California Civil Rights Laws
The rights of individuals to receive equal treatment under the law are collectively called civil rights.
Created by FindLaw's team of legal writers and editors | Last reviewed November 18, 2019
This article has been written and reviewed for legal accuracy, clarity, and style by FindLaw’s team of legal writers and attorneys and in accordance with our editorial standards.
The last updated date refers to the last time this article was reviewed by FindLaw or one of our contributing authors. We make every effort to keep our articles updated. For information regarding a specific legal issue affecting you, please contact an attorney in your area.
California civil rights laws generally mirror federal civil rights laws, with a few notable exceptions. For instance, California recognizes sexual orientation as a protected status. This means it is a violation of state (but not federal) law to discriminate against members of the LGBT community for purposes of employment or housing.
The following chart provides the relevant code sections and basic provisions of California's civil rights laws.
| Code Section | Civ. §§51, et seq. (Public Accommodations) Gov. §12940 et seq. (Housing & employment) |
| Agency | Civ §§51: None; Gov. §12940: Dept. of Fair Employment and Housing |
| Administrative Preemption? | No |
| Private Action Permitted? | Yes |
| Attorney Fees Recoverable by Plaintiff? | Yes |
| Statute of Limitations | Civ. §51: 3 yrs.; Gov. §12940: 1 yr./agency |
Note: State laws are constantly changing -- contact a California civil rights attorney or conduct your own legal research to verify the state law(s) you are researching.
Research the Law
- California Law
- Official State Codes - Links to the official online statutes (laws) in all 50 states and DC.