The weeks after a serious accident rarely leave room for paperwork. You are juggling hospital visits, missed work and a household running on adrenaline. That kind of pressure can push legal deadlines aside, but California injury cases still run on strict filing rules that do not pause while you recover or grieve.
The two-year deadline for most injury claims
California gives most injury victims two years from the accident to file a lawsuit. That window comes from a two-year filing rule set by state law, which covers cases where another party’s wrongful act or neglect causes injury or death.
The same period generally applies to wrongful death claims, though that clock usually starts on the day your loved one passed away, not the accident itself. Treat this deadline as a hard boundary from the start, because a court can dismiss even a carefully documented case after the filing period expires.
What can affect the start date
The starting date is not always obvious. Some injuries, such as a traumatic brain injury or internal damage, produce no clear symptoms right away. California’s delayed discovery rule may push the start date to the moment you discovered, or reasonably should have discovered, that you were harmed.
Because that exception depends on medical facts, records and timing, the safer approach to recovering damages after an accident is to count from the accident date unless a lawyer identifies a clear reason not to.
Shorter deadlines for public agency claims
Not every deadline runs a full two years. If a city bus, a state vehicle or a poorly maintained public road contributed to your accident, stricter rules apply. Before you can sue a public agency, you generally must present a formal notice within a six-month claim deadline.
That notice comes before the lawsuit, and missing it can end your case before it begins. Public entities are not always obvious, so look early for every possible party to protect your claim.
Why waiting works against you
Deadlines are only part of the reason to move quickly. Physical evidence fades fast, since skid marks wash away, damaged vehicles return to service and security footage disappears within weeks, while witnesses forget details or grow difficult to reach. In truck cases, electronic data, maintenance records and dispatch information may also matter, especially when a commercial driver, delivery company or maintenance contractor could share responsibility.
The sooner you gather records and document what happened, the stronger your footing if you decide to pursue a claim. Minors receive extra time, since California generally pauses their deadline until they turn 18, though most adults get no such flexibility.
Put the deadline where you can see it
Take one simple action right away: write down the accident date, count forward two years and mark it somewhere you will see. Then set a reminder a few months earlier so the deadline never sneaks up on you. Injury deadlines are unforgiving but predictable, and a little planning now keeps your options open for the decisions that matter most.