If you got hurt in a car crash, a fall, or through someone else’s carelessness in Illinois, you’re probably wondering how much time you actually have before the door closes on your case.
The Illinois personal injury statute of limitations gives most injured people two years to file suit, under 735 ILCS 5/13-202.
That sounds like plenty of room, until you factor in medical treatment, insurance back and forth, and evidence that fades fast.
The good news is you still have time to act, and the specifics of your case, like when the injury happened and who caused it, can shift your exact deadline. D&W Law Group has spent decades sorting out these deadlines for injured people across Chicago and Cook County.
Key Takeaways
- Most Illinois personal injury claims must be filed within two years under 735 ILCS 5/13-202.
- The clock usually starts on the date of injury, but the discovery rule can push that start date back.
- Injured minors generally get until their 20th birthday to file.
- Claims against a government body, like the CTA or a Chicago municipal entity, face a one-year deadline instead of two.
- Wrongful death claims run two years from the date of death, not the date of the original incident.
Not sure which of these applies to your situation? Contact D&W Law Group for a free case review before a deadline you didn’t know about costs you your claim.
How Long Do You Have to File a Personal Injury Lawsuit in Illinois?
For most negligence cases, the answer is two years from the date you were hurt. Many personal injury lawsuits are governed by 735 ILCS 5/13-202, which gives plaintiffs up to two years to initiate legal action, and this statute covers motor vehicle accidents, product liability cases, and premises liability cases.
Illinois courts in Chicago and around the state apply this deadline strictly. Miss it, and even a case with clear fault and serious injuries can get thrown out before a judge ever hears the facts.
What Does 735 ILCS 5/13-202 Actually Say?
The statute itself is short. Under 735 ILCS 5/13-202, actions for damages for an injury to the person shall be commenced within 2 years next after the cause of action accrued.
“Accrued” usually means the date you were injured, whether that’s a car wreck, a slip on an icy sidewalk, or a dog bite.
The tricky part is that a handful of Illinois statutes carve out different rules depending on who caused your injury and how it happened, which is why the deadline that applies to your specific claim is worth confirming early with an Illinois personal injury statute of limitations attorney.
When Does the Clock Start Ticking on Your Claim?
The start date isn’t always the day of the accident. Illinois recognizes exceptions that shift the accrual date depending on the type of case:
- Car accidents, falls, and most injuries. The two-year clock starts the day you got hurt.
- Medical malpractice. The clock runs two years from the date the patient knew, or reasonably should have known, of the injury, but in no event more than four years from the date the injury occurred, under 735 ILCS 5/13-212.
- Hidden wrongdoing. If a defendant actively conceals their fault, the action may be commenced within five years from the time of discovery of the cause of action, under 735 ILCS 5/13-215.
Guessing wrong about which rule applies is a costly mistake. That’s a decision worth making with a lawyer, not alone.
What If You Were Injured by the CTA or a Chicago Government Entity?
Say you’re hurt on a CTA bus during your commute through Chicagoland. The two-year rule you’d expect doesn’t apply here.
Under 745 ILCS 10/8-101, no civil action other than an action described in subsection (b) may be commenced in any court against a local entity or any of its employees for any injury unless it is commenced within one year from the date that the injury was received or the cause of action accrued.
The CTA adds a second trap on top of that. Because it is governed by the Metropolitan Transit Authority Act (70 ILCS 3605/41), a CTA claim also requires you to serve a written notice of your injury on the CTA within six months, and a claim can be lost if that notice is missed even when you file within the year.
Because that one-year window is half the usual deadline, waiting even a few months can hurt your case. D&W Law Group’s own case files include a $3.6 million result for an elderly CTA passenger who suffered a fractured pelvis, a reminder that public transit claims need fast, careful handling.
Wondering if your accident involved a government entity? Talk to our team before the shorter window closes.
Do Special Rules Apply to Minors or Wrongful Death Claims?
Yes, and both change the math significantly. Under 735 ILCS 5/13-211, if the person entitled to bring an action at the time the cause of action accrued is under the age of 18 years, he or she may bring the action within 2 years after the person attains the age of 18 years. For wrongful death, the countdown starts on a different date entirely.
Illinois’ Wrongful Death Act ties the filing period to the date of death rather than the date of the original injury, which matters when a victim survives for months or years before passing.
Attorney Mark Curran III brings a finance degree paired with his law degree to these cases, giving the firm a sharper lens on long-term damages like future medical costs and lost earning capacity, the kind of numbers that matter most in wrongful death and catastrophic injury claims where the stakes and the math are both larger.
What Happens If You Miss the Deadline?
Once the statute of limitations runs out, Illinois courts will almost always dismiss your case without looking at the evidence. It doesn’t matter how badly you were hurt or how obvious the other side’s fault was.
That’s the real reason to talk to an Illinois personal injury statute of limitations attorney sooner rather than later. Reach out to D&W Law Group today so your deadline gets calculated correctly the first time.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does the two-year deadline ever get extended?
Yes. Illinois recognizes the discovery rule for cases like medical malpractice, where the clock can run two years from when the patient knew or should have known of the injury, capped at four years from the act itself. Talk to a lawyer if you didn’t realize you were hurt right away.
What if the person who hurt me was a government worker?
Claims against local government bodies generally face a shorter one-year deadline instead of the standard two years. Illinois repealed the old pre-suit notice-of-claim requirement for most local public entities, but the CTA is different: a CTA claim requires written notice of the injury within six months under the Metropolitan Transit Authority Act, on top of the one-year filing deadline. Either way, do not wait to get advice.
Does a minor have two years like everyone else?
Not exactly. A minor’s filing window is generally paused until their 18th birthday, after which the standard two-year period begins, often giving them until age 20 to file.
How is a wrongful death deadline calculated?
The two-year period generally runs from the date of death, not the date of the original accident. This matters most when a victim survives for a period of time before passing away from their injuries.
Can I still act if it’s been almost two years?
Possibly, but every month you wait shrinks your options and makes it harder to gather evidence. Call a lawyer immediately if your deadline is approaching so they can confirm your exact filing date.
D&W Law Group: Your Illinois Personal Injury Law Firm
Figuring out which deadline applies to your accident, whether it happened on a city street, a CTA bus, or in a hospital, can be confusing when the rules shift by case type. D&W Law Group’s founding partners bring decades of combined Illinois experience to sorting out exactly which statute governs your claim and how much time you actually have left.
That kind of early deadline check often makes the difference between a case that gets filed on time and one that gets dismissed before it starts.
If you’re unsure where your claim stands, don’t wait for the calendar to decide for you. Contact our firm today.
