Jefferson

Plaintiff and appellant Clayton L. Jefferson (Clayton), a minor, by and through his guardian ad litem Darlene Jefferson, appeals from the trial court’s judgment in favor of defendants and respondents, County of Kern (County) and Geoffrey M. Miller, M.D. (Dr. Miller) (collectively respondents), entered after a one-day court trial in which the trial court found Clayton had failed to comply with the claim presentation requirements of the California Tort Claims Act (Gov. Code, § 810 et seq.). The trial court determined, in a bifurcated trial of the special defense at respondents’ request under Code of Civil Procedure section 597, that Clayton’s medical malpractice and fraud causes of action were barred because they had accrued more than one year prior to his submission to the County of an application for leave to present a late claim. Clayton’s request that the special defense be tried before a jury was denied by the trial court.

In the unpublished portion of this decision, we conclude that the County is not estopped from challenging the date of accrual of Clayton’s causes of action, since the County accepted Clayton’s application for leave to present a late claim while…