When the Ordinary California Injury Rules Do Not Apply: A Government Claims Primer

ByIQnewswire

Every California injury guide starts with the same statement: you have two years to file a personal injury lawsuit. That statement is correct as far as it goes. What it leaves out is that a substantial share of California injury cases fall under a completely different procedure, with a completely different deadline, that has nothing to do with the ordinary two-year rule.

This is a primer on when the ordinary rules do not apply.

The Ordinary Rule and Why It Does Not Cover Everyone

California Code of Civil Procedure §335.1 gives injury victims two years from the date of the injury to file a personal injury lawsuit. This covers the everyday cases: a private driver rear-ends you at a stoplight, a private business fails to clean up a spill in an aisle, a neighbor’s dog gets loose, a private apartment building has an unrepaired step.

The two-year rule is what most people expect. It is also what many injury victims assume applies to their case, even when it does not.

The Government Claims Act: A Different System

When any layer of California government may bear responsibility, the case is governed by the Government Claims Act, codified starting at California Government Code §900. The Act reaches every layer of California public entity: the State, counties, cities, school districts, special districts, transit agencies, and their employees acting within the scope of employment.

Under Government Code §911.2, a written administrative claim must be filed with the public entity within six months of the date of injury. Not a lawsuit. A formal claim delivered to the correct claims office of the correct public entity, on paper, with specific content requirements.

The public entity then has 45 days under Government Code §912.4 to accept, reject, or ignore the claim (which is treated as a rejection). Only after that response, or the running of the 45-day clock, does the injury victim have the right to file a civil lawsuit, subject to a further shortened deadline under Government Code §945.6, generally six months from the denial.

If the six-month administrative claim deadline is missed, the case against the public entity is generally barred. The ordinary two-year civil deadline does not save it.

What Cases Are Actually Covered

The reach of the Government Claims Act surprises most injury victims. Some of the more common scenarios where the six-month deadline should be considered:

Roadway cases. Caltrans controls large portions of California’s interstate and state highway system, including sections of the 405, 5, 101, 10, 15, 210, and Pacific Coast Highway. City and county public works agencies control local streets. If road design, roadway condition, missing or defective signage, malfunctioning signals, or construction-zone hazards contributed to a crash, the responsible public entity is a defendant, and the six-month deadline applies to that part of the case.

Public vehicles. Any injury involving a police vehicle, sheriff’s vehicle, city or county public works truck, transit bus, school bus, or state fleet vehicle can trigger the Government Claims Act. The two-year deadline continues to run against private drivers involved in the same crash, but the six-month clock runs simultaneously against the public entity.

Dangerous condition of public property. Government Code §835 imposes liability on public entities for injuries caused by a dangerous condition of property they own or control. Broken sidewalks, defective playground equipment, unsafe park structures, unmaintained public buildings, and hazards on the grounds of public facilities all fall under §835.

Public schools. Injuries during school hours, on school grounds, on school-sponsored trips, or at district-run after-school programs are governed by the Government Claims Act. Districts are public entities.

Government-owned animals. A bite by a K-9 police dog or by an animal in the custody of animal control triggers the Government Claims Act even though the ordinary rule for dog bites (California Civil Code §3342) still governs the substantive strict-liability standard.

Filing With the Right Office

The wrong claims office is a common trap. Even a properly-timed claim can be treated as untimely if it is delivered to the wrong agency. General guidance:

  • The City of Los Angeles takes claims through the Office of the Los Angeles City Clerk, which forwards them to the City Attorney’s Office.
  • The County of Los Angeles takes claims through the Executive Officer-Clerk of the Board of Supervisors.
  • Caltrans and other state agencies use the California Department of General Services / Government Claims Program.
  • School districts use the district’s designated claims administrator.
  • Transit agencies use the agency’s designated claims office.

Each has its own form, its own service method, and its own processing rules. And each ambiguity resolves against the claimant.

Late Claims

California recognizes limited exceptions. Under Government Code §911.4, a late-claim application may be filed within one year of the injury on grounds including excusable delay, mistake, inadvertence, or minority. Under §911.6, the public entity has discretion to accept or reject that application. Rejected late-claim applications can be reviewed in court, but the review is deferential to the public entity.

For minors, the six-month claim deadline still runs, but the late-claim process is more forgiving. Even then, the reality is that evidence preservation and medical documentation are time-sensitive regardless of tolling.

Practical Steps: Move on the Six-Month Clock, Not the Two-Year Clock

If any of the following are true, treat the case as a potential Government Claims Act case until proven otherwise:

  • The crash happened on a road that may be state, city, or county controlled.
  • A vehicle involved was owned by or in service of a public agency.
  • The injury happened on public property.
  • The injury happened at a school, park, courthouse, or municipal facility.
  • Any government employee acting on the job was involved.

The two-year statute of limitations under California Code of Civil Procedure §335.1 is comforting, but it does not save a case against a public entity if the six-month claim deadline is missed. Every week you wait is one you cannot get back.

Ravan Law offers a free case review with attorney Ted H. Ravan directly, no case manager, no runaround. If a public entity may share fault, the California government claim procedure is unforgiving and worth checking within days, not months. Get your free consultation with a Los Angeles injury attorney today. You pay nothing unless we recover compensation for you.

Attorney Advertising. Ted Ravan, Ravan Law, Los Angeles, CA. This content is general information, not legal advice and does not create an attorney-client relationship. Every case depends on its specific facts.