Written and reviewed by Josh Kohanim, Esq., California Bar No. 328609 · Published · Reviewed
In this guide
This page was checked against the statutes and the Legislature's bill record on September 23, 2026. It is updated the day the Governor acts on SB 577. The school sexual abuse page explains how a district becomes responsible and what a case involves. You can read both pages without contacting anyone.
Two deadline tracks
Code of Civil Procedure section 340.1 governs civil claims for childhood sexual assault. Since AB 452 took effect on January 1, 2024, the section has two sets of rules. Subdivision (p) says the section applies to any claim in which the childhood sexual assault occurred on and after January 1, 2024. Earlier abuse follows the rules that AB 218 wrote in 2019. The abuse date, not the filing date, decides the track.
The no-limit track
For abuse on or after January 1, 2024, there is no time limit. AB 452 removed it for actions against the perpetrator, for negligent breach of a duty of care, and for intentional acts. The California School Boards Association's legal update describes the change as eliminating the time limit entirely for abuse committed on or after that date. The bill also dropped the notice-of-misconduct requirement for plaintiffs over 40.
The AB 218 track
For abuse before January 1, 2024, 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 Fiscal Crisis and Management Assistance Team's January 2025 report to the Legislature states the rule as 22 years from the date the plaintiff reaches the age of majority, or five years from discovery, whichever is later.
AB 218 also opened a three-year revival window for claims that had already expired. That window closed on December 31, 2022. The same report stresses that the only claims subject to that deadline were for survivors who had already reached 40. Survivors under 40 still have time under the rule above.
Certificates of merit
A plaintiff who is 40 or older files certificates of merit before the case proceeds. Subdivisions (e) through (g) of section 340.1 require one from the attorney and one from a licensed mental health practitioner, each stating that there is a reasonable basis for the claim. The certificates are filed with the court, and the defendant is not served until the court has reviewed them. We arrange both.
The government claim exemption
Most claims against a public entity 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, and subdivision (p), added by AB 218, makes the exemption retroactive. A 2016 Legislative Counsel opinion posted by the California Department of Education adds that a school district may not adopt a claim presentation procedure of its own for these claims.
Some law firm websites still list a six-month government claim as the first step. That is wrong for these claims, and a survivor who never filed one has lost nothing.
Treble damages
Section 340.1(b)(1) allows up to treble damages against a defendant where the plaintiff proves the abuse resulted from a cover-up. That enhancement does not reach public school districts. In Los Angeles Unified School District v. Superior Court, decided June 1, 2023, the California Supreme Court held that Government Code section 818, which bars damages imposed primarily for the sake of example or punishment, blocks treble damages against a public entity. A claim against a district is for the survivor's actual harm. Treble damages remain available against private schools and organizations where a cover-up is proved.
SB 577 status
SB 577, by Senator John Laird, passed the Legislature at the end of August 2026. The bill record shows it enrolled and presented to the Governor on September 8, 2026. The Governor has until September 30, 2026 to sign or veto it. As of the date at the top of this page, neither had happened.
As reported by CalMatters, the bill sets no cap on damages. For public entities, it would require survivors who are 40 or older, and pre-2024 claims where records were destroyed, to prove the claim by clear and convincing evidence and to show that the entity had actual knowledge of the misconduct. It would require districts, counties and cities to submit codes of conduct and prevention plans to the Attorney General by January 1, 2028, impose a penalty on attorneys who bring claims in bad faith, and add peace officers, probation officers and social workers to the list of mandated reporters.
The Legislature's bill analysis also describes a shorter discovery period for pre-2024 abuse, from five years to three years after the survivor discovers or reasonably should have discovered the injury. We will confirm that change against the chaptered text before stating it as law. Survivor organizations asked the Governor for a veto.
If the bill is signed, the honest message for survivors of pre-2024 abuse who are over 40 is not a countdown. It is that proof of what the district knew becomes more important than before. Records, earlier complaints and witnesses carry more weight, and gathering them early matters more than any date.
SB 848 in effect
SB 848 took effect on January 1, 2026. As CalMatters reported, it requires schools, including private schools, to adopt conduct policies, train students and staff to recognize and report misconduct, broadens who must report, and directs the Commission on Teacher Credentialing to build a database of educators credibly accused of abuse, with protocols due by July 2026. For a claim, the new duties set a written standard that a school's conduct can be measured against.
AB 1381
AB 1381, a 2026 bill for a public, searchable database of educator misconduct, failed. ProPublica reported that the state had failed to revoke credentials for at least 67 educators whom school districts had found to have sexually harassed students or committed sexual misconduct, and that at least 14 were later hired by other schools. In a case, an adult's earlier record at another school is discoverable whether or not a public database exists.
Mandated reporting
Penal Code section 11166 requires a mandated reporter who knows or reasonably suspects child abuse to report it to police or child protective services by phone immediately or as soon as practicably possible, with a written report within 36 hours. Teachers, aides, coaches, counselors and administrators are all mandated reporters. A failure to report is a misdemeanor, and in a civil case it is evidence of what the school knew.
Sources cited
- Code of Civil Procedure section 340.1, current through January 1, 2026: FindLaw
- Government Code section 905: California Legislative Information
- Penal Code section 11166: California Legislative Information
- FCMAT, Child Sexual Assault Claims: Fiscal Implications, January 31, 2025: PDF
- California Department of Education, claims for childhood sexual abuse: cde.ca.gov
- Los Angeles Unified School District v. Superior Court (2023): FindLaw
- SB 577 bill record: California Legislative Information, and the Digital Democracy analysis
- CalMatters on SB 577: August 2026; on SB 848: December 2025
- ProPublica on AB 1381: June 2026
- CSBA legal update on AB 452: January 2024