Yes, survivors of childhood sexual abuse in California foster care can often sue the agency, county or other entity responsible for the placement, not only the abuser. For abuse on or after January 1, 2024, section 340.1 sets no time limit. For earlier abuse, the deadline is generally age 40 or five years from discovery, whichever is later.
Many survivors of abuse in foster care do not know that the system meant to protect them can be held responsible. Others assume too much time has passed. Whether a claim can still be filed depends mainly on two things: when the abuse happened and who the defendant is. This guide explains each in turn.
What a Foster Care Agency Sexual Abuse Claim Actually Is
A civil claim is a lawsuit brought by the survivor, seeking money damages for the harm done. It is separate from a criminal case, which a prosecutor brings. A civil claim does not require a criminal conviction, an arrest, or any criminal case at all. The differences are set out in our guide to civil vs. criminal cases.
A foster care agency is a licensed entity, public or private, responsible for placing children in foster homes and supervising those placements. The California Department of Social Services (CDSS) licenses and oversees foster care providers statewide, through its Community Care Licensing Division.
These claims usually name the institution, not only the individual. The legal question is whether the agency failed in a duty it owed to the child. Two theories come up most often:
- Negligent placement means the agency put a child in a home it knew, or reasonably should have known, was unsafe.
- Negligent supervision means the agency failed to monitor a placement adequately, such as missing required visits or not responding to warning signs.
Code of Civil Procedure section 340.1 expressly covers actions "against any person or entity who owed a duty of care to the plaintiff, if a wrongful or negligent act by that person or entity was a legal cause of the childhood sexual assault." See also our guide to childhood sexual abuse.
Who Can Be Held Liable Under California Law
Licensed private foster family agencies. An FFA that recruits, trains, certifies and monitors foster parents owes a duty of care to the children it places. If it certified an unsafe home or failed to supervise it, the agency may be liable in negligence.
County child welfare departments. Every California county runs a child welfare agency that chooses placements and assigns social workers. These are public entities. Under Government Code section 815.2, "a public entity is liable for injury proximately caused by an act or omission of an employee of the public entity within the scope of his employment" where the act would have given rise to a claim against that employee. Government Code section 820 provides that a public employee is generally liable "to the same extent as a private person." Public entities also have statutory immunities, so whether a particular failure falls inside them is fact-specific.
Individual foster parents. The person who committed the abuse is directly liable. Other adults in the home may also be named if their own negligence contributed.
Related theories against organizations include negligent hiring, negligent retention and negligent supervision.
Failure to report. Penal Code section 11166 requires mandated reporters, including social workers, to report known or reasonably suspected child abuse "immediately or as soon as is practicably possible," followed by a written report within 36 hours. "Reasonable suspicion" "does not require certainty." An unreported suspicion can be evidence that the agency breached its duty.
Government claims and childhood abuse. The Government Claims Act (Gov. Code § 910 et seq.) generally requires a written claim to be presented to a public entity before suing it. A claim under section 910 must show, among other things, the claimant's name and address, the date, place and circumstances of the occurrence, a general description of the injury, and the names of the public employees involved, if known. A childhood sexual abuse claim against a local public entity, such as a county, is exempt from the claim-presentation requirement. Claims against the State follow separate rules: for a state defendant, the exemption reaches abuse occurring on or after January 1, 2024.
California's Statute of Limitations for Childhood Sexual Abuse Claims
Abuse on or after January 1, 2024. Section 340.1 now provides that "there is no time limit" for these actions, including claims against an entity whose negligent or intentional act was a legal cause of the abuse. It did not revive any claim that had already expired.
Abuse on or before December 31, 2023. These claims are governed by section 340.1 as it read on December 31, 2023, reflecting AB 218 (2019). A survivor may file by age 40, or within five years of discovering that a psychological injury or illness occurring after age 18 was caused by the abuse, whichever is later.
The discovery rule. "Delayed discovery" starts the clock on the date the survivor discovered, or reasonably should have discovered, that a later psychological injury was caused by the abuse.
What came before. Before AB 218, the general deadline was age 26, or three years from discovery.
The closed revival window. AB 218 also opened a three-year window for expired claims. That window closed on December 31, 2022. A survivor who missed it may still be within the age-40 or discovery deadline.
The six-month government claim deadline. Government Code section 911.2 generally requires a personal injury claim against a public entity to be presented "not later than six months after the accrual of the cause of action." Because childhood sexual abuse claims against a local entity are exempt, this deadline generally does not apply to them. It may still matter for a claim against the State involving abuse before 2024. More appears in our guide to the California statute of limitations.