California, United States of America
The following excerpt is from Austin v. Medicis, 21 Cal.App.5th 577, 230 Cal.Rptr.3d 528 (Cal. App. 2018):
To determine which statute of limitations governs a given cause of action, we must first " identify the nature of the cause of action, i.e., the "gravamen" of the cause of action. [Citation.] The nature of the cause of action and the primary right involved, not the form or label of the cause of action or the relief demanded, determine which statute of limitations applies. [Citations.]" ( Carter v. Prime Healthcare Paradise Valley LLC (2011) 198 Cal.App.4th 396, 412, 129 Cal.Rptr.3d 895.) The parties agree that the one-year limitations period in section 340.6 applies to the sixth and seventh causes of action, for elder abuse/undue influence and negligent infliction of emotional distress, and that the three-year period in section 338 applies to the fourth cause of action, for actual fraud.2 They appear to disagree, however, about which limitations period applies to the first, second, and third causes of action, for breach of contract and rescission, and the fifth cause of action, for constructive fraud.
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