The Statute of Limitations for Personal Injury in Tennessee
You have likely heard the phrase “statute of limitations” before but may be unsure exactly what it means. It refers to the amount of time a person has to file a lawsuit after an accident or a crime has occurred. Statutes of limitation are set by the lawmakers of each state and vary according to whether a claim is civil or criminal. You may have anywhere from one year to multiple years to file a claim, depending on the circumstances.
In Tennessee, for personal injury claims, the injured party has just a year from the date of the accident to file a claim. After that year has passed, it is no longer possible to file a claim for monetary compensation for the injuries suffered. The only exceptions to this rule are the following:
- When minors are injured, they have until a year after their 18th birthday to file the claim, which means they can file up until their 19th birthday.
- If a mentally incompetent person is involved in a personal injury accident, it is possible to get the statute of limitations extended.
- If the personal injury suit involves a defective product liability claim, the victim has between 6 and 10 years to file, depending on the particulars of the case.
If the case involves a latent injury, under Tennessee’s Discovery Rule, the victim can end up with extra time to file. Latent injuries are injuries that aren’t easy to pinpoint because they tend to develop slowly, leaving a person unaware that anything is wrong until much later than the actual accident took place. In these instances, the statute of limitations year rule doesn’t apply.
Instead, the victim has until a year after he or she discovers (or should reasonably have discovered) the injury to file a suit.
If you ever find yourself in a situation where you are considering filing a personal injury claim, it is crucial to talk to an experienced personal injury lawyer as soon as you can so that you can assess the case together and decide how to proceed while you have plenty of time.
