A baby is a fresh start, a new life, and an opportunity to build a brand-new legacy. New parenthood is difficult under any circumstances — you’re probably getting little sleep, you might still be learning how to take care of a newborn, and every baby has a unique set of needs.
Some babies might start off differently than most, though.
A birth injury is something that happens to your baby during pregnancy or the birthing process that might leave them with short- or long-term effects, disabilities, or requiring ongoing medical treatment.
If your baby’s birth injury is the result of a mistake or negligence of a medical professional, you might be considering a lawsuit to recover damages (costs) associated with treatment and ongoing care. And, though your main priority right now is caring for your baby, there are strict deadlines (also called the statute of limitations) for how long you have to file a lawsuit if you need to.
Birth injuries are part of medical malpractice law, but the statutes of limitations can be a little different because sometimes “minors” (legalese for anyone under the age of 18, including babies) have different timeframes for filing lawsuits than adults.
Understanding statute of limitations terms
There are usually 3 important dates and exceptions to understand when it comes to the statute of limitations:
- The date of the injury (usually, this is the day your baby was born, but it’s possible the injury occurred during pregnancy).
- The date the injury was discovered or reasonably should have been discovered. There are several areas of the law that refer to “reasonableness.” In general, what’s reasonable is what would be expected of the average person in the situation at hand. It’s possible for an injury to occur and not be visible or apparent at the time.If you discover an injury or your baby has an injury that is later determined to be the result of a birth-related trauma or incident, your statute of limitations begins to run on the date the injury was discovered or related to the accident or incident. However, that discovery needs to be reasonable — which means the average person would’ve recognized and sought treatment for the injury by that time.
- Foreign object exception. One area of medical malpractice law involves a foreign object that’s left behind in the body after a surgical procedure. Sometimes an object isn’t detected for years after the malpractice occurs, so many states have a separate statute of limitations related to foreign objects.
If you miss the statute of limitations, you may still have legal options. Certain special circumstances could extend your deadline, so always consult an attorney to see if your case can still move forward.
Birth injury lawsuit deadlines by state
Here’s a state by state guide for statutes of limitations for a birth injury:
| State | Statute of limitations for a birth injury |
Statute of limitations for an infant wrongful death lawsuit |
|---|---|---|
| Alabama | Within 2 years of the injury or within 6 months from when the injury was discovered if the 2 years have passed.
A lawsuit cannot be filed more than 4 years from the time of injury if the child is more than 4 years old. If the child is under age 4, the claim must be filed by their 8th birthday. |
Within 2 years of the date of death. |
| Alaska | Within 2 years of the injury or within 2 years from the date the injury was discovered, but no longer than 10 years from the date of injury. | Within 2 years of the date of death. |
| Arizona | Within 2 years of the time of injury. | Within 2 years of the date of death. |
| Arkansas | Within 2 years from the date of injury. | Within 3 years of the date of death. |
| California | Within 3 years from the time of the injury. | Within 2 years of the date of death. |
| Colorado | Within 2 years from the date of injury. | Within 2 years of the date of death. |
| Connecticut | Within 2 years of the date of the injury, but can be 3 years in special circumstances. | Within 2 years of the date of death. |
| Delaware | Within 2 years of the birth injury, or within 3 years if the injury wasn’t discovered within the initial period. | Within 2 years of the date of death. |
| Florida | Within 2 years of the date of the injury, or within 2 years from when it should’ve reasonably been discovered, but no longer than 4 years from the date of injury. | Within 2 years of the date of death. |
| Georgia | Within 2 years from the date of the injury, or up to 5 years if the injury isn’t discovered within 2 years but not past the child’s 5th birthday. | Within 2 years from the date of death. |
| Hawaii | Within 2 years from the date of injury. If the injury isn’t discovered within that time, it extends to 6 years. | Within 2 years of the date of death. |
| Idaho | Within 2 years from the date of injury. | Within 2 years of the date of death. |
| Illinois | Within 8 years of the birth injury, but not after the person’s 22nd birthday. | Within 2 years from the date of death. |
| Indiana | Within 2 years of the injury, or by age 8 if the child is fewer than 6 years old. | Within 2 years from the date of death. |
| Iowa | Within 2 years of the injury or date of discovery but no later than the child’s 10th birthday. | Within 2 years from the date of death. |
| Kansas | Within 2 years of the date of injury, or up to 4 years if the injury was discovered after the initial period. | Within 2 years from the date of death. |
| Kentucky | Within 1 year from the date of injury, but up to 5 years if it’s discovered later than 1 year. | Within 1 year from the date of death. |
| Louisiana | Within 1 year from the date of injury, but not more than 3 years if discovered later. | Within 1 year from the date of death. |
| Maine | Within 3 years from the time of injury, before the child’s 6th birthday, or within 3 years from the child’s 18th birthday. | Within 2 years from the date of death. |
| Maryland | Within 5 years of the injury or 3 years from the date of discovery if later, but no later than the child’s 11th birthday. | Within 3 years from the date of death. |
| Massachusetts | Within 3 years of the date of injury or 3 years from the discovery of the injury, but no later than the child’s 9th birthday. | Within 3 years from the date of death. |
| Michigan | Within 2 years of the date of the injury or within 6 months of discovery if it’s later than 2 years. | Within 3 years from the date of death. |
| Minnesota | Within 4 years of the date of the injury. | Within 3 years from the date of death. |
| Mississippi | Within 2 years of the date of injury or discovery. | Within 3 years from the date of death. |
| Missouri | Within 2 years from the date of the injury or within 2 years of the date of discovery, but no later than 10 years from the date of the injury.
A child may file a birth injury lawsuit on their own behalf once they turn 18, but no later than their 20th birthday. |
Within 3 years from the date of death. |
| Montana | Within 3 years of the date of the injury or within 3 years of discovery of the injury, but not more than 5 years from the date of the injury. | Within 3 years from the date of death. |
| Nebraska | Within 2 years of the date of the injury or within 1 year from the date of discovery if later, whichever comes earliest. | Within 2 years from the date of death. |
| Nevada | Within 3 years from the time of the injury or discovery of the injury.
A parent is responsible for filing the lawsuit on the child’s behalf during that time unless the child has brain damage or suffers from a birth defect, in which case the parent has until the child’s 10th birthday to file a lawsuit. |
Within 2 years from the date of death. |
| New Hampshire | Within 3 years from the date of the injury or from discovery. | Within 3 years from the date of death. |
| New Jersey | Within 2 years from the date of injury or discovery. | Within 2 years from the date of death. |
| New Mexico | 3 years from the date of injury or discovery, begins to run when the child is 9 years old. | Within 3 years of the date of death. |
| New York | Within 2 years and 6 months of the injury. | Within 2 years from the date of death. |
| North Carolina | Within 3 years of the injury or discovery, but not more than 4 years from the date of discovery. | Within 2 years from the date of death. |
| North Dakota | Within 2 years of the date of injury or discovery, but not more than 6 years from the date of injury. | Within 2 years from the date of death. |
| Ohio | Within 1 year of the date of injury or 180 days after the plaintiff has provided written notice to the defendant that a lawsuit will be filed. Must be within 4 years from the date of injury. | Within 2 years from the date of death. |
| Oklahoma | Within 7 years of the date of injury for a minor under age 12. | Within 2 years from the date of death. |
| Oregon | Within 2 years of the date of injury or discovery. | Within 3 years from the date of death. |
| Pennsylvania | Within 2 years of the date of injury, begins to run at the discovery of the injury. | Within 2 years from the date of death. |
| Rhode Island | Within 3 years of the date of injury or discovery. | Within 3 years from the date of death. |
| South Carolina | Within 3 years of the date of injury or discovery, but not more than 6 years from the date of the injury. | Within 3 years from the date of death. |
| South Dakota | Within 2 years of the date of injury. | Within 2 years from the date of death. |
| Tennessee | Within 1 year of the date of injury or discovery, but not more than 3 years from the date of injury. | Within 1 year from the date of death. |
| Texas | A minor can file a claim until their 14th birthday. A parent can file on their child’s behalf within 2 years of the date of the injury or discovery. | Within 2 years from the date of death. |
| Utah | Within 2 years of the date of injury or discovery, but not more than 4 years after the date of the injury. | Within 2 years from the date of death. |
| Vermont | Within 3 years from the date of the injury or 2 years from discovery if later, but not more than 7 years from the date of injury. | Within 2 years from the date of death. |
| Virginia | Within 2 years from the date of the injury. A minor under 8 years old has until their 10th birthday to file a lawsuit. | Within 2 years from the date of death. |
| Washington (state) | Within 3 years from the date of injury or within 1 year of discovery.
If there is fraud or a foreign object in the body, you can file within 8 years. A parent must file on the child’s behalf but the child’s statute of limitations begins to run on their 18th birthday if the parent doesn’t file a claim. |
Within 3 years from the date of death. |
| Washington, D.C. | Within 3 years from the date of injury or discovery. | Within 2 years from the date of death. |
| West Virginia | Within 2 years from the injury or discovery of the injury. | Within 2 years from the date of death. |
| Wisconsin | Within 3 years from the injury or 1 year from the date of discovery. | Within 3 years from the date of death. |
| Wyoming | Within 2 years from the time of injury or discovery. | Within 2 years from the date of death. |
In her years practicing personal injury law at the Brown Trial Firm, Laura has recovered millions of dollars in birth injury lawsuits for victims of birth injuries and their families. Medical negligence that affects a newborn is devastating. As a mom of 2, Laura understands that your baby feels like your whole world. Their pain is your pain. If your baby was injured during or near birth, contact Laura today so she can work to resolve your claim. View her Enjuris profile and visit her website today to schedule your free consultation.