How long do you have to sue for wrongful death in California?

The time period to sue for wrongful death in California or negligence for that matter in California is probably the number one area that attorneys malpractice. It is very technical, very strict, and something that you really shouldn’t rely on a video for that information. You should pick up the phone or write while the attorneys in our office to get that answer. However, in this video, we’re going to discuss some of the general time frames to give you an idea upon which to base the conversation when you do contact an attorney. 

The starting point for the time period to bring a claim for wrongful death in California is two years for most personal injury actions. When that time period starts and how it’s different based on the type of action, there is a lot of confusion and potential issues. The time period for a wrongful death action did not necessarily start when the person passed away, but it actually starts when the action occurred that gave rise to the circumstances that caused them to pass away. 

For example, if there’s a car accident on July 1st, but the person survives under intensive care for three or four weeks, the time period doesn’t necessarily begin when they passed away but actually began at the time of the car accident. That time period for personal injury matters is typically two years in California. 

One of the biggest concerns about applying the two-year statute of limitations rule to a wrongful death action is that two years could be substantially shorter if it’s against certain government entities. If your claim is against a government entity or an employee of a government entity who’s acting in the course and scope of their employment, that time period may not be two years. It may be as short as six months.  

Another major deviation from the two-year rule has to do with claims for professional malpractice. Traditionally we’re talking about claims against hospitals, doctors, things like that. Those claims often are not two years but have also been reduced to a one-year time period. While we have talked about a few of the situations in which the time period is shortened, and there are some situations in which the time period could be extended. There’s a very narrow set of laws and facts that might extend the statute of limitations based on the unavailability of the defendant being in the state as well as the delayed discovery of certain facts giving rise to cause of action. However, those situations in which the statute of limitations is extended is very narrow, and you definitely need to speak with an attorney about those issues.  

In addition to bringing a wrongful death action, there might be another claim for death benefits, such as against an employer or someone else. Those claims might not be two years, but they might be as short as one-year as such in the workers’ compensation system.  

I am not a big fan of videos that purport to answer a question and then give you so many exceptions in the same call attorney. I really want to give you the answer. However, when it comes to the statute of limitations in the time period to bring a claim, I go back to my original comment. It’s very, very technical, and the truth of the matter is, it is the kind of thing you do want to reach an attorney about sooner than later because you don’t want to miss that time period accidentally.