Written and reviewed by Josh Kohanim, Esq., California Bar No. 328609 · Published · Reviewed
Quick questions
Your choices first
You can read this page without contacting anyone. If you decide to reach out, you can use any name. You can ask us to call at a time you choose, or to text or email instead. Nothing is filed and no one is contacted until you say so, and you can stop at any point.
A civil claim is separate from any criminal case. It does not depend on a conviction, a police report, or a school investigation. It does not require the survivor to face the abuser. A parent or guardian can take the first step for a child who is still a minor.
Filing deadlines
California has two deadline tracks, and the date of the abuse decides which one applies.
For abuse on or after January 1, 2024, there is no time limit. AB 452 amended Code of Civil Procedure section 340.1 to remove it, and subdivision (p) applies that rule to childhood sexual assault on and after that date.
For abuse before January 1, 2024, the AB 218 rules apply. A survivor can file until age 40, or within five years of discovering that an adult psychological injury was caused by the abuse, whichever is later. The state's own fiscal report to the Legislature describes the rule the same way. Survivors 40 and older file certificates of merit from an attorney and a licensed mental health practitioner before the case proceeds.
SB 577 passed the Legislature at the end of August 2026 and is on the Governor's desk, with a decision due by September 30. As written, it would change the rules for abuse before 2024, including a higher standard of proof for survivors 40 and older. Our statute of limitations page tracks it and is updated the day the Governor acts.
District responsibility
A school district answers for what its employees did and failed to do within the scope of their work. Government Code section 815.2 makes a public entity liable for an employee's act or omission when the employee would be liable.
In C.A. v. William S. Hart Union High School District (2012) 53 Cal.4th 861, the California Supreme Court held that a district can be liable for administrators who negligently hired, kept or supervised an abusive employee. School personnel must use reasonable measures to protect students from foreseeable harm.
In Doe v. Lawndale Elementary School District (2021), the Court of Appeal held that this duty does not depend on proof that administrators actually knew of the employee's earlier misconduct. Whether the adults in charge responded reasonably to warning signs is a question for the jury.
Teachers, aides, coaches, counselors and administrators are mandated reporters. Penal Code section 11166 requires a report to police or child protective services whenever a mandated reporter knows or reasonably suspects abuse, by phone immediately or as soon as practicably possible, with a written report within 36 hours. A failure to report is a crime. In a civil case it is also evidence of what the school knew and did not do.
Private schools, youth programs and religious organizations are not public entities, and a claim against them follows the ordinary rules of negligence. The deadlines under section 340.1 apply to them as well.
The government claim exemption
Most claims against a public entity in California must first be presented as a government claim within six months. Childhood sexual assault claims are exempt. Government Code section 905(m) removes claims under section 340.1 from the claim presentation requirement. A Legislative Counsel opinion posted by the Department of Education adds that a district may not adopt its own claim procedure for them.
The exemption matters because the six-month rule has ended other kinds of claims against public entities. It does not apply here. A survivor who has never filed anything with the district has not lost the right to bring a claim.
The shape of a case
A case begins with a conversation that covers only what you choose to share. If we go forward, we gather records: the district's personnel and complaint files, earlier reports about the same adult, board minutes, and the survivor's own records where they help. We interview witnesses and consult a mental health professional about the harm and its cost.
Many survivors file as Jane Doe or John Doe. Courts commonly allow it, and we will ask whether you want that before anything is filed. The survivor does not have to face the abuser. Where testimony is needed at all, it is prepared for in advance, with breaks and a support person where the court permits.
Survivors 40 and older need certificates of merit from an attorney and a licensed mental health practitioner before the case proceeds. We arrange both.
Damages cover the harm the abuse caused: therapy and treatment, past and future, lost earning capacity, and the injury itself. Section 340.1 allows up to treble damages where a cover-up is proved, but the California Supreme Court held in 2023 that this enhancement cannot be imposed on a public school district. A claim against a district is for the survivor's actual harm. We do not quote figures on this page, because no honest figure exists before the facts are known.
Most cases resolve by settlement. Some go to trial. Either way, the decision to settle belongs to the client, made with full information and never under pressure from us.
Fees and costs
We work on a contingency fee. No fee unless we recover. If there is no recovery, you owe no fee and no case costs. If there is a recovery, the fee is a percentage set out in a written agreement you sign before we begin, and case costs are repaid from the recovery as that agreement explains. There is no charge for the first conversation, and no obligation after it.
Three ways to reach us
Call (424) 235-7879. Text the same number, if a call is not safe. Or use the short form at the bottom of this page. It asks for a name you choose, one way to reach you, and whether it is safe to call. It does not ask you to write down what happened. This page and the form are also available en español.
Two checklists can help before a call, or instead of one: one for adult survivors thinking about whether to come forward, and one for parents whose child has told them something happened at school.
If you already have a lawyer on this matter, the rules that govern lawyers do not let us discuss it with you. Please take your questions to your lawyer. If you are in immediate danger, call 911. The National Sexual Assault Hotline, 800-656-4673, and the Childhelp line for parents, 800-422-4453, are free and confidential.
Any name, one way to reach you, and a time that is safe. A licensed attorney reviews every confidential contact within one business day.
Pages by region
The pages below cover the California districts with a public record of sexual abuse claims, region by region. Each states what was alleged, what was found or paid, the date and the source, and nothing unsourced. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome, and every case depends on its own facts.
- Los Angeles County, including Los Angeles Unified, Mountain View School District and El Monte Union High
- Orange County, including Santa Ana Unified and the Irvine and Anaheim cases
- Inland Empire, including Moreno Valley, Redlands and Riverside Unified
- San Diego County
- Central Valley and Sacramento, including Clovis Unified, Kern High and Sacramento City Unified
- Bay Area, including Union School District, Tamalpais Union and San Ramon Valley Unified