Cal. Civ. Code § 1714; CACI Nos. 400, 401
Negligence in California: two years, and a six-month trap if you're suing the government
A claim in California superior courts · Last verified August 26, 2026
Negligence is the backbone of California's personal injury docket, and the elements are the ones everyone learns: duty, breach, causation, damages.
What makes the California version worth its own page is not the elements. It is two procedural features that decide cases before anyone reaches them.
If a public entity is anywhere in your case, you must present a written claim within six months — and you can blow that deadline while still comfortably inside the two-year limitations period, and lose anyway.
And several things routinely pleaded as causes of action are not causes of action at all — negligence per se, respondeat superior, alter ego. Getting that wrong invites a demurrer.
What the claim is
Someone failed to use reasonable care and you were hurt.
The everyday cases: vehicle collisions, dangerous property conditions, negligent supervision, professional errors, and the long tail of ordinary carelessness that produces injury.
Where the right comes from
Common law, resting on a statute the Legislature enacted in 1872 and has barely touched since. Civil Code § 1714(a) provides that everyone is responsible
for an injury occasioned to another by his or her want of ordinary care or skill in the management of his or her property or person.
That single sentence is the foundation of California tort law.
What a plaintiff has to prove — CACI Nos. 400 and 401
- Duty — the defendant owed the plaintiff a duty of care.
- Breach — the defendant failed to use reasonable care.
- Causation — the breach was a substantial factor in causing the harm (CACI No. 430).
- Damages.
Duty is a question of law for the judge, not the jury, and California resolves it through the multi-factor analysis from Rowland v. Christian: foreseeability of harm, the certainty of injury, the connection between the conduct and the injury, moral blame, the policy of preventing future harm, the burden on the defendant and consequences to the community, and the availability and cost of insurance.
California uses substantial factor causation rather than the but-for test, which is more forgiving where multiple causes combined to produce the injury.
How long you have to file
Two years for personal injury, under CCP § 335.1.
Three years for property damage, under CCP § 338.
The delayed discovery rule applies where the injury or its cause was not reasonably discoverable.
Medical negligence runs on a different track entirely — CCP § 340.5 gives three years from injury or one year from discovery, whichever comes first, plus a 90-day notice requirement under CCP § 364 before filing.
What has to happen before you file — the Government Claims Act
Nothing, if you are suing a private defendant.
Everything, if a public entity is involved. This is the most consequential procedural requirement in California tort practice and it catches people constantly.
Before suing a public entity — a city, county, school district, transit authority, or the State — you must present a written claim to it, and for personal injury or property damage the period is six months from accrual.
If you miss it, there is a rescue sequence, and each step has its own deadline:
- A written application for leave to present a late claim, within one year of accrual.
- If that is denied, a petition to the superior court for relief, within six months of the denial.
Character: a condition precedent to suit. The California Supreme Court has held that timely presentation is an element the plaintiff must plead and prove — not merely a defense for the entity to raise. Government Code § 945.4 bars the action without it.
Say the trap plainly: the six-month claim deadline and the two-year limitations period are different clocks. A plaintiff injured by a city bus who waits eight months to consult a lawyer is still well inside the statute of limitations and may already have lost the case.
Who can be sued — and who cannot
Any person or entity whose carelessness caused the harm.
Public entities carry their own immunities under the Government Claims Act — including discretionary act immunity, which protects policy judgments. And a claim against a public entity for a dangerous condition of public property must be brought under the specific statute governing it, Gov. Code § 835, rather than as ordinary negligence.
Employers are liable for employee negligence within the scope of employment — but note what that is. Respondeat superior is a theory of vicarious liability, not a cause of action. Plead negligence and allege the employment relationship.
Common defenses
Comparative fault. California is a pure comparative negligence state, so a plaintiff 90% at fault still recovers 10%. There is no contributory-negligence bar and no 50% cutoff.
Proposition 51 several liability. Under Civ. Code § 1431.2, defendants are jointly liable for economic damages but severally liable for non-economic damages in proportion to fault. A defendant 10% responsible pays 10% of the pain and suffering — and all of the medical bills if the others cannot pay.
Assumption of risk, primary and secondary.
The statute of limitations, and for public entities, failure to present a timely claim.
What the claim pays
Economic damages — medical expenses, lost earnings, future care.
Non-economic damages — pain, suffering, disfigurement, loss of enjoyment — subject to Proposition 51 apportionment.
Emotional distress damages where there is physical injury, or where the case fits a recognised duty supporting negligent infliction.
Punitive damages only on a Civil Code § 3294 showing — oppression, fraud, or malice, proven by clear and convincing evidence. Ordinary negligence never supports punitive damages; the plaintiff must show something closer to conscious disregard of others' safety. And § 3295 bars pretrial discovery of the defendant's financial condition without a court order.
No fee-shifting. The American rule applies unless a statute or contract supplies otherwise.
Jury trial: yes.
What people get wrong
"Negligence per se is a cause of action." It is not. It is an evidentiary presumption under Evidence Code § 669 — the violation of a statute designed to prevent this kind of harm to this kind of person creates a presumption of negligence. Plead negligence and invoke the presumption.
"Respondeat superior is a cause of action." No — a theory of vicarious liability.
"Alter ego is a cause of action." No — a theory for reaching an owner behind an entity.
"I have two years, so I have time." Not against a public entity. Six months.
"I was partly at fault, so I can't recover." California is pure comparative — your recovery is reduced, not barred.
"Each defendant pays everything." For non-economic damages, no. Proposition 51 apportions them.
Where it came from
Section 1714 has stated California's basic duty rule since 1872 in substantially its current words.
Two decisions rebuilt everything around it. Rowland v. Christian (1968) abolished the rigid categories of invitee, licensee, and trespasser in favour of a general duty of ordinary care assessed through the factors that now bear its name. Li v. Yellow Cab Co. (1975) replaced contributory negligence — which had barred a plaintiff even 1% at fault — with pure comparative fault.
Proposition 51 in 1986 was the voters partially undoing joint liability, splitting economic from non-economic damages. And the Legislature responded to Rowland in 1985 by partially restoring landowner protection against certain trespasser claims.
The result is a field where the common law moved first and the Legislature and electorate have been adjusting the balance ever since.
Common questions
How long do I have to file a personal injury claim in California?
Two years from the injury under CCP § 335.1. Property damage gets three years. Medical negligence runs on a separate track — three years from injury or one year from discovery, whichever is first.
What if a city or government agency caused my injury?
You must present a written claim to the entity within six months, before suing. Missing it bars the case even though the two-year limitations period is still running. If you miss it, apply for leave to present a late claim within one year.
Can I still recover if the accident was partly my fault?
Yes. California is a pure comparative negligence state, so your damages are reduced by your share of fault but never barred by it.
Can I get punitive damages in a negligence case?
Rarely. Civil Code § 3294 requires oppression, fraud, or malice proven by clear and convincing evidence. Ordinary carelessness does not qualify.
Is negligence per se a separate claim I should plead?
No. It is an evidentiary presumption under Evidence Code § 669. Plead negligence and rely on the statutory violation to establish breach.