5 situations where the statute of limitations is “tolled” in California

There are five common situations when there is a tolling of the statute of limitations in a California personal injury case. These are when the plaintiff is:

1. a minor,
2. located out of the state,
3. incapacitated,
4. legally insane, or
5. in prison.

A “statute of limitations” is a legal term meaning the period of time a person has to bring a lawsuit. If a party brings a claim after the limitations period expires, then the claim will likely be dismissed, per California Code of Civil Procedure Section 335.1.

“Tolling” provisions work to stop or temporarily suspend the statute of limitations period. When the tolling period comes to an end, the clock starts ticking again.

California law states that the statute of limitations for most personal injury claims is two years from the date of the injury. The two-year period starts to run when the plaintiff knows — or reasonably should know — of the injury.

The following graphic illustrates the five conditions that toll the statute of limitations in personal injury cases.

 

What is a statute of limitations?

A California statute of limitations is a deadline by which a lawsuit or civil cause of action must be filed. State law says that once the limitations period has run, or expired, a plaintiff can no longer sue for compensatory damages.¹

The general statute of limitations in a California personal injury case is two years from the date of the injury.²

This two-year period applies to such injury cases that involve:

• automobile accidents,
• dog bites,
• slip and fall accidents, and
• product liability claims.

Note that medical malpractice cases are an exception to the general two-year statute of limitations rule. In general, the statute of limitations for these cases is one year from the date of discovery that injury was caused by medical negligence, or three years from the date of the injury, whichever happens sooner.³ In contrast, note that the statute of limitations for actions involving a written contract varies from one to four years.⁴

When is the statute of limitations tolled?

Sometimes the statute of limitations is suspended or does not begin running for a certain period of time. This is known as “tolling.”

A limitations time period may be tolled when the defendant is:

• a minor, or under the age of 18,
• out of the state,
• in prison,
• legally insane ⁵

Once the condition leading to tolling has ended, then the tolling period ends as well, and the statute of limitations begins to run or resumes.

Consider, for example, a case where a parent dies in a work-related accident and is survived by a 15-year-old daughter. The daughter wishes to file a wrongful death claim under California Code of Civ. Procedure 377.60 CCP.

Here, since the daughter is a minor, the statute of limitations is tolled, or stopped, until she turns 18 years of age. Once she turns 18, then the limitations period begins, and she must file a claim before turning 20 years of age.

Cases involving tolling can be quite complicated. It is highly recommended that people get legal advice from personal injury law firms to determine whether they can still sue. An experienced injury attorney will be able to inform when a party must file a claim.

What was emergency rule 9?

Emergency rule 9 refers to a collection of court rules adopted in California that worked to toll certain cases due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

On April 6, 2020, the California State Judicial Council adopted emergency rule 9 to suspend statutes of limitation on all civil cases in California court until 90 days after the Governor lifted the state of emergency related to coronavirus on February 28, 2023.

What is the discovery rule?

The discovery rule provides for a type of equitable tolling.

The rule applies when either:

1. the plaintiff did not know of facts that would have caused a reasonable person to suspect that he or she had suffered harm that was caused by someone’s wrongful conduct, or
2. a reasonable and good faith investigation would not have disclosed that a harmful product or situation contributed to the plaintiff’s harm.⁶

When the rule applies, it works to delay the statute of limitations, and a plaintiff can file a claim as late as one year after the injury was (or should have been) discovered.

Why is there a statute of limitations?

Statutes of limitations exist out of a sense of fundamental fairness. Memories fade, evidence is inadvertently destroyed, and witnesses move away. If there were no limits to bringing an action, it is quite possible that a claimant could win a lawsuit with truly little legitimate support.

Similarly, a limitations period both:

• encourages plaintiffs to diligently pursue their claims, and
• protects people from having to defend “stale” claims.⁷

Additional Resources

For more in-depth information, refer to these scholarly articles:

• Historical Abuse and the Statute of Limitations – Statute Law Review.
• Contribution among Tortfeasors: The Effects of Statutes of Limitations and Other Time Limitations – Oklahoma Law Review.
• Statutes of limitations for accident cases: Theory and evidence – Research in Law and Economics.
• Statutes of Limitations and the Discovery Rule in Latent Injury Claims: An Exception or the Law – University of Pittsburgh Law Review.
• Civil Rights – Statute of Limitations – State Limitation Period for Personal Injury Actions Applies to All Section 1983 Claims – Seton Hall Law Review.

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Legal References:

1. California Code of Civil Procedure 335.1 CCP.
2. See same.
3. California Code of Civil Procedure 340.5 CCP. See also Gutierrez v. Tostado (Cal.App. 2023) 97 Cal. App. 5th 786; Engel v. Pech (Cal.App. 2023) 95 Cal. App. 5th 1227.
4. See California Code of Civil Procedure 337 CCP.
5. See In Weinstock v. Eissler (CA Court of Appeals, First District, Division 1, 1964) 224 Cal.App.2d 212.
6. California Civil Jury Instructions (CACI) 45.
7. See Jolly v. Eli Lilly (California Supreme Court, 1988) 44 Cal.3d 1103.