An action to recognize a tribal court money judgment or any renewal thereof shall be commenced within the earlier of the following periods:
§ 1739.Action to Recognize Judgment
Title 11. Money Judgments of Other Jurisdictions · Chapter 3. Tribal Court Civil Money Judgment Act · Enacted 2014 · no amendments on record · Last verified July 29, 2026
In one sentenceSection 1739 requires an action to recognize a tribal court money judgment, or its renewal, to be commenced within the earlier of the judgment's remaining effective period in the tribal jurisdiction or ten years from when it became effective there.
Full Text of § 1739
(a) The time during which the tribal court money judgment is effective within the territorial jurisdiction of the tribal court.
(b) Ten years from the date that the tribal court money judgment became effective in the tribal jurisdiction.
Plain-English Summary
Recognition actions can't be filed forever, and Section 1739 sets the deadline. An action to recognize a tribal court money judgment, or to recognize a renewal of one, has to start within whichever of two periods runs out first: the time the judgment remains effective under the tribal court's own jurisdiction, or ten years from the date the judgment first became effective there.
Tying the deadline to the shorter of these two measures keeps California's recognition window from outlasting the judgment's own life in the tribe's legal system, while still giving an applicant up to a full decade to act even if tribal law would otherwise allow a longer effective period.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long does an applicant have to bring an action to recognize a tribal court money judgment?
Until the earlier of the judgment's remaining effective period under tribal law or ten years from the date it became effective in the tribal jurisdiction.
Does this deadline apply to a renewed tribal court judgment too?
Yes. The section applies the same earlier-of-the-two-periods deadline to an action to recognize a renewal of a tribal court money judgment.
What happens if the judgment is still effective in the tribal jurisdiction beyond ten years?
The ten-year outer limit still controls, since the deadline runs from whichever of the two periods expires first.
Amendment History
Added by Stats 2014 ch 243 (SB 406),s 4, eff. 1/1/2015.
Source & verification. Section text is reproduced verbatim from
the Deering's California Codes Annotated / vLex. Enacted by the California Legislature.
Last verified July 29, 2026.
· Official source
Also known as: statute of limitations tribal court judgmentten year deadline recognize tribal judgment