When a child is hurt walking to school, riding a bike, at a playground or in a car crash, the family faces the same questions as any injured adult plus a few that apply only to minors. In the personal injury cases we handle, the child's age changes who speaks for the child in court, which deadlines apply, and what happens to the money. This guide covers those rules for California.
A "minor" in California is anyone under 18 (Family Code 6500). Everything below applies until that birthday. Many of the children we see were hurt on foot or on a bike, which our pedestrian and bicycle accidents page covers in more depth.
How does a child's injury claim move, step by step?
- Medical care and records. A parent can request the child's records; providers must send copies within 15 days of a written request (Health and Safety Code 123110).
- Identify everyone who may be responsible. If a school, a city, a county or a transit agency could be involved, mark the six-month date for a written claim (Government Code 911.2).
- A parent or guardian acts for the child. A parent may negotiate and agree to a settlement of the child's disputed claim (Probate Code 3500). If a lawsuit is filed, the child appears through a guardian ad litem appointed by the court, usually a parent (Code of Civil Procedure 372).
- Settlement talks or a lawsuit. The claim is valued like an adult's, including the child's pain and suffering and future medical needs.
- A petition to the court. Any settlement must be approved by the superior court on a verified petition, using Judicial Council form MC-350 (Probate Code 3500; California Rules of Court, rule 7.950).
- A hearing. The parent and the child must attend unless the court excuses them for good cause (rule 7.952).
- The court decides where the money goes. It can order the money into a blocked account, an annuity or a trust, among other options (Probate Code 3611).
Which deadlines apply to a child's claim?
| Claim against | Deadline | California law |
|---|---|---|
| A private person or business (a driver, a store, a landlord) | 2 years, but the time does not run while the child is under 18 | Code of Civil Procedure 335.1 and 352(a) |
| A public entity (a school district, city, county, transit agency or the State) | Written claim within 6 months; the minority pause does not apply | Government Code 911.2; Code of Civil Procedure 352(b) |
| A public entity, claim missed | Application to file late within a reasonable time, no later than 1 year; the time as a minor counts | Government Code 911.4 |
| A public entity, late claim for a minor | The entity must grant the application if the child was a minor for the whole 6 months, or for part of it if the application is made within 6 months of turning 18 or 1 year after the claim arose, whichever is first | Government Code 911.6(b) |
| A health care provider | 3 years from the act, or until the 8th birthday if that is later for a child under 6 | Code of Civil Procedure 340.5 |
| A child's death | 2 years for the parents' wrongful death claim (6 months for a written claim against a public entity) | Code of Civil Procedure 335.1; Government Code 911.2 |
Why does a court have to approve a child's settlement?
A child cannot sign away a claim, and the law does not let a parent's signature alone settle it either. Under Probate Code 3500, a parent may compromise a minor's disputed claim, but the compromise is valid only after the superior court approves it on a petition. When a lawsuit is pending, the same court approval is required for the guardian ad litem to settle (Code of Civil Procedure 372).
The petition must be verified and prepared on the Judicial Council's form MC-350 (rule 7.950), and the judge reviews it before approving the settlement. Unless the court approved the fee agreement in advance, it applies a reasonable fee standard to any attorney's fees paid from the child's money (rule 7.955).
What happens to the money?
After approved fees, costs and medical expenses are paid, the court orders where the rest goes. The options in Probate Code 3611 include an insured account in a California financial institution or a single-premium deferred annuity, each subject to withdrawal only with court authorization; a guardianship of the estate; a special needs trust after a hearing; a custodian under the California Uniform Transfers to Minors Act; or a trust the court creates or approves. If the balance is $20,000 or less, the court may set other conditions in the child's best interest, and if it is $5,000 or less, it may be paid to a parent without bond.
Money in a blocked account or annuity can be withdrawn only with the court's authorization (Probate Code 3611(b)), so families should not plan on using the child's settlement for household expenses.
What changes the answer?
A school, city or county is involved. The six-month written claim applies even to a child (Government Code 911.2 and Code of Civil Procedure 352(b)). Our guide on filing a claim against a city or county explains the claim. Our guide on who is responsible for a playground injury covers parks and schools.
The child was walking or biking. Fault turns on the Vehicle Code rules for drivers and pedestrians. Read when a driver must yield to a pedestrian for those rules.
The settlement is large or the child has lasting needs. A special needs trust or an annuity may fit better than a blocked account, and the court decides after a hearing (Probate Code 3611).
The child died. The parents bring a wrongful death claim for their own loss. Jurors may consider the loss of the child's love, companionship and care, and any support the child would have given, with a deduction for the probable cost of raising and educating the child (CACI 3922). See what parents can recover for the death of a child.
The injury was caused by medical care. A minor's claim for injury during medical care must generally be filed within three years of the act, or before the eighth birthday for a child under six if that is later (Code of Civil Procedure 340.5), so get advice early.
What could this look like? An example
For example, imagine an 11-year-old riding his bike in Cotati who is hit by a driver backing out of a driveway. He breaks his leg and needs surgery. His parents' health plan pays the hospital.
The driver is a private person, so the two years to sue would not start until the boy turns 18 (Code of Civil Procedure 352). The family still gathers the police report and records right away, while witnesses remember. Months later, the driver's insurer offers a settlement. His mother signs the settlement papers as his parent, but nothing is final until a judge approves it on a petition on form MC-350. At the hearing, which mother and son attend, the judge reviews the medical report, approves the fees and the health plan's repayment, and orders the rest into a blocked account he can reach at 18. This example is made up to show how the rules fit together; it says nothing about any real case.
What mistakes do parents make?
- Assuming the child's case can wait until 18 when a school, city or county was involved.
- Signing a release for the child and believing the case is over without a court order.
- Using the child's settlement money for family bills, which the court order usually does not allow.
- Waiting years to collect evidence, when witnesses move and videos are erased.
- Not telling the court about every medical expense and lien, which delays approval.
What should we do this week?
- Write down the date, time and place of the injury, and who was there.
- Ask whether any public agency was involved; if so, count six months from the injury and mark it.
- Request the child's medical records and keep every bill and health plan statement.
- Get the police or incident report number, or ask the school for its incident report.
- Photograph the place, the child's injuries and any damaged bike, helmet or car seat. If the child was riding, our guide on who is at fault when a car hits a cyclist explains the rules that apply.
- Read our guide on California personal injury deadlines for the other time limits that can apply.
Frequently asked questions
Can a parent recover their own losses when a child is hurt?
Parents usually pay the child's medical bills, and those bills are part of what a claim seeks. How they are claimed, and by whom, is something to raise at a first meeting with a lawyer.
Does the child have to go to court?
For the approval hearing, the parent and the child must attend unless the court excuses them for good cause (rule 7.952).
Who decides how much the lawyer is paid from a child's settlement?
The court. Unless it approved the fee agreement in advance, it uses a reasonable fee standard and considers the agreement and the work done (rule 7.955).
What if my child is 17 and close to turning 18?
Against a private party, the two years start at 18. Against a public entity, the six-month claim rule applies regardless, and the late-claim rule in Government Code 911.6(b)(3) has its own timing. Do not wait for the birthday.
Where would the approval hearing be in Sonoma County?
In the superior court where the case is pending, or for a claim settled without a lawsuit, the superior court that hears the petition. Our guide to Sonoma County Superior Court lists the buildings and offices.
What if the injured person is an adult who cannot manage their own affairs?
The same court approval rules cover a person with a disability, and the deadline pause in Code of Civil Procedure 352 applies to a person lacking legal capacity to make decisions.
If your child was hurt and you are not sure what to do first, contact Young Law Group today at (707) 343-0556 or through our contact page for a free consultation.
Sources
- Family Code section 6500 (a minor is under 18)
- Code of Civil Procedure section 352 (deadline paused while a minor)
- Code of Civil Procedure section 335.1 (two years for an injury or death)
- Code of Civil Procedure section 340.5 (claims against health care providers, including minors)
- Code of Civil Procedure section 372 (guardian ad litem and settlements)
- Government Code section 911.2 (six-month claim to a public entity)
- Government Code section 911.4 (application to present a late claim)
- Government Code section 911.6 (when a late claim must be allowed)
- Probate Code section 3500 (court approval of a minor's settlement)
- Probate Code section 3600 (money paid for a minor under a court order)
- Probate Code section 3611 (where a minor's money may be placed)
- California Rules of Court, rule 7.950 (petition to approve a minor's settlement)
- California Rules of Court, rule 7.952 (attendance at the hearing)
- California Rules of Court, rule 7.955 (attorney's fees in minors' cases)
- Health and Safety Code section 123110 (copies of medical records within 15 days)
- Judicial Council of California: Civil Jury Instructions (CACI), 2026 edition: instruction 3922
