Legal Question in Civil Litigation in California

There is a reason why it is called dismissed with prejudice... You settled, you have an enforceable settlement. Any thing related to the facts and circumstances is finished, never to be litigated again, no motions to vacate... Take your settlement and move on,

It depends on what "different cause of action" means. If you mean a different legal theory based on the same events, the answer is definitely no. If you mean a wholly different set of events, then of course you can sue. If the public entity breaches a contract with you, and you settle, that does not prevent you from suing for a breach of a different contract, or if a bus runs you down. If the "different cause of action" is somehow related to your first lawsuit, then probably not but you would need an attorney to analyze the situation and determine whether or not you are barred by the dismissal.

That depends on what papers you signed and how different the new cause of action really is. Most settlement agreements include a waiver of all the plaintiff's existing claims against the defendant, including any he might not yet be aware of. But some don't. If you didn't waive all your claims, and if the new cause of action does not arise out of the same circumstances as your prior lawsuit, you may be able to bring a new lawsuit.

There is probably no basis to ask the court to vacate the dismissal. If you decide after dismissing a case that you wish you hadn't, that's generally too bad.

You should review your options with a lawyer before deciding what to do.

If it is on the same facts and cirucumstances, you could not. Moving to set aside the dismissal, unless there are valid reasons to do so would be unlikely in any event.

I agree with Mr. McCormick. If it was something you should have sued for before, then the answer is no, you cannot sue again. If it was something new that has occurred, then you should be able to sue. I urge you to speak with an attorney in person to get a definite opinion.