Statute of Limitations by State: How Long You Have to Sue

Miss your filing deadline and even a strong injury claim can be thrown out. Here is the short version, then the details.

The short answer: most states give you 2 or 3 years from the date of injury to file a personal injury lawsuit. Kentucky and Tennessee allow just 1 year, while Maine, Minnesota, and North Dakota allow up to 6. Claims against a government body can have a notice deadline of only a few months.

Find your state Deadline calculator Government claims FAQ

How Long Do You Have to Sue Someone?

It depends on your state and the type of claim. Personal injury deadlines run from 1 to 6 years, and most states fall between 2 and 3.

The table shows typical ranges by claim type. Your state’s exact number is in the state table below.

What Is a Statute of Limitations?

A statute of limitations is a legal deadline for filing a lawsuit. It does not set a deadline for settling or finishing one.

File after it expires and the defendant can ask the court to dismiss the case, no matter how strong your evidence is. California’s court self-help site describes it the same way most courts do: once the time runs out, you generally lose the right to sue.

The rule exists to keep evidence and memories fresh and to give defendants a point where they can stop worrying about an old event. It says nothing about how serious your injury is.

This page covers civil injury lawsuits only. Criminal and debt-collection deadlines follow different rules.

When Does the Statute of Limitations Clock Start?

The default rule is simple and easy to misjudge. The period usually runs from the date the injury occurred, not the date you decided to pursue it, finished treatment, or received an insurance denial.

The discovery rule

Where an injury could not reasonably be found right away, many states start the clock on the date you discovered it, or reasonably should have. It is common in medical malpractice and toxic exposure cases, and less common for a plain slip and fall.

Whether it applies, and how, varies a lot by state and claim type.

Statute of limitations vs. statute of repose

A statute of repose is an absolute outer limit measured from the act itself, such as a surgery or a product sale. Unlike the discovery rule, it can bar a claim before you know you were hurt.

Wrongful death

The clock commonly runs from the date of death, not the date of the injury that caused it. That can be a very different date after a long illness or slow decline.

Which State’s Deadline Applies to You?

Start with the state where the injury happened, not necessarily where you live. That is usually where you will file, and it is the safest starting point if you were hurt while traveling.

The catch is that the deadline that counts is the one the court applies. Courts generally use their own state’s limitations period, and many states have “borrowing statutes” that apply the shorter of two states’ periods when the claim arose elsewhere.

State court vs. federal court

Filing in federal court does not buy you more time. When a federal court hears a state-law injury claim between citizens of different states, called diversity jurisdiction (with more than $75,000 at stake), it generally applies the statute of limitations of the state where it sits.

Federal deadlines apply mainly to federal claims, such as suing a federal agency. See deadlines that are even shorter.

Statute of Limitations by State

The table gives the general personal injury, wrongful death, and medical malpractice period in each state and the District of Columbia. Look up the state where the injury happened.

These are baselines, not guarantees. A dagger (†) means the state has a special rule, listed in the notes below the table.

Jump to your state:

• AL
• AK
• AZ
• AR
• CA
• CO
• CT
• DE
• DC
• FL
• GA
• HI
• ID
• IL
• IN
• IA
• KS
• KY
• LA
• ME
• MD
• MA
• MI
• MN
• MS
• MO
• MT
• NE
• NV
• NH
• NJ
• NM
• NY
• NC
• ND
• OH
• OK
• OR
• PA
• RI
• SC
• SD
• TN
• TX
• UT
• VT
• VA
• WA
• WV
• WI
• WY

Notes for states marked with †

Car accidents are the most common reason readers land on this table. Once you have your state’s deadline, our car accident lawyer guide covers what happens next, from fees to claims to settlements.

Statute of Limitations Calculator: Estimate Your Filing Deadline

This tool adds the general period from the table above to the date you enter, so you can see roughly where you stand.

It does not know the facts of your case. Treat the result as a starting point for a conversation with an attorney, not as your actual deadline.

This tool is an illustration, not legal advice, and it is not a substitute for speaking with a licensed attorney in your state.

Car Accident and Slip-and-Fall Statute of Limitations

Car accident injury claims usually follow your state’s general personal injury deadline, most often 2 or 3 years from the crash. A few states differ. Colorado allows 3 years for motor vehicle claims, and Kentucky’s no-fault law often gives 2.

Damage to your vehicle is a property damage claim, which often has a longer period than an injury claim. In California, for example, injury is 2 years and property damage is 3.

Slip-and-fall claims use the same injury deadline when a private owner is responsible. If a city, county, school district, or state agency owns the property or the vehicle, a much shorter notice deadline can apply first.

Does Shared Fault Change the Deadline?

No. If you were partly at fault, your filing deadline stays the same. Shared fault affects how much you can recover, not how long you have to sue.

Most states use some form of comparative negligence, which reduces your payout by your percentage of fault. Many also bar recovery entirely if you are more than 50% at fault. Florida moved to that rule in 2023, and Louisiana did for injuries on or after January 1, 2026.

A few jurisdictions, including Alabama, Maryland, North Carolina, Virginia, and D.C., follow contributory negligence. There, even a small share of fault can bar your claim.

Medical Malpractice: Shorter Deadlines and an Absolute Cutoff

Medical malpractice deadlines are usually shorter than the general injury period, and they are built differently. Many states pair a short filing window, often 1 to 3 years, with a discovery rule that can start the clock when you recognized the harm as possible malpractice.

Many states also require steps before you can file, such as an expert’s certificate of merit, advance notice to the provider, or a screening panel. California, for example, requires 90 days’ written notice of intent to sue (Cal. Code Civ. Proc. § 364).

These steps take time, so start them well before your deadline.

Claims involving minors, foreign objects left in the body, or public hospitals often follow different rules. For more on how liability is proven, see our guide to medical malpractice liability risks.

Wrongful Death Deadlines

If you are reading this section, we are sorry for your loss.

The filing period commonly runs from the date of death, not the date of the injury that caused it. After a long illness or a delayed complication, the countdown may not start until the day your loved one died.

Only certain people can file, usually the estate’s personal representative. Some states also define a class of surviving family members. New York’s wrongful death statute shows how a state can set the deadline and who may file in the same provision.

A wrongful death claim and a survival action are different. A wrongful death claim compensates surviving family members for their own losses, such as lost support and companionship. A survival action compensates the estate for what the deceased suffered before death, such as pain, medical bills, and lost wages.

They can often be filed together, but each may have its own clock. Louisiana, for example, uses a mixed rule for both: 1 year from death or 2 years from the injury, whichever is longer. Our wrongful death guide covers what each involves beyond the filing deadline.

Can You Extend or Pause the Statute of Limitations?

A few doctrines can pause, or “toll,” the clock. Availability and scope vary by state, so treat this table as a list of questions for an attorney, not a set of guarantees.

What about a coma or mental incapacity?

Many states pause the clock while someone lacks the legal capacity to manage their affairs. California, Texas, and New York all have provisions like this (Cal. Code Civ. Proc. § 352, Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 16.001, and N.Y. CPLR § 208).

The details vary. Many states look at whether the incapacity existed when the claim arose, and some want a court finding or medical proof. A later decline in health may not qualify, and some states cap the total extra time.

If this may apply to you, get advice early and gather medical records that document the incapacity.

Tolling agreements

A defendant or insurer can agree in writing to pause the clock while you negotiate. Only a signed agreement counts. An adjuster’s verbal “we’re still reviewing it” does not stop anything.

Tolling is neither automatic nor universal. Someone has to raise it, prove the facts, and often plead it correctly from the start. Do not delay filing on the assumption that a tolling rule will rescue you later.

The Deadlines That Are Even Shorter

Nothing else on this page is as likely to save, or cost, a reader their claim as this section.

Someone struck by a city bus, hurt on public property, or treated at a public hospital is affected by this, and almost never knows it until too late. California’s government claim process is a useful example: a claim to the public entity, a short response window, and only then the right to sue.

Workers’ compensation has its own reporting and filing deadlines, typically much shorter than a personal injury statute. Our workers’ compensation guide covers those rights, claims, and deadlines in full.

Long-Latency and Exposure Claims

Some diseases do not appear until decades after the exposure that caused them. Asbestos-related illness is the clearest example. These claims are typically governed by discovery-based rules that run from diagnosis, not exposure.

They also often involve several defendants with different timelines. Our asbestos exposure claims guide covers filing deadlines for that claim type in depth.

What Happens If the Statute of Limitations Expires Before You File?

Here is the honest answer first: a claim filed after the deadline can generally be dismissed, and it cannot be revived. We are not going to tell you otherwise.

But you may be wrong about your own date. The clock may have started later than you assume, a tolling doctrine may apply, your claim may fall in a category with a longer period, or another defendant in the same event may have a different deadline.

Some states have also opened narrow revival windows that temporarily reopen time-barred claims. The clearest example is civil claims for childhood sexual abuse. New York’s Child Victims Act extended the civil deadline to a survivor’s 55th birthday and opened a lookback window that has since closed. California’s AB 218 extended the deadline to age 40, or five years from discovery, and opened a window that closed at the end of 2022.

New York’s Adult Survivors Act did the same for certain adult survivors, and its window closed in November 2023. Other states have passed similar reforms, and windows open and close, so check the current law.

This is a fast-moving, specialized area with its own trauma-informed considerations. If it applies to you or someone you know, an attorney who focuses on abuse survivor cases is the right next step, not this table.

Frequently Asked Questions