The time in which a lawsuit must be brought. Different claims have different statutes of limitations. For example, a lawsuit for personal injury must be brought within two years of the date of the event causing the injury while a lawsuit for breach of a written contract must be brought within four years of the date of the breach. Most of the statutes of limitation in California are found in Code of Civil Procedure, sections 335 through 349.4, but are also found in other code sections. Failure to bring a lawsuit within the time specified in the applicable statute of limitations will act as a complete bar to the lawsuit.