Written and reviewed by Josh Kohanim, Esq., California Bar No. 328609 · Reviewed
In this guide
A child may be struck near a school, at a corner, or on a residential street, and the case differs from an adult's in three ways: the speed rules near schools, how the child's conduct is judged, and the deadlines. Coverage, damages and the right-of-way statutes are on our Los Angeles pedestrian accident lawyer page.
The speed limit near a school
Vehicle Code section 22352, in the version operative now, sets a prima facie limit of 25 miles per hour when approaching or passing a school building or its grounds while children are going to or leaving school. The grounds must be contiguous to a highway and posted with a standard SCHOOL warning sign. The same limit applies where school grounds are not separated from the highway by a fence or barrier and are in use by children. The sign may sit up to 500 feet from the grounds.
Since January 1, 2026, section 22352.5, added by Assembly Bill 382, lets a city or county declare by ordinance a prima facie limit of 20 miles per hour in a school zone. A later version of section 22352, operative January 1, 2031, moves the school zone limit itself to 20 where a sign with flashing beacons is active, where a sign states children are present and they are, or during posted hours. That version defines a school zone as highway within 500 feet of school grounds unless otherwise posted.
The school zone number is the beginning of the analysis. Section 22350, the basic speed law, prohibits any speed greater than is reasonable or prudent having regard for weather, visibility, traffic and the surface and width of the highway. Twenty-five miles per hour past a crowd of children at dismissal can violate section 22350 on its own.
How your child's own conduct is judged
The defense has one theme: the child ran into the street. Two jury instructions answer it. CACI No. 402 tells the jury that children are not held to the same standards of behavior as adults. A child must use the care a reasonably careful child of the same age, intelligence, knowledge and experience would use in that situation. The standard is subjective, matched to this child rather than an average one.
CACI No. 412 completes the picture from the driver's side: an adult must anticipate the ordinary behavior of children and must be more careful with children than with other adults. Read together, they describe a driver near a school who is required to expect the exact behavior the defense wants to blame the child for. One exception applies: the reduced standard may not apply where the minor was engaged in an adult activity, such as driving.
| Who | Standard applied | Instruction |
|---|---|---|
| The child on foot | A reasonably careful child of the same age and experience | CACI No. 402 |
| The driver near children | More care than with adults, anticipating ordinary child behavior | CACI No. 412 |
| The driver generally | Reasonable care, lookout, control of speed and movement | CACI No. 700 |
| A teenager driving | The adult standard, because driving is an adult activity | CACI No. 402, use note |
The government deadline does not pause
Code of Civil Procedure section 352(a) addresses a person who was under the age of majority when the cause of action accrued. The time of that disability is not part of the time limited for commencing the action. Tolling is the word for that pause. For a claim against a private driver, it means the two year period in section 335.1 does not begin to run until the child turns 18.
| Defendant | Deadline | Source |
|---|---|---|
| A private driver | 2 years, tolled until the child turns 18 | CCP 335.1 and 352(a) |
| School district, city, county, transit | 6 months to present a written claim | Gov. Code 911.2, CCP 352(b) |
| The agency's response | 45 days, then deemed rejected | Gov. Code 912.4 |
| Suit after a rejected claim | 6 months from written rejection | Gov. Code 945.6 |
Waiting is costly even where tolling applies. Camera footage, the vehicle's stored data, the crossing guard's memory and the scene itself are gone long before a child turns 18. Our table of California injury deadlines sets out the rest. We answer the public entity question inside the first month.
Why a judge approves your child's settlement
A minor cannot settle a claim. Code of Civil Procedure section 372(a) requires a minor who is a party to appear through a guardian of the estate or a guardian ad litem, a person the court appoints to act for the child in that case. That person may compromise the claim, meaning settle it, only with the approval of the court where the action is pending. Where no lawsuit has been filed, Probate Code section 3500 allows a parent to compromise a disputed claim, and states that the compromise is valid only after the superior court approves it on a petition.
Both routes end in the same place. Probate Code section 3600 and the sections that follow govern the money once a court approves a minor's compromise or enters judgment, and section 3611 lists what the court may order. A parent does not receive a check directly.
| Option | When it is used |
|---|---|
| Blocked account or single-premium annuity | The common order; withdrawals need court authorization |
| Guardian of the estate appointed | Larger recoveries needing ongoing management |
| Special needs trust under section 3604 | Where the child receives or will need public benefits |
| Transfer to a custodian under the Uniform Transfers to Minors Act | An alternative holding structure the court may approve |
| Paid to a parent without bond | Only where the balance does not exceed $5,000 |
The petition is substantive work, not a formality. It sets out the facts, the injuries, the medical charges and liens, the fees the court is asked to approve, and why the amount is reasonable for this child. A judge who is not satisfied that the settlement serves the child will not approve it.
When a child pedestrian case differs
California Office of Traffic Safety data for 2023 counts 86 pedestrian victims under 15 killed and injured in the City of Los Angeles. Nationally, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) reports children under 13 have seen the largest decline in pedestrian death rates of any age group since 1975, a drop of 92 percent, while adult rates have risen since 2009. The cases that still happen fall into a few shapes.
- A school bus, a district vehicle, or a crossing guard. The claim runs against a public entity on the six month clock, and the child's age does not extend it.
- The crash happened on school grounds. Supervision and premises claims against the district follow the same government claim path, and the incident report is written the same day by people who are also witnesses.
- The child was on a scooter, a skateboard or a bicycle. The pedestrian right-of-way statutes may not apply the same way, and a bicycle brings the rules of the road with it.
- A parent was also injured, or was driving. Two claims exist with different parties, and the family needs to know early whether a conflict prevents one lawyer from handling both.
- The injury is a brain injury. A developing brain changes the future care analysis entirely, and our Los Angeles brain injury attorney page covers what has to be documented.
If the collision happened at an intersection, our crosswalk accidents page covers the crossing rules and how signal timing is proved. If it happened in a lot, a driveway or a school pickup line, our parking lot and driveway accidents page covers backing collisions and the property owner's separate responsibility.
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