What the claim involves
Municipal liability follows its own statutes, deadlines, and defenses.
Before you can sue a city, the County of Orange, a school district, a transit agency, or another public agency for an injury, California generally requires a written government claim presented within six months of the injury (Government Code § 911.2), and no lawsuit may be filed until the claim has been acted on or is deemed rejected (§ 945.4). A public agency is liable for an injury only when a statute makes it liable (§ 815). Two statutes cover most injury cases: § 815.2, which makes an agency responsible for what its employees do within the scope of their jobs when the employee would be liable, and § 835, which covers dangerous conditions of public property. Both are subject to immunities. “Public entity” includes the State, the Regents of the University of California, the Trustees of the California State University, every county and city, and any district, public authority, or public agency (§ 811.2).
In Orange County that reaches the County of Orange, including its unincorporated roads, its regional parks, and John Wayne Airport, which the County owns and operates; each city’s streets, sidewalks, signals, parks, and vehicles; school and community college districts; the county transit agency; the State, including Caltrans and the California Highway Patrol, where claims are presented to the Department of General Services (§ 911.2(b)); the University of California, including UC Irvine and UCI Health; and special districts and joint powers agencies. A private contractor working for an agency is usually sued under ordinary rules, and federal agencies follow a separate system with its own administrative claim (28 U.S.C. § 2675). Kyle Scott Law prepares and presents the claim to every agency that may be responsible, then handles the agency’s response and the lawsuit that follows if the claim is rejected.
The claim comes first
The agency has 45 days to act on a claim, and if it does not, the claim is deemed rejected (Government Code § 912.4). After a written rejection, the lawsuit generally must be filed within six months of the date the notice was personally delivered or mailed; without that written notice, the deadline is generally two years from the injury (§ 945.6). If the six months to present the claim have passed, an application to present a late claim must be made within a reasonable time, not more than one year after the injury (§ 911.4). The agency must grant it in listed situations, including mistake or excusable neglect that did not prejudice the agency, a claimant who was a minor or incapacitated, or a death during the claim period (§ 911.6), and if it is denied, a petition to the superior court is due within six months (§ 946.6).
What the claim must say
A claim must give the claimant’s name and address, the address for notices, the date, place, and circumstances of the incident, a general description of the injury or loss, the names of the public employees who caused it if known, and the amount claimed if it is less than $10,000; above that, it states no amount but says whether the case would be a limited civil case (Government Code § 910). Through December 31, 2026, the claim must be signed by the claimant or someone on the claimant’s behalf (§ 910.2). From January 1, 2027, Assembly Bill 2529 (Stats. 2026, ch. 618) requires the signer also to declare that, upon information and belief, the contents of the claim are true and correct.
Dangerous public property
A “dangerous condition” is one that creates a substantial, not trivial, risk of injury when the property is used with due care in a reasonably foreseeable way (Government Code § 830). The agency is liable only if its employee’s negligent or wrongful act created the condition, or it had actual or constructive notice in time to protect against it (§ 835). Constructive notice can turn on whether a reasonably adequate inspection system would have found the hazard (§ 835.2), and a court can rule that a defect was too minor to count (§ 830.2), a common defense in sidewalk cases.
Immunities and limits
Statutes protect agencies in some situations: injuries caused by an approved plan or design, if substantial evidence supports the approval (Government Code § 830.6); the condition of recreational trails and certain unpaved access roads (§ 831.4); and, with exceptions, hazardous recreational activities on public property (§ 831.7). An agency cannot be made to pay punitive damages (§ 818). Naming the employee personally does not avoid the claim requirement: a claim against the employee is barred if the claim against the agency is barred (§ 950.2).
Cases the firm reviews
Common government liability matters.
Information that can matter
A strong claim starts with preserved evidence.
The useful records vary by case. The initial review identifies what exists, what may need to be requested, and what should be preserved before it is lost.
Legal guides
Answers to common government liability questions.
Common questions
Questions about government liability claims.
Do I have to file a claim before suing a city or the County?
Usually, yes. For injury and death claims against a public agency in California, a written government claim generally must be presented within six months (Government Code § 911.2), and a lawsuit can follow only after the claim is rejected or deemed rejected (§ 945.4). A phone call, a police report, or a service request is not a claim. Claims for childhood sexual assault are an exception (§ 905(m)).
How long do I have to present a government claim in Orange County?
For death, personal injury, or damage to personal property, six months from the date the claim accrued, which is usually the date of injury (Government Code § 911.2). Other kinds of claims have one year. The same rule applies to the County, every city, school districts, transit agencies, and the State. If more than one agency may be responsible, a claim generally should be presented to each one.
What if I missed the six-month deadline?
There may still be a path. An application to present a late claim can be made within a reasonable time, but no later than one year after the claim accrued (Government Code § 911.4). The agency must grant it in listed situations, such as excusable neglect that did not prejudice the agency, or a claimant who was a minor or incapacitated (§ 911.6). If it is denied, a court petition is due within six months (§ 946.6).
My child was hurt on public property. Do we get extra time because they are a minor?
Not automatically. The rule that pauses ordinary deadlines for minors does not apply where a government claim is required (Code of Civil Procedure § 352(b)). The six-month period still runs. If it is missed, a late-claim application can be granted because the child was a minor (Government Code § 911.6), but it generally must be presented within one year of the injury (§ 911.4). Childhood sexual assault claims follow different rules.
Can I bring a claim for a fall on a broken city sidewalk?
Possibly. A city is liable for a dangerous condition of its property only if an employee created it or the city had notice in time to repair it or warn about it (Government Code § 835). A court can also rule that a defect was too minor to create a substantial risk (§ 830.2). Photographs with measurements, earlier complaints, and the city’s inspection records often decide these cases.
The agency rejected my claim. How long do I have to sue?
Generally six months from the date the written rejection notice was personally delivered or mailed (Government Code § 945.6). If the agency never gave proper written notice, the deadline is generally two years from the date the claim accrued. Negotiations alone do not extend these deadlines. Keep the letter and its envelope, because the mailing date matters.
This page provides general information, not legal advice. A consultation is needed to evaluate the facts, deadlines, parties, and law that may apply to a specific matter.
Sources
Official sources.
The figures and rules of law on this page come from these official sources.
- California Government Code § 911.2 (six months to present a claim)
- California Government Code § 945.4 (no suit until the claim is acted on)
- California Government Code § 815 (liability only as a statute provides)
- California Government Code § 815.2 (liability for employees’ acts)
- California Government Code § 811.2 (public entity defined)
- John Wayne Airport — about the airport (owned and operated by the County of Orange)
- 28 U.S.C. § 2675 (federal claims presented to the agency first)
- California Government Code § 912.4 (45 days for the agency to act)
- California Government Code § 945.6 (deadline to sue after a claim is rejected)
- California Government Code § 911.4 (application to present a late claim)
- California Government Code § 911.6 (when a late-claim application must be granted)
- California Government Code § 946.6 (petition for relief after a late-claim denial)
- California Government Code § 910 (what a claim must show)
- California Government Code § 910.2 (signing the claim)
- Assembly Bill 2529 (Stats. 2026, ch. 618), chaptered text: amends § 910.2 from January 1, 2027
- California Government Code § 830 (dangerous condition defined)
- California Government Code § 830.2 (trivial defects)
- California Government Code § 835 (dangerous condition of public property)
- California Government Code § 835.2 (actual and constructive notice)
- California Government Code § 830.6 (design immunity)
- California Government Code § 831.4 (trails and unpaved access roads)
- California Government Code § 831.7 (hazardous recreational activities)
- California Government Code § 818 (no punitive damages against a public entity)
- California Government Code § 950.2 (claims against public employees)
- California Government Code § 905 (claims exempt from presentation)
- California Code of Civil Procedure § 352 (minors; not for government claims)
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