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

# Statute of limitations for Wrongful death — by U.S. state

Civil statute-of-limitations filing deadlines for Wrongful death in 51 states: 1–6 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 Wrongful death ranges from 1 to 6 years across U.S. states

**DERIVED.** For Wrongful death, the general civil statute of limitations is 1–6 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 wrongful death 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/wrongful-death.jsonld`

## Data

### Wrongful death 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 |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Kentucky | 1 year | — | — | Ky. Rev. Stat. § 413.180 | RECORDED |
| Tennessee | 1 year | — | — | Tenn. Code Ann. § 28-3-104 | RECORDED |
| Alaska | 2 years from death | — | — | Alaska Stat. § 09.55.580 | RECORDED |
| Alabama | 2 years from death | — | — | Ala. Code § 6-5-410 | RECORDED |
| Arizona | 2 years | — | — | A.R.S. § 12-542 | RECORDED |
| California | 2 years | — | — | Cal. Civ. Proc. Code § 335.1 | RECORDED |
| Colorado | 2 years | — | — | Colo. Rev. Stat. § 13-80-102 | RECORDED |
| Connecticut | 2 years | — | 5 | Conn. Gen. Stat. § 52-555 | RECORDED |
| District of Columbia | 2 years | — | — | D.C. Code § 16-2702 | RECORDED |
| Delaware | 2 years | — | — | 10 Del. Code § 8107 | RECORDED |
| Florida | 2 years | — | — | Fla. Stat. § 95.11(5)(e) | RECORDED |
| Georgia | 2 years | — | — | Ga. Code § 9-3-33 | RECORDED |
| Hawaii | 2 years | — | — | Haw. Rev. Stat. § 663-3 | RECORDED |
| Iowa | 2 years | — | — | Iowa Code § 614.1(2) | RECORDED |
| Idaho | 2 years | — | — | Idaho Code § 5-219(4) | RECORDED |
| Illinois | 2 years | — | — | 740 ILCS 180/2 | RECORDED |
| Indiana | 2 years | — | — | Ind. Code § 34-23-1-1 | RECORDED |
| Kansas | 2 years | — | — | Kan. Stat. Ann. § 60-513(a)(5) | RECORDED |
| Louisiana | 2 years | — | — | La. Civ. Code art. 2315.2 | RECORDED |
| North Carolina | 2 years from death | — | — | N.C. Gen. Stat. § 1-53(4) | RECORDED |
| North Dakota | 2 years from death | — | — | N.D. Cent. Code § 28-01-18(4) | RECORDED |
| Nebraska | 2 years from death | — | — | Neb. Rev. Stat. § 30-810 | RECORDED |
| New Jersey | 2 years from death | — | — | N.J. Stat. § 2A:31-3 | RECORDED |
| Nevada | 2 years from death | — | — | Nev. Rev. Stat. § 11.190(4)(e) | RECORDED |
| New York | 2 years from death | — | — | N.Y. EPTL § 5-4.1 | RECORDED |
| Ohio | 2 years from death | — | — | Ohio Rev. Code § 2125.02 | RECORDED |
| Oklahoma | 2 years from death | — | — | Okla. Stat. tit. 12 § 1053 | RECORDED |
| Pennsylvania | 2 years from death | — | — | 42 Pa. Cons. Stat. § 5524(2) | RECORDED |
| Texas | 2 years | — | — | Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 16.003(b) | RECORDED |
| Utah | 2 years | — | — | Utah Code § 78B-2-304 | RECORDED |
| Virginia | 2 years | — | — | Va. Code § 8.01-244 | RECORDED |
| Vermont | 2 years | — | — | 14 V.S.A. § 1492(a) | RECORDED |
| West Virginia | 2 years | — | — | W. Va. Code § 55-7-6 | RECORDED |
| Wyoming | 2 years | — | — | Wyo. Stat. § 1-38-102(d) | RECORDED |
| Arkansas | 3 years | — | — | Ark. Code § 16-62-102 | RECORDED |
| Massachusetts | 3 years from death or discovery | yes | — | Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 229, § 2 | RECORDED |
| Maryland | 3 years from death | — | — | Md. Code, Cts. & Jud. Proc. § 3-904 | RECORDED |
| Maine | 3 years | — | — | Me. Rev. Stat. tit. 18-C § 2-807 | RECORDED |
| Michigan | 3 years (saving period under § 600.5852) | — | — | Mich. Comp. Laws § 600.5805; § 600.5852 | RECORDED |
| Minnesota | 3 years from death; max 6 years from act | — | 6 | Minn. Stat. § 573.02 | RECORDED |
| Missouri | 3 years | — | — | Mo. Rev. Stat. § 537.100 | RECORDED |
| Mississippi | 3 years (or applicable underlying tort SOL) | — | — | Miss. Code Ann. § 11-7-13; § 15-1-49 | RECORDED |
| Montana | 3 years | — | — | Mont. Code Ann. § 27-2-204(2) | RECORDED |
| New Mexico | 3 years from death | — | — | N.M. Stat. § 41-2-2 | RECORDED |
| Oregon | 3 years from injury discovery | yes | — | Or. Rev. Stat. § 30.020 | RECORDED |
| Rhode Island | 3 years from death | yes | — | R.I. Gen. Laws § 10-7-2 | RECORDED |
| South Carolina | 3 years | — | — | S.C. Code Ann. § 15-3-530(6) | RECORDED |
| South Dakota | 3 years | — | — | S.D. Codified Laws § 21-5-3 | RECORDED |
| Washington | 3 years | — | — | Wash. Rev. Code § 4.16.080(2) | RECORDED |
| Wisconsin | 3 years | — | — | Wis. Stat. § 893.54(2m) | RECORDED |
| New Hampshire | 6 years from death (subject to RSA 508) | — | — | N.H. Rev. Stat. Ann. § 556:11 | RECORDED |