How Long Do You Have To File A Personal Injury Case In Illinois?

Table of Contents

How long do you have to file a personal injury case in Illinois? Like every state, Illinois has a statute of limitations that creates a deadline for filing personal injury cases.

What Is the Personal Injury Statute Of Limitations In Illinois?

In most cases, the statute of limitations for personal injury cases in Illinois is two years from the date of your injury.

Now, it is important to note that this doesn’t apply in every single case. This is just the general rule and for the vast majority of personal injury cases, you have two years. As with every rule, however, there are exceptions.

Statute Of Limitations Exceptions

Here are a few exceptions to the 2-year statute of limitations to file a personal injury case in Illinois.

Cases involving a governmental entity.

If you’ve been injured by a government worker who’s working for a government entity and you want to bring a claim against that governmental entity, there’s a good chance that you only have a one-year statute of limitations (or a one-year deadline) before you have to file a personal injury case.

Cases involving minors.

For any claim involving a minor, the statute of limitations is generally extended until two years after the minor’s 18th birthday in order to give them the opportunity to file a personal injury case themself if their parents or guardians did not previously do so. However, there is even an exception to this exception, as medical malpractice cases involving minors have a statute of limitations of eight years from the date that the victim or his or her parents should reasonably known about the malpractice, as long as the claim is filed before the victim’s 22nd birthday.

Find out what deadlines apply to your case.

Because the statute of limitations is a general rule that has exceptions, the best thing you can do to know what deadlines might apply to your specific case is to take advantage of a free consultation with an experienced personal injury lawyer. It won’t cost you anything to get answers and to find out exactly what deadlines you need to adhere to in your own case.

Need To File A Personal Injury Case?

If you have any other questions about the personal injury claim or litigation process or if you’re seeking compensation for yourself or a loved one, please don’t hesitate to reach out. An experienced personal injury attorney can help defend your interests, gather evidence to prove your, and negotiate for the highest payment possible. Reach out to our team today for a free case review.

Author Bio

Joshua Rohrscheib is the Owner of Onward Injury Law, a Central Illinois personal injury law firm. With more than 17 years of experience in injury law, he is dedicated to representing clients in a wide range of legal matters, including car accidents, trucking accidents, construction accidents, medical malpractice, nursing home abuse, and other personal injury cases.

Josh received his Juris Doctor from the University of Illinois College of Law and is a member of the Illinois State Bar Association. He has received numerous accolades for his work, including being named among the “Top 40 Under 40” in 2019 by The National Trial Lawyers and a “Rising Star” in 2019 by Super Lawyers.

LinkedIn | State Bar Association | Avvo | Google