---
title: Statute of limitations for Medical malpractice — by U.S. state
license: CC0-1.0
source: CaseFleet Civil Statute-of-Limitations Reference (2026)
---

# Statute of limitations for Medical malpractice — by U.S. state

Civil statute-of-limitations filing deadlines for Medical malpractice in 51 states: 1–5 years (median 2). Each state's statutory period + citation are RECORDED (verify at the cited URL); whether the statute applies to a specific claim and when the clock started is fact-specific legal judgment (L5), NOT legal advice. A missed statute of limitations usually bars a claim permanently. Source: CaseFleet Civil Statute-of-Limitations Reference (2026). CC0.

## Claims

### The civil statute of limitations for Medical malpractice ranges from 1 to 5 years across U.S. states

**DERIVED.** For Medical malpractice, the general civil statute of limitations is 1–5 years (median 2) across 51 states. A DERIVED min/max/median over each state's RECORDED statutory period (occurred=false, adjudged=false — an in-house cross-state summary; the per-state statutes + citations are in itemListElement, each verifiable at its statute URL). It is NOT a personal deadline: the discovery rule, tolling (minors/disability/defendant absence), repose limits, government-defendant notice rules, and the exact sub-claim can make a real deadline shorter or longer — and missing a statute of limitations usually bars the claim permanently.

Source: CaseFleet Civil Statute-of-Limitations Reference (2026) — https://www.casefleet.com/statutes-of-limitations
Falsifier: occurred=FALSE (a calculation, not an event) and adjudged=FALSE (a transparent in-house formula, not an authority's verdict — no external adjudicator). Reproduce it from its named inputs; falsified if the formula or inputs are wrong. Lower warrant than the adjudged figures above.

### This is not legal advice or a personal deadline

**INTERPRETATION.** Which statute applies to a specific claim, and when the clock started, is fact-specific legal judgment. Anyone with a potential medical malpractice claim near a deadline should consult a licensed attorney or legal aid immediately rather than rely on this reference.

Source: Justice Atlas L5 boundary (statutory text ≠ a personal deadline) — https://justice-atlas.ryanjhunter.workers.dev/
Falsifier: occurred=FALSE (a framing, not an event) and adjudged=FALSE (an in-house reading, not an authority's verdict) — the LOWEST-warrant claim here. A flat representation would render this identically to the official facts; the four-status does not.

---

Every claim above carries a four-status warrant (RECORDED / MODELED / DERIVED / INTERPRETATION) and a named source you can re-fetch — this is a research object, not a flat fact. Structured: `https://justice-atlas.ryanjhunter.workers.dev/justice/sol/claim/medical-malpractice.jsonld`

## Data

### Medical malpractice filing deadlines by state (shortest first)

RECORDED state statutes (verify at each state's statute URL). Not your personal deadline — accrual, tolling, and which claim applies are fact-specific. Consult a licensed attorney.

| State | Statutory period | Discovery rule | Repose (yrs) | Citation | Warrant |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| California | 3 years (1 yr after discovery) | yes | 3 | Cal. Civ. Proc. Code § 340.5 | RECORDED |
| Kentucky | 1 year (5-year repose) | yes | 5 | Ky. Rev. Stat. § 413.140(1)(e) | RECORDED |
| Louisiana | 1 year (3-year repose) | — | 3 | La. Rev. Stat. § 9:5628 | RECORDED |
| Ohio | 1 year | — | 4 | Ohio Rev. Code § 2305.113 | RECORDED |
| Tennessee | 1 year | yes | 3 | Tenn. Code Ann. § 29-26-116 | RECORDED |
| Alaska | 2 years | yes | 10 | Alaska Stat. § 09.10.070 | RECORDED |
| Alabama | 2 years (6 mo. after discovery) | — | 4 | Ala. Code § 6-5-482 | RECORDED |
| Arkansas | 2 years | — | — | Ark. Code § 16-114-203 | RECORDED |
| Arizona | 2 years | yes | — | A.R.S. § 12-542 | RECORDED |
| Colorado | 2 years | yes | 3 | Colo. Rev. Stat. § 13-80-102.5 | RECORDED |
| Connecticut | 2 years | yes | 3 | Conn. Gen. Stat. § 52-584 | RECORDED |
| Delaware | 2 years | — | 3 | 18 Del. Code § 6856 | RECORDED |
| Florida | 2 years | yes | 4 | Fla. Stat. § 95.11(5)(c) | RECORDED |
| Georgia | 2 years (5-year repose) | — | 5 | Ga. Code § 9-3-71 | RECORDED |
| Hawaii | 2 years (6-year repose) | yes | 6 | Haw. Rev. Stat. § 657-7.3 | RECORDED |
| Iowa | 2 years (6-year repose) | yes | 6 | Iowa Code § 614.1(9) | RECORDED |
| Idaho | 2 years | — | — | Idaho Code § 5-219(4) | RECORDED |
| Illinois | 2 years (4-year repose) | yes | 4 | 735 ILCS 5/13-212 | RECORDED |
| Indiana | 2 years | — | — | Ind. Code § 34-18-7-1 | RECORDED |
| Kansas | 2 years (4-year repose) | yes | 4 | Kan. Stat. Ann. § 60-513(a)(7) | RECORDED |
| Michigan | 2 years (or 6 months from discovery); max 6 years | yes | 6 | Mich. Comp. Laws § 600.5805; § 600.5838a | RECORDED |
| Minnesota | 2 years | — | — | Minn. Stat. § 541.076 | RECORDED |
| Missouri | 2 years | — | 10 | Mo. Rev. Stat. § 516.105 | RECORDED |
| Mississippi | 2 years; max 7 years (repose) | yes | 7 | Miss. Code Ann. § 15-1-36 | RECORDED |
| North Dakota | 2 years | yes | 6 | N.D. Cent. Code § 28-01-18(3) | RECORDED |
| Nebraska | 2 years (or 1 from discovery); max 10 years | yes | 10 | Neb. Rev. Stat. § 25-222 | RECORDED |
| New Jersey | 2 years | yes | — | N.J. Stat. § 2A:14-2 | RECORDED |
| New York | 2.5 years | — | 7 | N.Y. C.P.L.R. § 214-a | RECORDED |
| Oklahoma | 2 years | yes | — | Okla. Stat. tit. 76 § 18 | RECORDED |
| Oregon | 2 years | yes | 5 | Or. Rev. Stat. § 12.110(4) | RECORDED |
| Pennsylvania | 2 years | yes | — | 42 Pa. Cons. Stat. § 5524(2) | RECORDED |
| South Dakota | 2 years | — | — | S.D. Codified Laws § 15-2-14.1 | RECORDED |
| Texas | 2 years | — | 10 | Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 74.251 | RECORDED |
| Utah | 2 years from discovery | yes | 8 | Utah Code § 78B-3-404 | RECORDED |
| Virginia | 2 years | — | 10 | Va. Code § 8.01-243(A) & (C) | RECORDED |
| West Virginia | 2 years | yes | 10 | W. Va. Code § 55-7B-4 | RECORDED |
| Wyoming | 2 years | yes | — | Wyo. Stat. § 1-3-107 | RECORDED |
| District of Columbia | 3 years | yes | — | D.C. Code § 12-301(a)(8) | RECORDED |
| Massachusetts | 3 years; max 7 years (repose) | yes | 7 | Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 260, § 4 | RECORDED |
| Maine | 3 years | — | — | Me. Rev. Stat. tit. 24 § 2902 | RECORDED |
| Montana | 3 years (within 5 from injury) | yes | 5 | Mont. Code Ann. § 27-2-205 | RECORDED |
| North Carolina | 3 years | — | 4 | N.C. Gen. Stat. § 1-15(c) | RECORDED |
| New Hampshire | 3 years (with discovery) | yes | — | N.H. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 508:4 | RECORDED |
| New Mexico | 3 years | — | 3 | N.M. Stat. § 41-5-13 | RECORDED |
| Nevada | 3 years (or 2 from discovery); whichever first | yes | 3 | Nev. Rev. Stat. § 41A.097 | RECORDED |
| Rhode Island | 3 years | yes | — | R.I. Gen. Laws § 9-1-14.1 | RECORDED |
| South Carolina | 3 years (max 6 from occurrence) | yes | 6 | S.C. Code Ann. § 15-3-545 | RECORDED |
| Vermont | 3 years (or 2 from discovery) | yes | 7 | 12 V.S.A. § 521 | RECORDED |
| Washington | 3 years (or 1 from discovery) | yes | 8 | Wash. Rev. Code § 4.16.350 | RECORDED |
| Wisconsin | 3 years (or 1 from discovery) | yes | 5 | Wis. Stat. § 893.55 | RECORDED |
| Maryland | 5 years from injury or 3 years from discovery | yes | 5 | Md. Code, Cts. & Jud. Proc. § 5-109 | RECORDED |