Williams v. Los Angeles Metropolitan Transit Authority

Plaintiff, through his guardian ad litem, brought this action against defendant Los Angeles Metropolitan Transit Authority for injuries caused by defendant’s agents’ negligent operation of a motor vehicle. (Yeh. Code, § 17001.) Defendant demurred to the complaint on the ground that section 945.6 of the Government Code barred plaintiff’s action; the trial court sustained the demurrer with leave to amend. Defendant moved to strike plaintiff’s amended com *601 plaint as merely repetitive of the earlier complaint; the trial court granted this motion and dismissed plaintiff's action. (See Code Civ. Proc., § 581, subd. 3.)

On plaintiff’s appeal we hold that the trial court improperly dismissed the action. As we shall point out in more detail, Code of Civil Procedure section 352 preserves the causes of actions of minors against the running of the statute of limitations, and nothing in Government Code section 945.6, enacted in 1963 as part of the California Tort Claims Act, abrogates that section or the public policy that underlies it.

According to the allegations of the complaint, plaintiff, a minor, sustained injury on July 16, 1961. He timely filed the required claim with defendant…

Although it seems somewhat anomalous that minors are held bound by the claim filing requirements with respect to their claims against public entities (subject to the special dispensation provided by Government Code section 911.6, subdivision (b) (2)) , 1 but the statute of limitations is tolled in their favor during their minority, nevertheless that is the effect of the statutory scheme as actually enacted by the Legislature. It may perhaps be argued logically that a minor who has presented a claim under the applicable statutes is in a position to file court action within the limitations period which applies generally to actions on claims against public entities, and that it would be more consistent to require that he do so. We may also speculate that perhaps the Law Revision Commission in presenting its recommendations to the Legislature with respect to the 1963 tort claims legislation intended that minors be bound by the same statute of limitations as was to be applicable generally, *610 and was of the view that such would be the result of the recommended legislation.

The only two statements in the California Law Revision Commission Report on the question of statutes of…

I dissent. I would affirm the judgment for the reasons expressed by Mr. Justice Pox in the opinion prepared by him for the Court of Appeal in Williams v. Los Angeles Metropolitan Transit Authority (Cal.App.) 57 Cal. Rptr. 7 .