According to the National Center for Health Statistics, in 2022 there were 43.5 million visits to US hospital emergency departments because of injuries, poisonings, and related causes. Of those 43.5 million, a percentage will lead to lawsuits, all of which must abide by filing deadlines set by state or federal law.
Most people who look into that clock focus on its length. The harder question often concerns its starting point. A deadline measured in years means little if nobody knows which day it started running.
The Usual Starting Point
The filing clock for a common injury lawsuit begins the day of the incident. It includes injuries such as a car crash, slipping and falling on a wet surface, or even a dog bite. With those events, the day of the incident is most likely the same day the injury occurred.
In almost all situations, the length of the injury filing period widely varies from one jurisdiction to another. Each type of injury filing will likely have its own filing period schedule as well. Within each state, medical malpractice and injury claims will have different periods.
According to D&W Law Group, Illinois medical malpractice claims may run from the date the harm was discovered or should have been discovered, subject to an outer limit measured from the date of the malpractice itself.
When the Harm Shows Up Later
Some injuries take days or weeks to appear. Harm caused by the ingestion of toxic chemicals, the implantation of dangerous devices, and diseases with lengthy latency periods can go unnoticed for quite some time. In many places, courts apply the “discovery rule.” This rule postpones the running of the period until the injury is discovered or could reasonably have been discovered.
North Carolina gives a detailed example of how these rules work in a single state. Under the state’s personal injury statute of limitations, deadlines differ across several categories of claims, including general injuries, product cases, and claims involving children.
The same law bars lawsuits under this section after ten years from the defendant’s final act, regardless of when the claimant discovers the injury. Still, a claim may accrue upon discovery of the injury, but never more than ten years after that last act.
Many states use a statute of repose to set a maximum period for certain claims, with variations to the rule. Repose serves as a final barrier that applies even if claimants never learned about their possible claims, allowing some cases to be dismissed early.
Pauses and Exceptions
Some circumstances halt or delay the ticking of the clock. For instance, in many states, injured minors may stop the clock until they reach the age of majority. There are states that halt the clock for legal incapacity of varying types and others that grant an extension because the defendant moved or hid their unlawful behavior.
As stated earlier, there are a lot of ways a clock can be put on hold, and those exceptions are very specific and come with litigation. It’s better to check all the rules to be sure before losing a valid claim.
Claims Involving Government Agencies
Government agencies often require a claim to be filed by a specific deadline. In some cases, that deadline arrives sooner than the usual time limit for a normal lawsuit. The Department of Veterans Affairs notes that under the Federal Tort Claims Act, a claim must be received by the appropriate agency within two years of when it accrued. This step is handled through the agency first, before you file in court.
State and local government administrative filing requirements can be even shorter than those at the federal level. Injury claims caused by a public vehicle or property take more time and effort than an injury claim against a private individual.
Practical Deadlines Beyond the Statute
There is more than one clock at play.
Lots of critical evidence goes missing well before any relevant statute of limitations. This includes CCTV, repair logs, and other evidence that expires. Some insurance policies also have time limits for notice or claim filing.
To determine whether a filing is due, people should ask certain questions. Which kind of legal claim is being made, which jurisdiction’s law governs it, when did the injury occur or become known, and are there any tolling or notice rules that apply? There are rules that specify the circumstances of any delay, but the initial deadline applies after these initial answers.
