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A statute of limitations is the time frame in which an injury victim has to file a lawsuit for the damages they suffered after an accident. Courts want to ensure the orderly handling of cases and limit the amount of time someone can be held liable for their past actions. If your lawsuit is filed too late, the court will likely dismiss your case. If so, you will no longer be able to pursue a claim for compensation against the at-fault party.

In general, the statute of limitations for a personal injury claim in Illinois is two years from the date of the accident. However, there are a few exceptions to the two-year statute of limitations, some providing more time to file a case and others providing less time.

In most cases, the statute of limitations will begin upon the date of the accident. For example, sometimes, you are immediately aware of your injuries after a car accident, so the clock to file a claim starts to tick right then. However, in some situations, you may not realize you suffered an injury until a later date. In these circumstances, you typically have two years from the date you discovered your injury to bring a claim. You do not need to know your specific injuries for the statute of limitations to begin; you only need to know that you may have a case against the other party. An example of when the “discovery rule” may come into play is in a medical malpractice case where a patient did not realize a surgeon made an error until months or years down the road.

In accidents involving minor accident victims, the general two-year statute of limitations will not apply. Instead, courts allow minors to bring a case up to two years after the minor turns 18.

The main exception to the two-year statute of limitations that requires accident victims to file a case sooner than two years after the accident is if a government entity is named as a defendant. In these cases, you will need to file a formal claim with the government within one year of the accident. This gives the government notice of your claim and the opportunity to settle the case without the need for filing a lawsuit.