Many California wrongful-death lawsuits are subject to a two-year limitations period under Code of Civil Procedure section 335.1. California’s Supreme Court has described the date of death as the usual accrual date because a wrongful-death claim is not complete until the death occurs. The deadline is not always two years, however. Claims involving public entities, alleged medical malpractice, minors, felony convictions, or genuinely delayed discovery require separate analysis, and an earlier deadline may control.

Deadline warning: This page provides general information, not a calculation of the deadline in a particular case. Identify every potential defendant and obtain legal advice promptly. An insurance claim, investigation, criminal case, or settlement discussion does not automatically stop a civil filing period.

Wrongful Death written on a paper with a gavel

How long do you have to file a wrongful death lawsuit in California?

California Code of Civil Procedure section 335.1 gives two years for an action based on a death caused by another person’s wrongful act or neglect. For wrongful death, the California Supreme Court has identified the date of death as the usual accrual date. If an injury and death occurred on different dates, the ordinary wrongful-death period therefore generally begins with the death, not the earlier accident. That is a general rule, not a universal deadline: a more specific statute, a different accrual rule, or a valid tolling rule may change the result.

A statute of limitations is a law that sets a filing deadline. It is different from an insurance-company deadline, an administrative-claim requirement, or a court scheduling date. A single case can involve more than one time limit.

Does the deadline begin on the accident date or the date of death?

For an ordinary California wrongful-death claim, the usual starting point is the date of death. That date may be the same as the date of the accident, but it is not always the same. For example, if a person is seriously injured in a collision and dies from those injuries several months later, the ordinary wrongful-death analysis generally begins with the death. Other claims arising from the incident may have their own accrual dates and deadlines.

When can a different or shorter deadline apply?

The two-year period is an important general rule, but it is not a safe deadline calculator. The identity of the defendant, the cause of death, the claimant, and the facts surrounding discovery can change the analysis.

Claims involving a public entity or public employee

California’s Government Claims Act can require a separate administrative claim before a lawsuit may proceed. Under Government Code section 911.2, a claim relating to death is generally required to be presented to the public entity no later than six months after the cause of action accrues.

The general sequence is:

  1. Present the claim. The death or personal-injury claim generally must be presented within six months after accrual. Six months should not be treated as interchangeable with 180 days.
  2. Entity response. Under section 912.4, the entity generally has 45 days to act unless the claimant and entity extend that period by written agreement. If the entity does not act in time, the claim is deemed rejected on the last day of the response period.
  3. Compliant written rejection. If the entity gives written notice in accordance with section 913, section 945.6 generally requires suit no later than six months after the notice is personally delivered or deposited in the mail.
  4. No compliant section 913 notice. Section 945.6 specifies a two-year suit period from accrual. That lawsuit period does not excuse a failure to satisfy the separate claim-presentation requirement.
  5. Late-claim application. If the six-month presentation period was missed, section 911.4 permits a written application for leave to present a late claim. It must be submitted within a reasonable time not exceeding one year after accrual, explain the delay, and attach the proposed claim. Relief is not automatic, and additional administrative and court deadlines can follow a denial.

Because the claim-presentation and lawsuit periods are separate, families should not wait for the ordinary two-year deadline before investigating possible public defendants. Any possible involvement by a city, county, state agency, transit operator, public hospital, public school, or other government body should be evaluated immediately.

Death caused by professional medical negligence

GJEL Accident Attorneys does not handle medical-malpractice cases. If a death allegedly resulted from a qualifying health care provider’s professional negligence, Code of Civil Procedure section 340.5 may govern instead of the ordinary two-year rule. It generally requires commencement by the earlier of three years after the injury or one year after the claimant discovers, or through reasonable diligence should have discovered, the injury. For a wrongful-death claim governed by section 340.5, the California Supreme Court has interpreted “injury” as the death together with its allegedly wrongful cause. The statute identifies fraud, intentional concealment, and a nontherapeutic or nondiagnostic foreign body as circumstances that can toll its three-year ceiling, and it contains separate language concerning minors.

Code of Civil Procedure section 364 also generally requires at least 90 days’ notice before filing a professional-negligence action. When that notice is served during the final 90 days of the applicable limitations period, subdivision (d) provides a 90-day extension from service. Whether a defendant qualifies as a health care provider, whether the conduct was professional negligence, and how these periods interact require attorney analysis.

A family that suspects medical negligence should promptly consult a qualified medical-malpractice lawyer. The State Bar of California’s legal-help service provides lawyer-referral resources.

Delayed discovery and exposure-related deaths

Delayed discovery does not automatically give a family two years from the day it learns every fact, obtains an expert opinion, or identifies every defendant. In Norgart v. Upjohn Co., the California Supreme Court called death the usual accrual date and, for purposes of its analysis, assumed that delayed discovery might apply when a plaintiff was blamelessly ignorant of the claim. Even under that assumption, time began when the claimant actually suspected, or reasonably should have suspected, a factual basis for believing wrongdoing caused the death. A claimant cannot safely wait for complete proof or a final legal theory. Counsel should evaluate any delayed-discovery argument from the evidence and the family’s investigation timeline.

Exposure claims illustrate why the governing rule must be identified first. Code of Civil Procedure section 340.2 contains a one-year framework for asbestos-related wrongful death, while section 340.8 contains a different two-year framework for certain hazardous-material or toxic-substance claims.

A family should not add two years to the date it learned a new fact and assume that is the deadline. An attorney must identify the applicable cause of action and accrual rule.

Claims involving a minor beneficiary

Code of Civil Procedure section 352 may toll the limitations period for a minor heir’s own nonpublic claim when the heir was under 18 at accrual. In Cross v. Pacific Gas & Electric Co., the California Supreme Court held that expiration of adult heirs’ periods did not eliminate the minor plaintiffs’ wrongful-death rights.

This does not create a universal rule that every minor may wait until age 20. Section 352 expressly excludes state-law actions against public entities or employees for which a government claim is required; section 911.4 generally counts minority when applying its one-year late-claim ceiling; and section 340.5 contains different minor language for professional-negligence cases. The identity and age of every potential heir should be reviewed promptly.

Death connected to criminal conduct

An investigation, arrest, criminal charge, or pending prosecution does not itself activate Code of Civil Procedure section 340.3. That statute concerns a damages action based on a felony for which the defendant has actually been convicted. Unless a longer period applies, subdivision (a) sets one year after judgment is pronounced. Subdivision (b) provides a different period for specified serious felonies—within 10 years after discharge from parole—subject to statutory exclusions. Because application depends on an actual conviction, the offense, the judgment, and other facts, a family should not postpone a civil case while waiting for criminal proceedings.

Do insurance negotiations stop the filing deadline?

Opening an insurance claim, exchanging correspondence, or discussing settlement does not by itself stop or extend a statutory filing period. Depending on the case, a lawsuit may need to be filed before the deadline even while negotiations continue.

Submitting an administrative claim, waiting for an investigation, or receiving assurances that a claim is being reviewed should not be treated as proof that a civil deadline has been extended. A statute, court order, or valid agreement may affect timing in a particular case, but a lawyer should confirm that before anyone relies on it.

Timely filing may preserve a claim in court; it does not necessarily mean the case will go to trial. Many cases resolve through negotiation after filing.

Why acting early matters even before the deadline

Important evidence can disappear long before a filing deadline arrives. Witness recollections fade, surveillance footage may be overwritten, accident scenes change, vehicles can be repaired or destroyed, and records become harder to obtain. Early investigation can help identify responsible parties, preserve physical and electronic evidence, and determine whether a short pre-lawsuit claim deadline applies.

Waiting also leaves less time to identify every potential defendant and investigate whether a government body, health care provider, defective product, or another specialized rule is involved.

Frequently asked questions

Is California’s wrongful-death deadline two years from the accident or the death?

For an ordinary claim governed by section 335.1, the date of death is generally the starting point, even if the injury-producing event occurred earlier. Public-entity, medical-malpractice, delayed-discovery, and other rules can change the analysis.

Do I receive two years from discovering that the death may have been wrongful?

Not automatically. California’s Supreme Court identifies death as the usual accrual date. A delayed-discovery argument is fact-specific and turns on when the claimant knew or reasonably should have suspected that wrongdoing caused the death—not when every fact or defendant was finally known.

How soon must I act if a government entity may be responsible?

A death claim generally must be presented to the public entity within six months after accrual. The entity’s response and the form and delivery date of any rejection notice then affect the separate lawsuit period. A possible public defendant should be investigated immediately.

What if the six-month government-claim deadline has passed?

A late-claim application may sometimes be available under section 911.4, but it must be made within a reasonable time not exceeding one year after accrual, must explain the delay, and is not automatically granted. Obtain counsel immediately rather than assuming the claim can be restored.

Is the deadline different when medical negligence caused the death?

Potentially. Section 340.5 generally uses the earlier of three years after the injury and one year after actual or reasonably discoverable injury. In a covered wrongful-death claim, “injury” has been interpreted as the death with its allegedly wrongful cause. A 90-day pre-suit notice rule and the provider/professional-negligence definitions also matter.

Does a minor heir always have until age 20 to sue?

No. Minority may toll some nonpublic claims, but public-entity claims and professional-negligence cases have different statutes, and all heirs must be considered in the wrongful-death procedure. A minor’s deadline should be calculated by counsel rather than from a general age formula.

Does a criminal prosecution extend the civil deadline?

Not automatically. Section 340.3 applies only after an actual felony conviction and contains offense- and judgment-specific periods. Do not wait for the criminal case before protecting a civil claim.

Do settlement discussions extend the deadline?

Not automatically. Continue to calculate the earliest applicable deadline unless a valid written agreement, court order, or legal tolling rule clearly changes it.

Is a wrongful-death deadline the same as a survival-action deadline?

No. A wrongful-death claim addresses losses suffered by people authorized to bring it. A survival action continues a cause of action that belonged to the deceased person. Different parties and limitations rules apply, and death does not automatically restart a claim the deceased person held.

Who may file a California wrongful-death lawsuit?

California limits who may bring the claim. Eligibility is a separate issue from timing. Read GJEL’s guide to who may file a wrongful-death lawsuit in California, which should be reviewed separately against current Code of Civil Procedure section 377.60.

Does filing a lawsuit mean the family must go to trial?

No. Filing preserves access to the court and can protect the claim from a limitations defense. Many filed cases resolve without trial. GJEL explains more about whether a wrongful-death lawsuit requires going to court.

California legal sources

Talk with a California wrongful-death attorney promptly

A lawyer can identify the potentially responsible parties, determine which claim-presentation and lawsuit deadlines may apply, and take steps to preserve evidence. Contact GJEL’s California wrongful-death attorneys for a review of the facts.