An action shall be brought to trial within five years after the action is commenced against the defendant.
§ 583.310.Generally
Title 8. Of the Trial and Judgment In Civil Actions · Chapter 1.5. Dismissal for Delay in Prosecution · Article 3. Mandatory Time for Bringing Action to Trial or New Trial · Enacted 1705 · no amendments on record · Last verified July 28, 2026
In one sentenceSection 583.310 sets California's mandatory five-year rule, requiring that an action be brought to trial within five years after it is commenced against the defendant.
Full Text of § 583.310
Plain-English Summary
This single sentence is one of the most consulted deadlines in California civil practice. An action has to be brought to trial within five years after it's commenced against the defendant — commencement being the filing date, under the definitions carried over from § 583.110.
Short as it is, this section doesn't stand alone. What counts toward the five years, what gets excluded from the count, how the deadline can be extended by agreement, and what happens at the margin when time is about to run out are all worked out in the sections that follow — §§ 583.320 through 583.360. Practitioners rely on that combination, not this section in isolation, to calculate an actual deadline in a given case.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is California's "five year rule"?
The requirement in § 583.310 that an action be brought to trial within five years after it's commenced against the defendant.
When does the five-year clock start?
At commencement of the action against the defendant, which under this chapter's definitions means the filing of the complaint.
Does this section account for delays outside the plaintiff's control?
Not by itself — the exclusions, extensions, and grace period that adjust the five-year calculation are set out separately in §§ 583.330, 583.340, and 583.350.
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
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