What Is the Wrongful Termination Statute of Limitations in California? It depends on the legal claim behind your firing. If you sue for wrongful termination in violation of public policy, you generally must file in court within two years (Cal. Code Civ. Proc. § 335.1). A discrimination, harassment, or retaliation claim under the Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) must first go to the Civil Rights Department within three years (Gov. Code § 12960). Some deadlines are much shorter.Table of Contents
If you were fired and believe it was illegal, the calendar matters as much as the facts. The wrongful termination statute of limitations in California is not one single deadline. Instead, each legal claim carries its own clock. Some of those clocks run out in months, not years. Below, we explain the main deadlines, when each one starts, and why getting the facts reviewed early matters.
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Danielle Langella is an Associate Attorney at Abramson Labor Group, where she helps California employees stand up for their rights at work. Before joining ALG, Danielle worked at Good American as a Marketing Coordinator and Assistant to the Brand Director,…
Deadlines matter most when you are unsure whether it is already too late. This article applies to you if:
California is an at-will state, but that does not give an employer the right to fire you for an illegal reason. Our article on wrongful termination vs. at-will employment explains where that line sits. If your firing followed a health issue, see whether you were fired for medical reasons.
California has no single deadline called “wrongful termination.” Instead, a lawyer looks at why your employer fired you. Each illegal reason supports a different legal claim, and each claim has its own filing deadline. As a result, one firing can start several clocks at once. The shortest one controls how fast you need to move.
| Claim | Where it starts | General deadline |
|---|---|---|
| Wrongful termination in violation of public policy | Superior court | 2 years (§ 335.1) |
| FEHA discrimination, harassment, or retaliation | Complaint with CRD | 3 years (§ 12960) |
| FEHA lawsuit after CRD notice | Superior court | 1 year from the Right-to-Sue notice (CRD) |
| Retaliation under laws the Labor Commissioner enforces | Labor Commissioner complaint | Generally 1 year (DIR) |
| Federal discrimination claim | EEOC charge | Generally 300 days (EEOC) |
| Breach of a written employment contract | Superior court | 4 years (§ 337) |
| Breach of an oral contract | Superior court | 2 years (§ 339) |
These wrongful termination statute of limitations rules are general, not your exact deadline. Exceptions, day-counting rules, and the facts of your case can move a date. For that reason, treat the earliest deadline that could apply as the real one. An employment attorney can evaluate which deadlines apply to your situation.
You generally must file a public policy claim in court within two years of the firing. Code of Civil Procedure section 335.1 sets a two-year deadline for injuries caused by the wrongful act of another. The Court of Appeal applied that deadline in Prue v. Brady Co./San Diego, Inc. (2015). There, the employer had fired the worker in violation of the public policy against disability discrimination. The court held his claim timely because he sued within two years of his termination.
Two years can pass quickly while you look for new work. Our wrongful termination lawyers can tell you whether your facts support this claim.
Your claim likely falls under FEHA if your employer fired you because of a protected trait. The same goes for a firing over a complaint about discrimination or harassment. Before you can sue under FEHA, you must file a complaint with CRD and obtain a Right-to-Sue notice (CRD). Under Government Code section 12960, you have three years from the unlawful act to file that complaint.
The second clock is the one that catches people. Once CRD issues your Right-to-Sue notice, you have one year from the date of that notice to file a lawsuit. You can request the notice right away instead of asking CRD to investigate. However, that choice starts the one-year clock immediately, so the fast route can leave you less total time. CRD also states that it will not send a Right-to-Sue complaint to the EEOC, so a federal charge needs its own filing.
Retaliation for complaining is one of the most common FEHA claims. For examples of what qualifies, read what counts as retaliation under California law.
Some firings break laws that the Labor Commissioner enforces, such as the protections for workers who report safety problems. In most cases, you must file a retaliation complaint with the Labor Commissioner within one year of the adverse action (DIR). A few exceptions carry different limits.
Safety cases have an even shorter option. If you complained about a workplace health or safety issue, you also have a separate right to file with federal OSHA within 30 days of the adverse action (DIR). Learn more about being fired for making a safety complaint.
Federal laws such as Title VII also ban discrimination at work. To use them, you generally file a charge with the EEOC first. The EEOC’s standard deadline is 180 days. It extends to 300 days where a state or local law covers the same basis for the charge (EEOC). Because California has CRD, the 300-day deadline generally applies here. Age claims follow slightly different rules.
After the EEOC issues a Notice of Right to Sue, you must file your lawsuit within 90 days (EEOC). The EEOC counts weekends and holidays. If a deadline lands on one, it moves to the next business day (EEOC time limits). The EEOC also warns that its deadline generally does not pause while you try an internal grievance, arbitration, or mediation.
Different rules can apply if you worked for a city, county, school district, or state agency. Many claims against a public entity require a written government claim before any lawsuit. Under Government Code section 911.2, you must present a claim for injury to a person within six months. A claim relating to any other cause of action has one year. Which rule applies to your case is a legal question, so public employees should consider speaking with an employment attorney right away.
If you worked in Los Angeles County, our Los Angeles wrongful termination lawyer page covers how we handle cases there.
It depends on the claim. A public policy claim generally has two years from the firing (Code Civ. Proc. § 335.1). A FEHA claim needs a CRD complaint within three years, then a lawsuit within one year of the Right-to-Sue notice. Other claims, such as a Labor Commissioner retaliation complaint, can have a one-year limit or less.
Most wrongful termination statute of limitations clocks start on the date of the unlawful act, which for a firing is usually your termination date. For example, the FEHA deadline runs from the date the unlawful practice occurred (Gov. Code § 12960). However, a Right-to-Sue notice starts its own separate one-year clock.
Do not assume it does. Each claim follows its own rules, and the EEOC states that its deadline generally does not pause for internal grievances, arbitration, or mediation (EEOC). The safest approach is to treat every deadline as running until a lawyer tells you otherwise.
You may still have options. Because each claim has its own deadline, missing one does not always close the others. FEHA also allows limited extensions, such as up to 90 extra days if you first learned the facts of the unlawful practice during the 90 days after the deadline passed (Gov. Code § 12960). An employment attorney can check before you give up.
If you were fired for an illegal reason, the wrongful termination statute of limitations is already running. Different claims can have different deadlines, and the right one depends on the facts. Consider speaking with a California employment lawyer, who can identify each claim and the deadline that controls it.
At Abramson Labor Group, founded by Zev Abramson in 2015, we represent California employees, not employers, in wrongful termination, discrimination, and retaliation cases. Our case reviews are free and confidential, and you do not pay anything unless we win. Request a free case evaluation, contact us, or call us at (213) 493-6300. You can also visit our California employment lawyers page to learn more.
This article is general information about California law, not legal advice. Every situation is different. For advice about your specific case, talk to a licensed California employment attorney.
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