Families often wait before calling a lawyer, and that is understandable. But the deadlines below run during that time, and missing the right one can end a claim. For the claim itself, see our wrongful death page.
How do we find our deadline, step by step?
- Write down two dates: the date of the injury and the date of death, if they were different.
- Ask whether any public agency was involved, such as a county vehicle, a city bus, a state highway, a public hospital or a school. If so, the six-month written claim comes first.
- Ask how the death happened. Medical negligence has its own clock (Code of Civil Procedure 340.5).
- Check the criminal case. A felony conviction can add time, but the family should not wait for it.
- Check whether the person responsible has died. If so, a one-year rule from their death replaces the usual deadline (Code of Civil Procedure 366.2).
- Use the earliest date as the real deadline, and plan to file well before it.
Which deadline applies?
| Situation | Deadline | California law |
|---|---|---|
| Most deaths caused by someone's wrongful act or carelessness: a crash, a fall, a defective product, an assault | Generally 2 years from the death | Code of Civil Procedure 335.1 |
| A city, county, the State or another public entity may be responsible | Written claim within 6 months; a late-claim application no later than 1 year; then a lawsuit within 6 months of a written rejection | Government Code 911.2, 911.4, 945.6 |
| The person responsible was convicted of a felony for the death | Within 1 year after judgment is pronounced, if that is later than the usual deadline | Code of Civil Procedure 340.3 |
| The person responsible has also died | Within 1 year after that person's death, in place of the usual deadline | Code of Civil Procedure 366.2 |
| The death is blamed on a health care provider's professional negligence | 3 years after the injury or 1 year after it was or should have been discovered, whichever comes first | Code of Civil Procedure 340.5 |
| A claim under the family's own uninsured motorist coverage | Within 2 years of the crash: a lawsuit against the uninsured driver, an agreement with the insurer, or arbitration started by certified mail | Insurance Code 11580.2(i) |
If more than one applies, plan around the earliest. When a public entity is involved, that is almost always the six-month claim.
Why is the deadline so much shorter for a public entity?
Because the law requires a written claim to the entity before any lawsuit, and for a death that claim is due within six months (Government Code 911.2). No lawsuit can go forward until the entity acts on the claim or is treated as having rejected it (Government Code 945.4). If the six months pass, a written application to present a late claim can still be made within a reasonable time, no later than one year after the death (Government Code 911.4), and if the entity denies it, a court can grant relief only in limited situations, such as excusable neglect (Government Code 946.6). Public entities include the State, counties, cities and districts, so a county vehicle, a city bus, a state highway or a public hospital can all bring this rule into play. Our guide on how to file an injury claim against a city, county or the State covers what the claim must say and where it goes in Sonoma and Marin County.
Does a criminal case pause the two years?
Section 335.1 has no exception for a pending criminal case, so the family should not wait for the criminal case to end. A felony conviction can add time: an action based on the felony may be filed within one year after judgment is pronounced, unless a longer period applies (Code of Civil Procedure 340.3). Our guide on what happens after a fatal crash in Sonoma County explains how the criminal case and the family's claim differ.
What if the person who caused the death also died?
Then a special rule replaces the usual deadline. If the person who could have been sued dies before the deadline runs out, the action may be brought within one year after their death, and the deadline that would otherwise have applied no longer does (Code of Civil Procedure 366.2). That one year can be extended only in the limited ways the statute lists. The claim is brought against that person's personal representative, subject to the Probate Code's rules for creditor claims against an estate (Code of Civil Procedure 377.40). Depending on the dates, this rule can leave less time than two years. The steps against the estate and its insurance are covered in what happens when the person who caused the death also died.
Does an open insurance claim stop the clock?
In general, no. Talks with an adjuster do not extend these deadlines. Our guide to California personal injury deadlines explains the limited protections the fair claims rules give people who do not have a lawyer.
Do the family members file separately?
The claim may be brought by the family members the law lists, or by the personal representative of the estate on their behalf (Code of Civil Procedure 377.60). Our guide on who can file a wrongful death claim explains who is on the list.
The estate's separate survival claim, for the losses the person suffered before death, also survives only subject to the applicable deadline (Code of Civil Procedure 377.20). Since January 1, 2026, that claim generally cannot include their pain and suffering; see what changed on January 1, 2026.
The family does not need to open probate to file: see whether probate is needed for a wrongful death or survival claim. What the claim can recover is set out in what a family can recover in a wrongful death case. When the person who died was a child, see what parents can recover for the death of a child.
What changes the answer?
A public agency was involved. The six-month claim controls (Government Code 911.2). When the injured person died before the six months ran out, Government Code 911.6(b)(6) requires the entity to grant an application to present a late claim, as long as the application itself is made within the one-year limit in Government Code 911.4.
The other driver was uninsured or fled. The family's own uninsured motorist coverage pays what the heirs are legally entitled to recover for wrongful death, but its two-year steps run from the crash, not the death (Insurance Code 11580.2). Our guide on how uninsured and underinsured motorist coverage works explains them.
The death followed abuse or neglect of an older adult. The estate's claims under the Elder Abuse Act follow their own rules, and financial abuse has four years from discovery (Welfare and Institutions Code 15657.7); see what the Elder Abuse Act adds to a claim.
A doctor or hospital is responsible. The claim must be filed within three years after the injury or one year after the family discovered it, or should have, whichever comes first (Code of Civil Procedure 340.5). When the death happened on the job, workers' compensation death benefits run on their own clock; see a family member who died at work.
The injury and the death were far apart. The two years in section 335.1 run for an action "for the death of" a person, while the person's own claims before death survive only within their own deadlines (Code of Civil Procedure 377.20). When the dates differ, write both down and plan around the earlier one.
What could this look like? An example
For example, imagine a man hit by a county maintenance truck on March 1 who dies in the hospital on April 15. His wife and adult son want to bring a wrongful death claim against the County and the truck's driver.
Because the County is a public entity, the written claim is due within six months. Counting from the injury on March 1, rather than from the death, gives the earliest possible date, early September, and is the safe choice. If the County rejects the claim in writing on October 30, the lawsuit must be filed within six months of that notice. Had the family missed the six months, they could still apply for leave to present a late claim within one year, and because he died before the six months expired, Government Code 911.6(b)(6) would require the County to grant it. This example is made up to show how the deadlines interact; it predicts nothing about a real case.
What mistakes do families make with deadlines?
- Waiting for the criminal case to end before calling a lawyer.
- Assuming two years is the only deadline when a public road, vehicle or hospital was involved.
- Counting from the date of death when an earlier date may control.
- Assuming an insurer's settlement talks pause the deadline.
- Not realizing the person responsible has died and a one-year rule now applies.
- Thinking probate must be finished before anything can be filed.
What should we do this week?
- Write down the date of death, and the date of the injury if it was earlier.
- List every public agency that might be involved: a vehicle, a road, a sidewalk, a building, a hospital, a school.
- Mark the six-month date and the two-year date on a calendar.
- Keep the coroner, crash report and criminal case numbers.
- Keep every letter from an insurer, especially any that mentions a time limit.
Frequently asked questions
Does the two-year clock start at the injury or at the death?
Section 335.1 sets two years for an action for the death of a person. If the injury came earlier, the person's own claims before death follow their own deadlines (Code of Civil Procedure 377.20), so plan around the earlier date.
Can a court extend the deadline for a grieving family?
Not on that ground. The exceptions are the ones written into the statutes, such as the late-claim rules for public entities (Government Code 911.4, 911.6 and 946.6).
What if we did not know a public agency was involved?
Apply for leave to present a late claim within a reasonable time, and no later than one year (Government Code 911.4). The entity must grant it for mistake, inadvertence, surprise or excusable neglect if it was not harmed in its defense (Government Code 911.6(b)(1)).
Does each family member have their own deadline?
The wrongful death claim is brought for the family members the law lists, or by the personal representative for them (Code of Civil Procedure 377.60), so plan around one deadline for the claim.
Is the deadline different if the person who died was a child?
The same deadlines apply to the parents' claim. See what parents can recover for the death of a child for the rest of the rules.
Where would the case be filed?
Usually in the superior court of the county where the injury that caused the death happened, or where a defendant lives (Code of Civil Procedure 395). For Sonoma County, see what to expect at Sonoma County Superior Court.
If your family has lost a loved one and you are not sure which deadline applies, contact Young Law Group today at (707) 343-0556 or through our contact page for a free and confidential consultation.
Sources
- Code of Civil Procedure section 335.1 (two years for a death)
- Government Code section 911.2 (six-month claim to a public entity)
- Government Code section 911.4 (late claims)
- Government Code section 945.4 (no lawsuit before the claim is decided)
- Government Code section 945.6 (time to sue after a claim is rejected)
- Government Code section 946.6 (court relief after a late claim is denied)
- Code of Civil Procedure section 340.3 (lawsuits after a felony conviction)
- Code of Civil Procedure section 366.2 (when the person responsible has died)
- Code of Civil Procedure section 377.40 (claims against a decedent's estate)
- Code of Civil Procedure section 340.5 (claims against health care providers)
- Code of Civil Procedure section 377.60 (who may bring a wrongful death claim)
- Code of Civil Procedure section 377.20 (claims survive death)
- Government Code section 911.6 (when a late claim must be allowed)
- Insurance Code section 11580.2 (uninsured motorist coverage and its two-year steps)
- Welfare and Institutions Code section 15657.7 (financial abuse of an elder or dependent adult)
- Code of Civil Procedure section 395 (which county's court)
