Docket: S256665
Opinion Date: July 12, 2021
Judge: Tani Cantil-Sakauye
Areas of Law: Personal Injury
In this wrongful death action, the Supreme Court affirmed the judgment of the court of appeal determining that a minor’s eighteenth birthday is excluded in calculating when the statute of limitations begins to run, holding that an individual’s eighteenth birthday is excluded when calculating the applicable limitations period. Plaintiff brought this lawsuit against the City of Fontana and several of its police officers (collectively, Defendants) under 42 U.S.C. 1983 alleging that one of the officers wrongfully shot and killed his father. Plaintiff was a minor at the time of his father’s death. The trial court ruled that the claim was time-barred because Plaintiff filed suit one day outside the two-year limitations period and that Plaintiff’s eighteenth birthday must be included in calculating the limitations period. The court of appeal reversed, ruling that Plaintiff’s eighteenth birthday should have been excluded pursuant to Code of Civil Procedure section 12. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding (1) in cases in which the statute of limitations is tolled bad on a plaintiff’s minor age, the day after tolling ends is excluded in calculating whether an action is timely filed; and (2) Plaintiff’s lawsuit, in this case, was timely filed.
This case law update is brought to you by Freeway Law, auto accident and personal injury law attorneys. The following is not one of our cases, but it is of some significance, and we thought we should share it with our readers for informational purposes. The information above is for informational purposes only and not to be construed as legal advice.
