As used in this chapter, unless the provision or context otherwise requires:
§ 583.110.Definitions
Title 8. Of the Trial and Judgment In Civil Actions · Chapter 1.5. Dismissal for Delay in Prosecution · Article 1. Definitions and General Provisions · Enacted 1705 · no amendments on record · Last verified July 28, 2026
In one sentenceSection 583.110 defines six terms -- action, complaint, court, defendant, plaintiff, and service -- used throughout Chapter 1.5's mandatory and discretionary dismissal-for-delay rules, each defined broadly enough to reach cross-complaints and cross-defendants unless context requires otherwise.
Full Text of § 583.110
(a) "Action" includes an action commenced by cross-complaint or other pleading that asserts a cause of action or claim for relief.
(b) "Complaint" includes a cross-complaint or other initial pleading.
(c) "Court" means the court in which the action is pending.
(d) "Defendant" includes a cross-defendant or other person against whom an action is commenced.
(e) "Plaintiff" includes a cross-complainant or other person by whom an action is commenced.
(f) "Service" includes return of summons.
Plain-English Summary
Chapter 1.5's deadlines and dismissal rules only make sense once you know who counts as a party and what counts as an action. This section supplies that vocabulary for the whole chapter. "Action" reaches beyond an original complaint to include one commenced by cross-complaint or any other pleading asserting a claim for relief, and "complaint" likewise includes a cross-complaint or other initial pleading.
The party definitions follow the same pattern: "defendant" includes a cross-defendant or anyone else against whom an action is commenced, and "plaintiff" includes a cross-complainant or anyone else who commences an action. "Court" means the court where the action is pending, and "service" includes the return of summons.
Because a cross-complaint is treated as its own action for purposes of this chapter, the five-year and three-year deadlines in the sections that follow can run separately on a cross-complaint from when they run on the original complaint — a detail that matters in any case where a defendant files a cross-claim well after the original filing date.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Chapter 1.5's dismissal-for-delay chapter apply to cross-complaints?
Yes. Section 583.110 defines "action" to include one commenced by cross-complaint, and "defendant" and "plaintiff" to include cross-defendants and cross-complainants.
What does "service" mean for purposes of this chapter?
It includes the return of summons, not just the act of serving the defendant.
Can these definitions be overridden?
Yes, the section applies these definitions "unless the provision or context otherwise requires," leaving room for a specific section to use a term differently if context demands it.
Amendment History
Added by Stats. 1984, Ch. 1705, Sec. 5.
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: definitions dismissal for delay chapter californiacross-complaint five year rule california