Statute of Limitations with a Personal Injury Case

Those who have suffered personal injuries due to the negligence or harm of someone else, should seek quick legal help so that their cases do not fall outside the statute of limitations for their state. Because each state has different laws, you should know and understand those specific to your locality while also working with an experienced, local injury attorney.

What Is the Statute of Limitations for Personal Injury?

The statute of limitations is a time limit imposed by law after which you cannot bring any charges against the negligent party for your own injuries. If you want to sue a party or file a lawsuit, you must do so quickly under your state’s rules or risk being held financially responsible for your medical needs, lost compensation and other issues that are due to your injury. Every state has different rules for personal injury cases. While the majority of states have two year limitations, some have only one. Also there a difficult pitfalls when the defendant is a government entity. A notice of claim may need to be filed within 6 months. Please don’t delay hire a good injury attorney early on.

In addition, the statute of limitations may vary based on the type of personal injury sustained. Some of the most common types include the following: defamation, medical malpractice, product liability, wrongful death, slip and falls, dog bites, car accidents and assault and battery.

What Is the Discovery Rule?

The discovery rule provides the most common exception to the statute of limitations. According to this rule, the statute of limitations does not begin until the personal injury is discovered. For example, this could apply to those who were exposed to harmful chemicals in early adulthood but who did not discover the health concerns this exposure caused until much later in life. For these individuals, the statute of limitations would begin when they were first told the diagnosis and cause of their medical condition by a medical practitioner. However, the discovery delay must be reasonable, and it typically does not apply to certain cases, such as car accidents and slip and falls, when the potential for injury is quite obvious.

In addition to the discovery rule, some other legal rules may create exceptions to the typical statute of limitations in your state. For example, minors are not held to the same rules. For them, the statute of limitations does not begin until they arrive at legal age of understanding. In addition, the statute of limitations can be paused if the defendant leaves the state for a time. Other exceptions occur in the cases of those who are declared mentally ill or who are disabled.

What Is the Statute of Limitations in Arizona and Nevada?

The states of Arizona and Nevada, which are where attorneys from Lloyd Baker Injury Attorneys practice, have statute of limitations rules specific to them. Arizona is bound to Arizona Revised Statute Section 12-542, which provides a two-year statute of limitations in most cases for accidents and injuries. However, in cases against a city, a county or the state itself, individuals have only 180 days to file a formal claim. In addition, Arizona operates under a comparative negligence rule that states that individuals who are partly at fault in certain circumstances will have their damages reduced by the same percentage.

In Nevada, the statute of limitations is slightly different. For most personal injury cases as well as wrongful death cases, individuals have two years to file legal claims. However, they have one year from the time of discovery for medical malpractice injuries. Nevada’s specific laws are found under the state’s Revised Statutes Section 11.190.

The clear takeaway is that if you wait too long to file a claim after your injury, you may lose out on significant financial reparations that could help you pay for current and future medical bills, reimburse you for lost work and repay you for pain and suffering and other damages. Of course, as with many laws, the statute of limitations for Arizona and Nevada is often confusing and not a black-and-white issue. Be sure to request a free consultation with one of the experienced attorneys at Lloyd Baker Injury Attorneys to help you through every step of your case. The sooner you call us the less mistakes will be made for you to recover.

THIS ARTICLE IS NOT MEANT FOR THE PURPOSE OF GIVING LEGAL ADVICE RATHER TO WARN THE READER OF POSSIBLE PITFALLS AND ENCOURAGE THE RETENTION OF A QUALIFIED INJURY ATTORNEY BEFORE MISTAKES ARE MADE!