Legal Question in Civil Litigation in California
I know that if I want to sue City Hall in Superior Court (Unlimited), I first need to file a claim with that city within 6 months first, before I file in Superior Court (if the city denies my claim).
my question is: If I wanted to sue City Hall in Federal Court instead, do I also need to have filed a claim with the City within the 6 months, before I sue City Hall in Federal Court (if the city denies my claim).
3 Answers from Attorneys
Always file the claim, file it appropriately... If you file the claims improperly or dont include the right things you can lose the cause of action in court.
The claim needs to be filed and denied before you can file your complaint. This is true regardless of where you file.
You had better be 100% sure you can be heard in federal court before filing there. Not all claims -- and especially not all claims against municipalities -- can be heard in federal court.
Mr. Perry is right. Unless you are suing under a federal law that you claim the city has violated, OR you are a citizen of another state and meet the other requirements of "diversity of citizenship jurisdiction" you can't sue a city in state court. You can, however, and are technically required to, file in a different county from the one in which the municipality is located. If you file in the same county you waive that right, which is why I say "required" because you can't move it later.
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