In K.J. v. City of Arcadia, published April 7. 2009, Division 3 of the Second Appellate District held that when a person over 18 sues a public entity for sexual abuse when the person was a minor, accrual is governed by CCP 340.1's accrual standard: Accrual therefore occurs "the date the plaintiff discovers or reasonably should have discovered that psychological injury or illness occurring after the date of majority was caused by the sexual abuse,"
The court thus held that the plaintiff's cause of action for her teacher's alleged relationship with her when she was 15 did not accrue until the plaintiff, as an adult, allegedly realized in therapy that the relationship was wrong and had injured her.
The court also held that neither the victim's mother's discovery of the alleged relationship nor the accused perpetrator's arrest triggered accrual. It held the parent's discovery of the alleged wrongdoing relevant to accrual only if the discovery occurs when the alleged victim is a minor.
The court acknowledged that its ruling conflicts with that of another division of the Second District, V.C. v. Los Angeles Unified School Dist. (2006) 139 Cal.App.4th 499, in which the court held the alleged victim's cause of action accrued no later than the molester's arrest. This split in authority may eventually be resolved by the California Supreme Court.
The opinion also discusses the standards for estoppel and pleading in relation to the claims requirements.
UPDATE: On July 15, 2009, the California Supreme Court declined to review the decision.
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