People often wonder how long they have to file a lawsuit in Louisiana. The answer depends on the type of lawsuit, as timelines vary by cause of action. For instance, car accident claims have different deadlines than medical malpractice cases. Determining the applicable deadlines for your claim can be challenging without legal guidance.
After an accident, it’s important to act quickly by speaking to an attorney and filing your claim. Missing the deadline imposed by the statute of limitations—known as the prescriptive period in Louisiana—means you lose the right to sue for compensation. Exceptions and changes to the prescriptive period are virtually nonexistent, so time is of the essence. An experienced Louisiana personal injury lawyer can help you better understand prescriptive periods and your rights when filing a personal injury lawsuit.
What Does the Prescriptive Period Mean in Louisiana?
The “prescriptive period,” or statute of limitations, determines how long you have to file a claim. This period varies by case type, and exceptions are rare. If you miss the deadline, you will lose your right to sue. Therefore, timely filing is essential to pursue compensation.
In Louisiana, most causes of action must be filed within two years of the incident giving rise to the action. In many other states—including Texas—the period ranges from two to five years. There are just a couple of exceptions to this rule in Louisiana: lawsuits involving rent and debt collection, which each carry a three-year limit, and contracts and judgments, which have a 10-year deadline. The law recently changed in 2024 for the prescriptive period from one year to two years. This also means that anything filed before this change in the summer of 2024, could be subject to a one-year prescriptive period.
Given the complicated nature of personal injury lawsuits, it’s critical to secure the services of a knowledgeable Lake Charles personal injury lawyer. The last thing you want is to miss your window to file your lawsuit simply because you did not understand the state’s laws. If you were involved in a car accident or injured by someone else’s negligence in another kind of accident, please contact Shamieh Law today. Our Lake Charles personal injury lawyers will help you understand the deadlines and other procedures you must follow so that you may seek the justice you deserve.
Can a Prescriptive Period Be Interrupted?
A prescriptive period is “interrupted” when a plaintiff files a proper legal action against the defendant. This gives the plaintiff time to refile their suit if there are issues with their initial filing without being penalized for filing outside the prescriptive period.
Prescriptive periods also may be interrupted in cases with multiple defendants if a plaintiff properly sued one defendant within the prescriptive window but didn’t include other liable parties. This means the plaintiff can still sue other liable parties outside the one-year window. Other liable parties commonly don’t come to light until after the initial suit is filed. Pausing the prescriptive period in these circumstances means that the plaintiff isn’t penalized for not suing a party they didn’t know was liable for their injuries.
It’s important to note that only a properly filed suit interrupts the prescriptive period. Filing in the wrong court or parish does not interrupt a prescriptive period. Before filing suit, speak to an attorney to ensure that your rights and interests are protected.
What Are the Deadlines for Filing a Lawsuit in Louisiana?
How long you have to file a lawsuit in Louisiana depends on the nature of the claim. In Louisiana, these are the statutory deadlines for filing lawsuits:
Case Type | Time Frame | Additional Notes |
Libel and Slander, or Defamation | 1 year |
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Fraud | 1 year |
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Property Damage | 1 year |
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Medical Malpractice | 1 year |
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Employment Discrimination | 1 year |
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Workers’ Compensation | 1 year | Sometimes, the statute of limitations may vary. |
Personal Injury | 2 years |
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Uninsured Motorist Claims | 2 years |
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Commercial Transactions | 3 years |
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Rent Collection | 3 years |
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Debt Collection | 3 years |
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Compensation and Salaries | 3 years |
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Annulment of Testament, or Disputing a Will | 5 years |
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Breach of Contract | 10 years |
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Child Support | 10 years |
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The prescriptive period for Louisiana personal injury cases is two years. However, other statutes of limitations may apply in some cases, depending on the nature of the injury. For example, a claim based on medical negligence must be filed within the one-year medical malpractice deadline. It’s extremely important to seek medical treatment—both immediately following an incident and periodically afterward—to ensure you know the exact cause of your injury.
If you’re unsure what kind of personal injury claim you’re filing or how long the prescriptive period is for your case, speak with an attorney. A lawyer can ensure you avoid missing any applicable deadlines.
What Is the Discovery Rule and How Does It Affect My Claim?
Exceptions to Louisiana prescriptive periods are limited. There are many perfectly understandable reasons why plaintiffs may not timely file a case after an accident, especially when they’re trying to get their lives back together and recover from their injuries. Unfortunately, judges often reject even the most sympathetic reasons for not meeting the deadline.
However, rare exceptions exist. One critical allowance to the prescriptive period is the “discovery rule,” sometimes called the “contra non valentem” doctrine in Louisiana. The discovery rule extends the prescriptive period for filing a case based on the time it took to discover your injury. If a person isn’t aware of an accident-related injury immediately after it occurs, the prescriptive period starts when they discover or reasonably should have discovered the injury. This rule protects plaintiffs’ rights to seek compensation for injuries resulting from negligence that weren’t immediately apparent.
What Does the Discovery Rule Look Like in Practice?
It’s not uncommon for accident victims to suffer injuries that aren’t immediately apparent at the scene. A person may walk away from a car crash looking OK. However, in reality, they may have unknowingly suffered internal bleeding or a traumatic brain injury with dangerous effects that set in later. An employee could get hurt in a workplace that their employer knew was unsafe and appear to have only minor injuries, only to later develop a chronic spinal condition from the accident. Someone could experience asbestos exposure in their apartment complex without even knowing they’d been near asbestos, only to develop mesothelioma decades later due to the exposure.
All of these circumstances are subject to the discovery rule. Even if you have developed or discovered an accident-related injury long after the accident, you may still be able to sue. An experienced personal injury lawyer can help you learn more about your legal options.
Contact an Experienced Personal Injury Lawyer in Louisiana
The amount of time you have to sue can vary significantly depending on the nature of your injury. Thus, it’s critical to talk to an attorney soon after an accident or after you’ve discovered an accident-related injury.
The Louisiana personal injury attorneys at Shamieh Law handle a wide variety of personal injury cases every day. Our lawyers know exactly how to manage your case and ensure your claim is timely filed, no matter the nature of your injury. We’ve secured millions of dollars in case results for injury victims and are proud of the glowing testimonials we’ve received from these clients.
At Shamieh Law, we’re ready to put our skills to work for you. Call (469) 813-7332 or contact us online today for your free legal consultation. Ofrecemos servicios en español.
