No provision in a bond is valid that attempts by contract to shorten the period prescribed by Section 337 or other statute for the commencement of an action on the bond or the period prescribed by Section 996.440 for a motion to enforce a bond. This section does not apply if the principal, beneficiary, and surety accept a provision for a shorter period in a bond.
§ 996.450.Contract Provision Shortening Period For Commencing Action Invalid
Title 14. Of Miscellaneous Provisions · Chapter 2. Bonds and Undertakings · Article 14. Liability of Principal and Sureties · Enacted 1982 · no amendments on record · Last verified July 28, 2026
In one sentenceSection 996.450 voids any bond provision that tries to shorten the statutory period for suing on the bond under § 337 or another statute, or the period for moving to enforce it under § 996.440, unless the principal, the beneficiary, and the surety all accept a shorter period.
Full Text of § 996.450
Plain-English Summary
Bond forms sometimes try to build in their own shorter limitations period, and this section shuts that down as a general matter. A contractual provision that shortens either the statute of limitations for an action on the bond, typically the four-year written-contract period in § 337, or the one-year window § 996.440 sets for a motion to enforce the bond, is invalid.
The one exception requires unanimous agreement: if the principal, the beneficiary, and the surety all accept a shorter period, that provision stands. What doesn't work is a surety unilaterally inserting a shortened deadline into the bond form and expecting the beneficiary, who often had no say in drafting the bond, to be bound by it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a bond shorten the deadline for suing on it?
Not by a unilateral contract provision. Such a provision is invalid unless the principal, beneficiary, and surety all accept it.
What statutory periods does this section protect?
Is there any way a shorter period can be made valid?
Yes, if the principal, the beneficiary, and the surety all accept a provision for a shorter period.
Amendment History
Added by Stats. 1982, Ch. 998, Sec. 1.
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: bond shortened statute of limitations invalidcan a bond shorten time to sue