Hi, I'm attorney Anna Soto with DM Injury Law, and today I'm going to explain Missouri's statute of limitations for personal injury cases. Generally, in Missouri, the statute of limitations sets a time limit to file a personal injury lawsuit at five years. The clock starts running from the date you were injured, or in some cases from the date you discovered or reasonably should have discovered your injury. While five years sounds like a long time, you need to act quickly because evidence disappears and memories fade. The longer you wait to act, the harder your case will be. There are some exceptions to the five-year deadline. If you're making a claim against a government entity in Missouri, like a city, county, state agency, or public school, you are required to file a formal notice of claim within 90 days of your injury under Missouri's sovereign immunity statute. If you missed that 90-day notice window, you may lose your claim against that entity entirely, even though the five-year window hasn't closed. If a minor is injured, the five-year clock generally doesn't start until they turn 21. If you're filing a medical malpractice case, you only have two years. If a loved one passed away because of an accident, you have three years to file a wrongful death lawsuit. Workers' compensation claims have their own separate deadlines under Missouri's workers' compensation system, which is typically two years from the date of injury. If you have any questions about what deadlines apply to your case, call DM Injury Law at (816) 888-7500, and we'll confidently guide you through the complicated process.
What is the Statute of Limitations for a Personal Injury Case in Missouri?