiate. We Do.
If you think a deadline may be approaching, call rather than email: (408) 909-6113. Or request a free case review.
This article is general information about California law, not legal advice about your specific situation. Deadlines depend on facts; confirm yours with an attorney.