When a person is, by reason of the existence of a state of war, under a disability to commence an action, the time of the continuance of such disability is not part of the period limited for the commencement of the action whether such cause of action shall have accrued prior to or during the period of such disability.
§ 354.Person Under Disability to Commence Action By Reason of Existence of State of War
Title 2. Of the Time of Commencing Civil Actions · Chapter 4. General Provisions as to the Time of Commencing Actions · Last amended 1943 · Last verified July 28, 2026
In one sentenceSection 354 tolls the limitations period for the duration of a disability to commence an action caused by the existence of a state of war, regardless of whether the claim accrued before or during that disability.
Full Text of § 354
Plain-English Summary
Section 354 addresses a disruption outside any individual plaintiff's control: a state of war that makes it impossible or impracticable to bring a lawsuit. When that condition creates a disability to commence an action, the time the disability continues is excluded from the limitations period.
The tolling applies whether the underlying cause of action accrued before the disability began or arose during it. Either way, the war-created disability suspends the clock for as long as it lasts.
This provision is a legacy safeguard rooted in wartime disruption to courts, travel, and communication, sitting alongside the other disability-based tolling rules in this chapter such as §§ 352 and 356.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a state of war extend a filing deadline in California?
Yes. Section 354 excludes the time a person is under a disability to commence an action because of a state of war from the limitations period.
Does it matter whether the claim arose before or during the wartime disability?
No. Section 354 applies whether the cause of action accrued before or during the period of the disability created by the state of war.
Amendment History
Amended by Stats. 1943, Ch. 151.
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: wartime tolling statute of limitations californiastate of war disability to sue