If you have been injured due to someone else’s negligence, the law allows you to sue that person for your damages, including medical expenses and pain and suffering. But that right to sue does not last forever. Your right to sue is subject to the statute of limitations.
Statute of limitations is one of those terms you’ve heard many times, but what exactly does it mean? Lawyers.com explains that the statute of limitations is the amount of time you have to bring your civil lawsuit, such as a personal injury lawsuit, or the prosecution has to bring criminal charges. That time period starts to run the day the claim arises, which usually is the day the accident or crime occurred. Once that time period has expired, the civil lawsuit or criminal charges cannot be filed.
Civil lawsuits are actions seeking money damages from someone who has injured you. More often than not, those actions are tort actions. A tort is a wrongful action by someone else that leads to an injury. Most tort actions are personal injury actions. According to O.R.C. § 2305.10(A), the statute of limitations is two years. If a loved one dies because of someone else’s negligence, his or her relatives can bring a wrongful death action. The statute of limitations is also two years (O.R.C. § 2125.02(D)).
Professionals are held to certain standards in each of their professions. If they do not comply with those standards, they can be sued for malpractice. The statute of limitations for a legal malpractice lawsuit is one year (O.R.C. § 2305.11(A)). According to O.R.C. § 2305.113(A) and (C), the statute of limitations for medical malpractice – one year or four years, depending when the injury is discovered.
Sometimes the tort committed can be intentional. One such intentional tort is assault and battery, and the statute of limitations for a lawsuit is two years (O.R.C. § 2305.10(A)). Also, libel (O.R.C. § 2305.11(A)) and slander (O.R.C. 2305.09(A)) each have a statute of limitations of one year.
If you are injured because a product is defective, you can bring a products liability action. Under O.R.C. § 2305.10(A) and (C), the statute of limitations for a products liability lawsuit is two years or ten years, depending on when the injury is discovered and when the defective product was used or made. Contacting an Ohio injury attorneys immediately after your injury is always the best possible course of action.
