CALIFORNIA
CHILD SEX ABUSE SOLs
CURRENT CIVIL SOL
Summary:
CSA: There is no SOL for civil CSA claims against all defendants.
Trafficking: The SOL for trafficking offenses is age 28.
CSAM: There is no SOL for some CSAM offenses, and an SOL of age 40 for others, with a 10-year discovery rule.
CIVIL SOL SNAPSHOT
AGE CAP | CSA: NO SOL TRAFFICKING: AGE 28 CSAM: NO SOL |
REVIVAL LAW | REVIVAL UP TO AGE 40 |
DISCOVERY TOLLING | CSA: 5 YEARS CSAM: 10 YEARS |
Changes Since 2002:
| Age Cap | |
| 2002 | CSA cause of action had SOL of age 26 (age of majority plus 8 years).[i] |
| 2006 | Adopted a human trafficking statute with an SOL of age 26 (age of majority plus 8 years).[ii] |
| 2008 | Broadened liability for local public entities for CSA by removing the claim presentment requirement for suing them.[iii] |
| 2015 | Extended SOL for human trafficking to age 28 (age of majority, 18, plus 10 years).[iv] |
| 2019 | Extended SOL for CSA, including some CSAM offenses, to age 40 (age of majority, 18, plus 22 years).[v] |
| 2022 | Broadened liability for all government entities for CSA by removing the claim presentment requirement for suing them.[vi] |
| 2023 | Eliminated SOL prospectively for CSA, including some CSAM offenses, committed after January 1, 2024.[vii] Also, adopted a CSAM statute which retroactively set the SOL for many CSAM offenses committed before January 1, 2024 at age 40 (age of majority, 18, plus 22 years).[viii] |
| Revival Law | |
| 2002 | Enacted a 1-year window for previously expired CSA claims from January 1, 2003 until December 31, 2003, that was effectively only applicable to claims against non-perpetrator individuals and non-government entities.[ix] |
| 2004 | Enacted a 1-year window for previously expired CSA claims from January 1, 2005 until December 31, 2005, only for claims against perpetrators who were being criminally prosecuted under California Penal Code § 803(g)’s criminal SOL revival provision, but whose criminal case was overturned as a result of the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling against Section 803(g)’s constitutionality in Stogner.[x] |
| 2019 | Revived claims until a survivor reaches age 40 and opened a 3-year revival window for CSA survivors of any age starting January 1, 2020 (closed December 31, 2022). Claims were revived against all types of defendants, including government entities, and victims could recover treble damages against any defendant who covered up the abuse.[xi] |
| Discovery | |
| Common Law | California recognized a 1-year common law discovery rule for CSA claims in the 1980’s.[xii] |
| Statutory | In 1991, it adopted a 3-year statutory discovery rule running from when an individual discovers or should have discovered that their injury was caused by abuse.[xiii] The applicability of the discovery rule statute was interpreted narrowly by several California Supreme Court decisions[xiv] and the legislature amended it several times for clarification.[xv] By 2002, the 3-year discovery rule applied to claims against all types of defendants and did away with the prior age cutoff for claims against third parties.[xvi] Nevertheless, the discovery rule was ineffective for claims against government entities where a victim failed to satisfy the claim presentment requirement.[xvii] Finally, in 2019, the legislature again amended the discovery rule, extending it to 5 years and stipulating that it is retroactive and revives claims during the 3-year window[xviii] and afterwards. Additionally, the discovery rule applies to claims against any type of defendant—perpetrators, individuals, private entities, and the government.[xix] In 2023, it adopted a CSAM statute which retroactively added a 10-year discovery rule for many CSAM offenses committed before January 1, 2024.[xx] |
[i] Cal. Civ. Proc. Code § 340.1 (age twenty-six SOL).
[ii] Cal. Civ. Code § 52.5(c) (2006).
[iii] Cal. Gov’t Code § 905(m) (government liability). This was expanded again in 2019 when the legislature amended section 935 to prevent local public entities from prescribing their own claim presentment requirements for CSA claims. Cal. Gov’t Code § 935(f). See Big Oak Flat-Groveland Unified Sch. Dist. v. Superior Court, 21 Cal.Rptr.3d 345 (Cal. Ct. App. 2018), transferred with directions to vacate, 444 P.3d 665 (Cal. 2019) (directing the Court of Appeal to reconsider the original holding that local public entities were authorized to impose their own claim presentment requirements for CSA claims, in light of the legislature’s amendment of California Government Code section 935).
[iv] Cal. Civ. Code § 52.5(c) (2015).
[v] Cal. Civ. Proc. Code § 340.1 (age forty SOL); A.B. 218, 2019 Gen. Assemb., Reg. Sess. (Cal. 2019).
[vi] Cal. Civ. Proc. Code § 340.1(s); A.B. 2959, 2022 Gen. Assemb., Reg. Sess. (Cal. 2022).
[vii] Cal. Civ. Proc. Code § 340.1 (SOL elimination); A.B. 452, 2023 Gen. Assemb., Reg. Sess. (Cal. 2023).
[viii] Cal. Civ. Proc. Code § 340.11 (CSAM SOL) (2024); S.B. 558, 2023 Gen. Assemb., Reg. Sess. (Cal. 2023).
[ix] Cal. Civ. Proc. Code § 340.1 (one-year window); S.B. 1779, 2002 Sen., Reg. Sess. (Cal. 2002). See also Deutsch v. Masonic Homes of California, Inc., 80 Cal. Rptr. 3d 368, 372 (2008) (determining the window “permitted plaintiffs whose claims of sexual abuse had expired to revive those claims against individuals or entities owing a duty of care to those plaintiffs and whose acts constituted a legal cause of the sexual abuse”); Shirk v. Vista Unified Sch. Dist., 164 P.3d 630, 633 (2007), as modified (Oct. 10, 2007) (holding the window did not revive claims against the government barred by Tort Claims Act claim presentation deadline); Dutra v. Eagleson, 52 Cal. Rptr. 3d 788, 793 (2006), as modified on denial of reh’g (Jan. 26, 2007) (concluding the window did not revive claims against perpetrator).
[x] Cal. Civ. Proc. Code § 340.35 (1-year window); S.B. 1678, 2004 Gen. Assemb., Reg. Sess. (Cal. 2004); Stogner, supra note 26 (holding California Penal Code section 803 unconstitutional).
[xi] Cal. Civ. Proc. Code § 340.1 (revival to age forty and three-year window); A.B. 218, 2019 Gen. Assemb., Reg. Sess. (Cal. 2019).
[xii] Quarry v. Doe I, 272 P.3d 977, 986, n.5 (2012) (discussing common law discovery rule’s applicability to CSA claims and collecting cases).
[xiii] Cal. Civ. Proc. Code § 340.1 (establishing that three-year discovery rule runs from when “plaintiff discovers or reasonably should have discovered that psychological injury or illness . . . was caused by the sexual abuse.”).
[xiv] See e.g., Rubenstein v. Doe No. 1, 400 P.3d 372, 378 (Cal. 2017), as modified on denial of reh’g (Nov. 1, 2017); Quarry, supra note 131, at 985 (determining statutory discovery rule substituted common law discovery rule and placed upper limit on discovery rule of age twenty-six for claims against third-party defendants); Shirk, supra note 129, superseded by Cal. Gov’t Code § 905(m).
[xv] The discovery rule found in Cal. Civ. Proc. Code § 340.1 was amended in 1994, 1998, 1999, 2002, and 2020, and Cal. Gov’t Code § 905(m), which removed the claim presentment requirement for suing government entities, was added in 2008.
[xvi] Cal. Civ. Proc. Code § 340.1; 2002 Cal. Legis. Serv. Ch. 149 (S.B. 1779); see Quarry v. Doe I, 272 P.3d at 990 (discussing 2002 discovery statute amendment).
[xvii] Shirk, supra note 129.
[xviii] Cal. Civ. Proc. Code § 340.1 (stating previously expired claims “may be commenced within three years of January 1, 2020.”).
[xix] Id. (applying discovery rule after victim reaches age forty only if “the person or entity knew or had reason to know, or was otherwise on notice, of any misconduct that creates a risk of childhood sexual assault by an employee, volunteer, representative, or agent, or the person or entity failed to take reasonable steps or to implement reasonable safeguards to avoid acts of childhood sexual assault.”).
[xx] Cal. Civ. Proc. Code § 340.11 (CSAM SOL) (2024); S.B. 558, 2023 Gen. Assemb., Reg. Sess. (Cal. 2023).
CURRENT CALIFORNIA CIVIL LAW
Cal. Civ. Proc. Code § 340.1 - Childhood sexual assault; certificates of merit executed by attorney; violations; failure to file; name designation of defendant; periods of limitation; legislative intent
NEW LAW
Cal. Civ. Proc. Code § 340.11
NEW LAW
Case law
CURRENT CRIMINAL SOL
Summary:
CSA: There is no SOL for many felony sex offenses, including rape. The SOL is age 40 for other felonies, and 1-3 years from the offense for misdemeanors.
Trafficking: There is no SOL for trafficking using force, fraud, or coercion. The SOL for other trafficking violations is 6 years from the offense.
CSAM: The SOL for CSAM is 10 years from the offense.
CRIMINAL SOL SNAPSHOT
CSA | NO SOL |
TRAFFICKING | NO SOL |
CSAM | 10 YEARS FROM THE OFFENSE |
Changes Since 2002:
| Age Cap | |
| 1993 | Enacted a law reviving expired criminal SOLs for CSA by allowing prosecution 1 year after reporting to law enforcement, but it was held unconstitutional in Stogner v. California.[i] |
| 2002 | The SOL for felony sex offenses was 3 or 6 years from the offense depending on the crime or age 19, whichever was later.[ii] Misdemeanor annoying or molesting a child under 18 has an SOL of 3 years after the date of the offense where the victim is under 14 years of age.[iii] All other misdemeanors had an SOL of 1 year after the date of the offense.[iv] |
| 2004 | Extended the SOL for CSA felonies, including many CSAM violations, to 10 years after the offense.[v] |
| 2005 | Extended the SOL for CSA felonies to age 28.[vi] It also added a DNA statute that permits prosecution of sex crimes within 1-year of DNA identification.[vii] Added a trafficking statute with an SOL 6 years after commission of the offense.[viii] |
| 2006 | Extended the SOL for felony pornography to 10 years after the offense.[ix] |
| 2014 | Extended the SOL for CSA felonies from age 28 to age 40.[x] |
| 2017 | Eliminated the SOL for many felony sex offenses, including rape at any age, molestation, and sexual abuse.[xi] |
| 2018 | Extended the SOL for more CSA felonies to age 40.[xii] |
| 2021 | Extended the criminal SOL for misdemeanor distribution of private sexual imagery of minors and adults to 1 year from discovery that image was distributed, but not more than 4 years after distribution.[xiii] |
[i] Stogner, supra note 26 (holding California Penal Code section 803 unconstitutional).
[ii] Cal. Penal Code §§ 799 (2002) (no SOL), 800 (2002) (eight-year SOL), 801 (2002) (three-year SOL), 801.1 (2002) (CSA SOL), 803 (2002) (tolling statute).
[iii] Id. at § 802 (2002) (misdemeanor SOL).
[iv] Id.
[v] Id. at §§ 799 (2004) (no SOL), 801.1 (2004) (CSA SOL), 801.2 (2004) (1-year CSA SOL).
[vi] Id. at § 801.1 (2005) (age 28 CSA SOL).
[vii] Id. at § 803 (2005) (tolling statute).
[viii] Id. at §§ 800 (2005), 236.1 (2005) (trafficking SOL).
[ix] Id. at §§ 801.1 (2006) (CSA SOL) & 801.2 (2006) (10-year CSA SOL).
[x] Id. at § 801.1 (2014) (age forty CSA SOL).
[xi] Id. at §§ 799 (2017) (no SOL).
[xii] Id. at §801.1 (2018) (age forty SOL).
[xiii] Id. at § 802 (2021) (misdemeanor SOL).
CURRENT CALIFORNIA CRIMINAL LAW
Cal. Penal Code § 799 - Offenses punishable by death or life imprisonment; embezzlement of public money; other felonies; application to minors
(a) Prosecution for an offense punishable by death or by imprisonment in the state prison for life or for life without the possibility of parole, or for the embezzlement of public money, may be commenced at any time.
(b)(1) Prosecution for a felony offense described in paragraph (1), (2), (3), (4), (6), or (7) of subdivision (a) of Section 261, paragraph (1), (2), (3), (4), or (5) of subdivision (a) of former Section 262, Section 264.1, paragraph (2) or (3) of subdivision (c) of, or subdivision (d), (f), (g), (i), or (k) of, Section 286, paragraph (2) or (3) of subdivision (c) of, or subdivision (d), (f), (g), (i), or (k) of, Section 287 or former Section 288a, subdivision (a) of Section 288 involving substantial sexual conduct as defined in subdivision (b) of Section 1203.066, subdivision (b) of Section 288, Section 288.5, or subdivision (a), (b), (d), (e), or (g) of Section 289 may be commenced at any time.
(2) This subdivision applies to crimes that were committed on or after January 1, 2017, and to crimes for which the statute of limitations that was in effect prior to January 1, 2017, has not run as of January 1, 2017.
(c) This section applies when the defendant was a minor at the time of the commission of the offense and the prosecuting attorney could have petitioned the court for a fitness hearing pursuant to Section 707 of the Welfare and Institutions Code.
Cal. Penal Code § 800 - Offenses punishable by imprisonment for eight years or more
Except as provided in Section 799, prosecution for an offense punishable by imprisonment in the state prison for eight years or more or by imprisonment pursuant to subdivision (h) of Section 1170 for eight years or more shall be commenced within six years after commission of the offense.
Cal. Penal Code § 801.1 - Commencement of prosecution for specified sex offenses
(a)(1) Notwithstanding any other limitation of time described in this chapter, prosecution for a felony offense described in Section 261, 286, 287, 288, 288.5, or 289, or former Section 288a, or Section 289.5, as enacted by Chapter 293 of the Statutes of 1991 relating to penetration by an unknown object, that is alleged to have been committed when the victim was under 18 years of age, may be commenced any time prior to the victim’s 40th birthday.
(2) Paragraph (1) shall only apply to crimes that were committed on or after January 1, 2015, or for which the statute of limitations that was in effect prior to January 1, 2015, has not run as of January 1, 2015.
(b) Notwithstanding any other limitation of time described in this chapter, if either subdivision (a) of this section or subdivision (b) of Section 799 does not apply, prosecution for a felony offense described in subdivision (c) of Section 290 shall be commenced within 10 years after commission of the offense.
Cal. Penal Code § 801.2 - Limitations period for prosecution of crime under § 311.4 relating to employment of minor to perform prohibited acts
Notwithstanding any other limitation of time prescribed in this chapter, prosecution for a violation of subdivision (b) of Section 311.4 shall commence within 10 years of the date of production of the pornographic material.
Cal. Penal Code § 803-Discovery Tolling Statute - Tolling or extension of time periods
(a) Except as provided in this section, a limitation of time prescribed in this chapter is not tolled or extended for any reason.
(b) The time during which prosecution of the same person for the same conduct is pending in a court of this state is not a part of a limitation of time prescribed in this chapter.
(c) A limitation of time prescribed in this chapter does not commence to run until the discovery of an offense described in this subdivision. This subdivision applies to an offense punishable by imprisonment in the state prison or imprisonment pursuant to subdivision (h) of Section 1170, a material element of which is fraud or breach of a fiduciary obligation, the commission of the crimes of theft or embezzlement upon an elder or dependent adult, or the basis of which is misconduct in office by a public officer, employee, or appointee, including, but not limited to, the following offenses:
(1) Grand theft of any type, forgery, falsification of public records, or acceptance of, or asking, receiving, or agreeing to receive, a bribe, by a public official or a public employee, including, but not limited to, a violation of Section 68, 86, or 93.
(2) A violation of Section 72, 118, 118a, 132, 134, or 186.10.
(3) A violation of Section 25540, of any type, or Section 25541 of the Corporations Code.
(4) A violation of Section 1090 or 27443 of the Government Code.
(5) Felony welfare fraud or Medi-Cal fraud in violation of Section 11483 or 14107 of the Welfare and Institutions Code.
(6) Felony insurance fraud in violation of Section 548 or 550 of this code or former Section 1871.1, or Section 1871.4, of the Insurance Code.
(7) A violation of Section 580, 581, 582, 583, or 584 of the Business and Professions Code.
(8) A violation of Section 22430 of the Business and Professions Code.
(9) A violation of Section 103800 of the Health and Safety Code.
(10) A violation of Section 529a.
(11) A violation of subdivision (d) or (e) of Section 368.
(d) If the defendant is out of the state when or after the offense is committed, the prosecution may be commenced as provided in Section 804 within the limitations of time prescribed by this chapter, and no time up to a maximum of three years during which the defendant is not within the state shall be a part of those limitations.
(e) A limitation of time prescribed in this chapter does not commence to run until the offense has been discovered, or could have reasonably been discovered, with regard to offenses under Division 7 (commencing with Section 13000) of the Water Code, under Chapter 6.5 (commencing with Section 25100) of, Chapter 6.7 (commencing with Section 25280) of, or Chapter 6.8 (commencing with Section 25300) of, Division 20 of, or Part 4 (commencing with Section 41500) of Division 26 of, the Health and Safety Code, or under Section 386, or offenses under Chapter 5 (commencing with Section 2000) of Division 2 of, Chapter 9 (commencing with Section 4000) of Division 2 of, Section 6126 of, Chapter 10 (commencing with Section 7301) of Division 3 of, or Chapter 19.5 (commencing with Section 22440) of Division 8 of, the Business and Professions Code.
(f)(1) Notwithstanding any other limitation of time described in this chapter, if subdivision (b) of Section 799 does not apply, a criminal complaint may be filed within one year of the date of a report to a California law enforcement agency by a person of any age alleging that the person, while under 18 years of age, was the victim of a crime described in Section 261, 286, 287, 288, 288.5, or 289, former Section 288a, or Section 289.5, as enacted by Chapter 293 of the Statutes of 1991 relating to penetration by an unknown object.
(2) This subdivision applies only if all of the following occur:
(A) The limitation period specified in Section 800, 801, or 801.1, whichever is later, has expired.
(B) The crime involved substantial sexual conduct, as described in subdivision (b) of Section 1203.066, excluding masturbation that is not mutual.
(C) There is independent evidence that corroborates the victim’s allegation. If the victim was 21 years of age or older at the time of the report, the independent evidence shall clearly and convincingly corroborate the victim’s allegation.
(3) Evidence shall not be used to corroborate the victim’s allegation if that evidence would otherwise be inadmissible during trial. Independent evidence excludes the opinions of mental health professionals.
(4)(A) In a criminal investigation involving any of the crimes listed in paragraph (1) committed against a child, if the applicable limitations period has not expired, that period shall be tolled from the time a party initiates litigation challenging a grand jury subpoena until the end of the litigation, including any associated writ or appellate proceeding, or until the final disclosure of evidence to the investigating or prosecuting agency, if that disclosure is ordered pursuant to the subpoena after the litigation.
(B) This subdivision does not affect the definition or applicability of any evidentiary privilege.
(C) This subdivision shall not apply if a court finds that the grand jury subpoena was issued or caused to be issued in bad faith.
(g)(1) Notwithstanding any other limitation of time described in this chapter, a criminal complaint may be filed within one year of the date on which the identity of the suspect is conclusively established by DNA testing, if both of the following conditions are met:
(A) The crime is one that is described in subdivision (c) of Section 290.
(B) The offense was committed before January 1, 2001, and biological evidence collected in connection with the offense is analyzed for DNA type no later than January 1, 2004, or the offense was committed on or after January 1, 2001, and biological evidence collected in connection with the offense is analyzed for DNA type no later than two years from the date of the offense.
(2) For purposes of this section, “DNA” means deoxyribonucleic acid.
(h) For any crime, the proof of which depends substantially upon evidence that was seized under a warrant, but which is unavailable to the prosecuting authority under the procedures described in People v. Superior Court (Laff) (2001) 25 Cal.4th 703, People v. Superior Court (Bauman & Rose) (1995) 37 Cal.App.4th 1757, or subdivision (c) of Section 1524, relating to claims of evidentiary privilege or attorney work product, the limitation of time prescribed in this chapter shall be tolled from the time of the seizure until final disclosure of the evidence to the prosecuting authority. This section does not otherwise affect the definition or applicability of any evidentiary privilege or attorney work product.
(i)(1) Notwithstanding any other limitation of time described in this chapter, a criminal complaint may be filed within one year of the date on which a hidden recording is discovered related to a violation of paragraph (2) or (3) of subdivision (j) of Section 647.
(2) Notwithstanding any other limitation of time described in this chapter, a criminal complaint may be filed within one year of the date on which it is discovered that, but not more than four years after, an image was intentionally distributed in violation of paragraph (4) of subdivision (j) of Section 647.
(j) Notwithstanding any other limitation of time described in this chapter, if a person flees the scene of an accident that caused death or permanent, serious injury, as defined in subdivision (d) of Section 20001 of the Vehicle Code, a criminal complaint brought pursuant to paragraph (2) of subdivision (b) of Section 20001 of the Vehicle Code may be filed within the applicable time period described in Section 801 or 802 or one year after the person is initially identified by law enforcement as a suspect in the commission of the offense, whichever is later, but in no case later than six years after the commission of the offense.
(k) Notwithstanding any other limitation of time described in this chapter, if a person flees the scene of an accident, a criminal complaint brought pursuant to paragraph (1) or (2) of subdivision (c) of Section 192 may be filed within the applicable time period described in Section 801 or 802, or one year after the person is initially identified by law enforcement as a suspect in the commission of that offense, whichever is later, but in no case later than six years after the commission of the offense.
(l) A limitation of time prescribed in this chapter does not commence to run until the discovery of an offense involving the offering or giving of a bribe to a public official or public employee, including, but not limited to, a violation of Section 67, 67.5, 85, 92, or 165, or Section 35230 or 72530 of the Education Code.
(m) Notwithstanding any other limitation of time prescribed in this chapter, if a person actively conceals or attempts to conceal an accidental death in violation of Section 152, a criminal complaint may be filed within one year after the person is initially identified by law enforcement as a suspect in the commission of that offense, provided, however, that in any case a complaint may not be filed more than four years after the commission of the offense.
(n)(1) Notwithstanding any other limitation of time described in this chapter, a criminal complaint brought pursuant to a violation of Section 367g may be filed within one year of the discovery of the offense or within one year after the offense could have reasonably been discovered.
(2) This subdivision applies to crimes that were committed on or after January 1, 2021, and to crimes for which the statute of limitations that was in effect before January 1, 2021, has not run as of January 1, 2021.
Case Law
The information provided is solely for informational purposes and is not legal advice. To determine the California SOL in a particular case, contact a lawyer in the state.
Last Updated: September 12, 2023