I Tripped on a Broken City Sidewalk in California. How Does a Claim Against the City Work?

Table of Contents

Before I can sue a California city over a sidewalk trip, what has to happen first?

A written claim to the city comes first. California law generally bars a suit for money against a city until the claim has been presented to it and either acted on by its board or deemed rejected (Government Code section 945.4). The Law Offices of J. Chrisp represents people injured in trip and fall accidents in Northern California.

An injury claim against a city or other public entity has a six-month window, which starts when the cause of action accrues (Government Code section 911.2). Accrual here is the date the cause of action would accrue under the statute of limitations that would apply if no claim were required (section 901). A late claim is sometimes still possible, under conditions set out later on this page.

When a broken sidewalk is a dangerous condition

Except as otherwise provided by statute, a public entity is not liable for an injury (Government Code section 815). For property, section 835 is that statute. It makes a public entity liable for a dangerous condition of its property when its requirements are met.

A dangerous condition is a condition of property that creates a substantial (as distinguished from a minor, trivial or insignificant) risk of injury. The risk is judged with the property, or adjacent property, used with due care in a reasonably foreseeable way (section 830). The property must be owned or controlled by the public entity. Easements, encroachments and other property located on public land that the entity does not own or control are not included.

What has to be proved against the city

Except as provided by statute, section 835 requires the injured person to establish all of the following:

The sidewalk or other property was in a dangerous condition when the injury happened.
That condition was a proximate cause of the injury.
The condition made the kind of injury that occurred reasonably foreseeable.
Either an employee of the public entity, acting within the scope of employment, created the condition through a negligent or wrongful act or omission, or the entity had actual or constructive notice of the condition long enough before the injury to have taken measures to protect against it.

Protecting against a dangerous condition includes repairing or correcting it, providing safeguards against it, or warning of it (section 830).

An entity has actual notice when it actually knew about the condition and knew, or should have known, that it was dangerous. Constructive notice requires the injured person to show the condition existed long enough, and was obvious enough, that the entity should have discovered it and its dangerous character by using due care (section 835.2). Evidence on due care can include whether a reasonably adequate inspection system would have revealed the condition. It can also include whether the entity ran such a system with due care and still did not discover it.

What goes in the claim and where to send it

The claimant, or a person acting on the claimant’s behalf, presents the claim. Under section 910, it must show:

the claimant’s name and post office address;
the post office address where notices should be sent;
the date, place and other circumstances of the fall;
a general description of the injury, damage or loss, as far as it is known when the claim is presented;
the name of any public employee who caused the injury, if known.

Delivery to the city’s clerk, secretary or auditor is one way to present it. Mailing it to any of them, or to the governing body at its principal office, is another (section 915).

After the claim is presented

The city’s board has 45 days after presentation to act on the claim, and the claimant and the board may extend that period by written agreement (section 912.4). When the board gives written notice under section 913, the deadline to sue is generally six months from the date that notice was personally delivered or deposited in the mail. When no such notice is given, the deadline is two years from accrual of the cause of action. If the board’s time to act was extended by written agreement, the extension is not counted in that two-year period (section 945.6).

If the six-month deadline has passed

The claimant can make a written application to the city for leave to present the late claim. The time limit for the application is a reasonable time, capped at one year after accrual. It explains why the claim is late, and the proposed claim is attached to it (section 911.4).

The board must grant or deny the application within 45 days. If it does not act in that time, the application is deemed denied on the 45th day, unless the period was extended by written agreement. The board must grant the application in listed situations. One covers a claim that was late through mistake, inadvertence, surprise or excusable neglect, where the delay did not prejudice the city’s defense. Another covers an injured person who was physically or mentally incapacitated for the whole six months. The incapacity must be the reason no claim was filed in that time (section 911.6).

If the application is denied or deemed denied, the claimant may petition the superior court for an order relieving the claimant from the claim requirement in section 945.4. The petition must show the application and its denial, the reason the claim was late and the information a claim requires. The deadline for that petition is six months after the application is denied or deemed denied (section 946.6).

Frequently asked questions

Is a small crack or a slightly raised slab enough for a claim?

It is not enough if the court finds the risk trivial. Under Government Code section 830.2, the trial or appellate court can decide the question as a matter of law, viewing the evidence most favorably to the injured person. The condition is not a dangerous condition if its risk was so minor, trivial or insignificant in the surrounding circumstances that no reasonable person would conclude it created a substantial risk of injury.

Should the claim say how much money I want?

It depends on the total. If it is less than $10,000, the claim states the amount and how it was computed, including estimated future losses as far as they are known. If the amount is more than $10,000, the claim leaves out any dollar figure but says whether the case would be a limited civil case (Government Code section 910).

Can I email the claim to the city?

Email is an option only if the city has expressly authorized electronic submission by ordinance or resolution. In that case, the claim is submitted in the manner the ordinance or resolution specifies (Government Code section 915).

My child tripped on a city sidewalk. Is there more time?

The board must grant a late-claim application if the child was a minor for the whole six months. It must also grant one if the child was a minor for part of that time. In that case, the application must be presented within six months of turning 18 or one year after the claim accrues, whichever comes first (Government Code section 911.6). Time spent as a minor still counts toward the one-year limit for applying (section 911.4).

Can the city raise defenses even when the sidewalk was dangerous?

Yes. A public entity’s liability is subject to any immunity provided by statute and to any defenses that would be available to it if it were a private person (Government Code section 815).

If you tripped on a broken sidewalk or other public property in Northern California, call the Law Offices of J. Chrisp 24/7 at 877-J-CHRISP (877-524-7477) for a free consultation. There is no fee unless we win.

About the Law Offices of J. Chrisp

The Law Offices of J. Chrisp is a Northern California personal injury law firm founded by attorney Jesse Chrisp, who was raised in Lake County. The firm represents injured people, with offices in Lower Lake (main office), Santa Rosa and San Francisco, and serves Sonoma, Napa, Lake and Mendocino counties and the San Francisco Bay Area. Consultations are free, the firm works on a contingency fee with no fee unless the firm wins, and the phone is answered 24/7 at 877-J-CHRISP (877-524-7477). The firm was named to Best Law Firms 2026 (Tier 1, Santa Rosa, Personal Injury Litigation – Plaintiffs). Jesse Chrisp has been recognized by The Best Lawyers in America since 2024 and selected to Super Lawyers from 2023 to 2026.