The 6-Month Government Claim Deadline – The Clock Is Already Ticking on Your Police Misconduct Case

Most people who have been beaten by police, falsely arrested, or subjected to misconduct spend the weeks that follow trying to recover. They talk to friends and family. They search online. They wonder if they have a case. Some eventually call an attorney.

What most of them do not know is that while all of this is happening, a legal clock is running. And when it expires, the right to sue may be gone forever — not delayed, not complicated, but gone.

That clock is the six-month government claim deadline. It is the most critical procedural rule in California police misconduct law. It is also the one that kills more cases than any other.

What Is a Government Claim and Why Does It Exist?

Before you can file a lawsuit against a California city, county, or government agency — including a police department — you must first complete a separate, mandatory step called filing a government claim.

This requirement comes from the California Government Claims Act, codified at Government Code §§ 810–996.6 (formerly known as the California Tort Claims Act). The law exists because California, like every state, operates under the doctrine of sovereign immunity — the legal principle that you cannot sue the government unless the government permits it. The Government Claims Act is the mechanism through which California permits those lawsuits, subject to strict procedural rules.

Filing a government claim is not the same as filing a lawsuit. It is a written notice, submitted directly to the agency responsible for your injuries, that formally puts the government on notice of your claim. The agency then has 45 days to respond. They can accept the claim and offer a settlement, reject it outright, or simply do nothing. If the claim is rejected — which is by far the most common outcome — you then have the right to file a lawsuit in court.

Skip this step, or miss its deadline, and your right to sue for California state law violations is almost certainly extinguished. Not reduced. Not delayed. Extinguished.

The Six-Month Deadline: How It Works

Under California Government Code § 911.2(a), a government claim for personal injury must be filed within six months of the date the incident occurred. In a police misconduct case, that means six months from the day you were beaten, falsely arrested, or otherwise subjected to the officer’s unconstitutional conduct.

Six months sounds like enough time. It is not — not when you account for the reality of how these situations unfold.

Consider what typically happens in the months following a police misconduct incident:

• The victim is dealing with injuries, medical appointments, and recovery
• A criminal case has often been filed against the victim — requiring their focus and resources
• The victim may be in jail awaiting trial, unable to focus on a civil claim
• The victim does not know the six-month deadline exists
• The victim is waiting to see how the criminal case resolves before taking any civil action
• The victim is consulting attorneys who handle criminal defense but not civil rights

By the time most people realize they may have a civil rights claim, three, four, five months have already passed. And by the time they find a civil rights attorney, schedule a consultation, and discuss their case, they are often sitting at month five or six.

That is not a comfortable margin. It is a crisis.

What Happens If You Miss the Deadline

Miss the six-month window and you are barred from suing the agency — and usually the individual officers — for violations of California state law, including claims under the Tom Bane Civil Rights Act.

There is a narrow exception: you may apply for permission to file a late claim within one year of the incident. But the grounds are limited and hard to establish. California courts have been blunt — not knowing the deadline exists is not a valid excuse. Ignorance of the law does not constitute excusable neglect.

The recognized grounds for late-claim relief are:

• Mistake, inadvertence, surprise, or excusable neglect — the standard for “excusable” is high
• Mental or physical incapacity that prevented any action during the entire six-month period
• Minority — the claimant was under 18 for the entire period

One important nuance: if you were in jail when the incident occurred, the six-month period generally begins running from the date of your release, not the date of the incident.

Outside these narrow exceptions, missing the deadline is fatal to your state law claims. A court will not be sympathetic. The government will not extend grace. The deadline is real, and it is ruthless.

What the Government Claim Must Include

A government claim is a formal document, not a casual letter. Under Government Code § 910, it must contain specific information. A defective claim — even one filed on time — can be rejected on technical grounds.

Your government claim must include:

• Your full name, address, and contact information
• The date, location, and circumstances of the incident
• A general description of your injury or damage
• The names of the public employees involved, if known
• The amount claimed if $10,000 or less — or a statement that it exceeds $10,000 (California law prohibits listing a specific dollar amount above that threshold)

Where you file depends on which agency employed the officers involved:

• City police departments — file with the city clerk
• County sheriff’s departments — file with the county clerk or board of supervisors
• State agencies — file with the California Department of General Services’ Government Claims Program

Most cities and counties provide their own claim forms online. Use the agency’s form when available. If none exists, a written letter meeting all § 910 requirements is acceptable.

Send the claim by certified mail and keep the receipt. If you hand-deliver it, get a date-stamped copy. The burden is on you to prove timely, proper filing.

The Relationship Between the Government Claim and Your Federal § 1983 Lawsuit

One critical nuance that trips up victims — and even some attorneys who do not regularly handle these cases — is that the government claim requirement applies to California state law claims, not federal ones.

A civil rights lawsuit under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 does not require a prior government claim. Federal law has its own statute of limitations — two years in California — but no administrative claim prerequisite.

So if you miss the six-month deadline, you may still pursue a § 1983 federal claim. You have just lost your California state law claims alongside it — including the Bane Act claims with their no-qualified-immunity standard, treble damages, and enhanced attorney’s fees. Losing those is not a minor inconvenience. It is losing your strongest tools. The lesson is not that missing the government claim deadline is recoverable. It isn’t — not fully. The lesson is that you cannot afford to let it happen.

Frequently Asked Questions About the Government Claim Deadline

Six Months Is Not as Long as It Sounds

If there is one thing to take from this article, it is this: do not wait.

Not until the criminal case is resolved. Not until you feel better. Not until you have decided whether you definitely want to sue. The government claim does not commit you to anything — it preserves your options. Filing it is the minimum protective step every victim of police misconduct should take.

The Law Offices of Jerry L. Steering has been navigating these deadlines and procedural requirements since 1984. We know that a case that is factually strong can be procedurally dead if the government claim is missed. We handle both the criminal defense side and the civil rights side — because in California, the two cannot be managed separately.

If you were the victim of police misconduct in Southern California, call us. Today. Not next week. The clock started running the day it happened.

Call Jerry L. Steering, (949) 474-1849 — Available 24 Hours a Day Free Case Evaluation — No Fee Unless We Recover jerry@steeringlaw.com  |  steeringlaw.com/free-case-evaluation Law Offices of Jerry L. Steering | Newport Beach, California Serving Orange County, Los Angeles County, Riverside County, San Diego County, and throughout California

Prior case results do not guarantee or predict similar outcomes in future matters. This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. The State Bar of California does not recognize a specialty in police misconduct.

Sources

1. California Government Code § 911.2(a) — Six-month deadline for personal injury claims against public entities. California Legislative Information. https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov
2. California Government Code § 910 — Required contents of a government claim. California Legislative Information. https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov
3. California Government Code § 911.4 — Application for leave to file a late claim. California Legislative Information. https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov
4. California Government Code § 945.4 — No suit without prior claim. California Legislative Information. https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov
5. California Government Code §§ 810–996.6 — Government Claims Act (formerly California Tort Claims Act). California Legislative Information. https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov
6. Sacramento County Public Law Library — “Claims Against the Government.” https://saclaw.org/resource_library/claims-against-the-government/
7. Nolo — “Bringing a Tort Claim Against the Government in California.” https://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/making-injury-claim-under-the-california-tort-claims-act.html
8. Helm Law Office — “Pre-Lawsuit Hurdle: The Government Claim.” https://www.helmlawoffice.com/police-misconduct/pre-lawsuit-hurdle-the-government-claim/
9. Drummond v. County of Fresno (1987) 193 Cal.App.3d 1406 — Ignorance of filing deadline not excusable neglect.
10. Ebersol v. Cowan (1983) 35 Cal.3d 427 — California Supreme Court on excusable neglect standard for late claims.
11. Advocate Magazine — “Personal Injury Late-Claim Applications.” https://www.advocatemagazine.com/article/2024-may/personal-injury-late-claim-applications