An action against a public entity upon a cause of action for which a claim is required to be presented in accordance with Chapter 1 (commencing with Section 900) and Chapter 2 (commencing with Section 910) of Part 3 of Division 3.6 of Title 1 of the Government Code must be commenced within the time provided in Section 945.6 of the Government Code.
§ 342.Action Against Public Entity For Which Claim Required to Be Presented
Title 2. Of the Time of Commencing Civil Actions · Chapter 3. The Time of Commencing Actions Other Than for the Recovery of Real Property · Enacted 1715 · no amendments on record · Last verified July 28, 2026
In one sentenceSection 342 sends the deadline for suing a public entity, when a claim must first be presented under the Government Claims Act, to the timing rule in Government Code § 945.6 rather than setting its own number of years.
Full Text of § 342
Plain-English Summary
Section 342 is a pointer rather than a self-contained deadline. When a cause of action against a public entity is one for which a claim must first be presented under Government Code Chapter 1 (commencing with § 900) and Chapter 2 (commencing with § 910) of the Government Claims Act, the lawsuit itself must be commenced within the time set out in Government Code § 945.6, not on any of this chapter’s own timetables.
In practice, that claims-presentation requirement and its own short deadlines run first, and only after a claim is presented (and denied, or deemed denied) does the Government Code’s own filing deadline for the lawsuit start.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the deadline to sue a public entity in California?
Section 342 doesn’t set its own number; it directs the reader to Government Code § 945.6, which governs suits following the Government Claims Act’s claim-presentation process.
Do I need to file a claim with the government agency before suing?
Yes, for causes of action covered by the Government Claims Act (Government Code §§ 900-935), and § 342 confirms that the lawsuit deadline itself is set by Government Code § 945.6.
Amendment History
Added by Stats. 1963, Ch. 1715.
Source & verification. Section text is reproduced verbatim from
the Deering's California Codes Annotated / vLex. Enacted by the California Legislature.
Last verified July 28, 2026.
· Official source
Also known as: statute of limitations sue government entity Californiagovernment claims act deadline California