Statute of Limitations

What Is a Statute of Limitations?

A statute of limitations is a law that sets a deadline for bringing a legal claim or, in criminal matters, beginning a prosecution. The exact time limit depends on the jurisdiction and the type of claim or offense. A personal injury claim, contract dispute, fraud claim, and criminal charge may all have different deadlines.

The key issue is not simply how much time has passed since an event occurred. Courts may also need to determine when the claim legally accrued, whether a discovery rule applies, and whether the limitations period was paused or extended by a rule known as tolling.

How Does the Statute of Limitations Clock Work?

The limitations period usually begins when the law says the claim accrued. Accrual generally means the point when a person has a legally enforceable claim, but the rule for determining that date can vary by jurisdiction and cause of action.

Accrual

For some claims, the clock may begin on the date of the injury, breach, wrongful act, or other event. For others, a special accrual rule may apply. This is why counting forward from the date something happened is not always enough to identify the filing deadline.

Discovery Rule

Some laws use a discovery rule. Under a discovery rule, the limitations period may begin when the injured person discovered, or reasonably should have discovered, the injury or the facts giving rise to the claim. Not every claim or jurisdiction uses the same discovery rule.

Tolling

Tolling means the running of a limitations period is paused under circumstances recognized by law. The available grounds for tolling differ by jurisdiction and may depend on facts such as the status of a party, concealment, or another legally recognized reason for delay. Tolling should not be assumed simply because a claimant did not know about a deadline.

Civil vs. Criminal Statutes of Limitations

Statutes of limitations can apply in both civil and criminal law, but they operate differently.

• Civil cases: A statute of limitations can limit the time to file claims involving issues such as contracts, personal injury, property damage, professional negligence, fraud, or other civil disputes.
• Criminal cases: Criminal limitation periods can restrict how long the government has to begin prosecution for certain offenses. Some serious offenses may have no limitations period, depending on the governing law.

Because limitation periods are created by state or federal law, two similar disputes can have different deadlines if they arise under different laws or in different jurisdictions.

What Happens If the Statute of Limitations Expires?

In a civil case, an expired statute of limitations can give the opposing party a basis to argue that the claim is time-barred. If the defense applies and is properly raised, the court may dismiss the claim even if the underlying dispute would otherwise have merit.

That does not mean every late-filed case is automatically dismissed. The result can depend on the governing statute, how the deadline is calculated, whether an exception or tolling rule applies, and the procedural rules for raising the defense.

Statute of Limitations vs. Statute of Repose

A statute of repose is related to, but different from, a statute of limitations. A statute of limitations often turns on when a claim accrues or an injury is discovered. A statute of repose generally sets an outside deadline tied to a specified act or event by the defendant, even if the injury or claim is discovered later.

This distinction can matter because a discovery rule or other timing principle that affects a statute of limitations may not affect a statute of repose in the same way.

Statute of Limitations Example

Assume a hypothetical law gives a person two years to file a particular civil claim after it accrues. If the claim accrues on June 1, the filing deadline would generally be two years later. But the actual deadline could change if the governing law uses a different accrual rule, recognizes tolling, imposes an earlier notice requirement, or applies another exception.

The practical lesson is simple: the correct deadline depends on the jurisdiction, type of claim, relevant dates, and applicable exceptions. A statute of limitations should be checked against the specific law governing the matter rather than estimated from a general rule of thumb.