In Michigan, you generally have three years from the date of an injury to file a personal injury lawsuit. MCL 600.5805(2). Some claims have shorter deadlines, and claims against a government agency can require written notice within months, sometimes within 120 days. Do not wait to find out which rules apply to you.
The general rule: three years
Michigan law sets the period at three years after the time of the death or injury for actions to recover damages for the death of a person or for injury to a person or property. MCL 600.5805(2). Some claims are shorter. Assault, battery and false imprisonment claims generally have two years, with longer periods for certain claims involving a spouse, a person you live with, or a dating relationship. MCL 600.5805(3) to (5). If police or a jail caused the injury, the rules are different, and my page on Michigan civil rights claims against police and jails explains how.
When the three years start
A claim accrues, in cases not covered by a specific accrual section, "at the time the wrong upon which the claim is based was done regardless of the time when damage results." MCL 600.5827. That means the clock usually starts on the day of the crash, the fall or the incident, not on the day you learn how serious the harm is. The Michigan Supreme Court has held that the statutes control accrual and that the common-law discovery rule no longer applies. Trentadue v Buckler Automatic Lawn Sprinkler Co, 479 Mich 378 (2007). Medical malpractice is a notable exception, which I describe below.
Medical malpractice follows different rules
Malpractice claims have a two-year period. MCL 600.5805(8). They also have their own accrual and discovery rules, including a six-month discovery window and an outside limit of six years in many cases. MCL 600.5838a(2). A required notice of intent can also affect timing. MCL 600.5856(c). If your injury involves medical care, get advice quickly, because these rules do not work like the general three-year rule.
Claims against a government agency
If a government agency is involved, the written-notice rules can be much tighter than the lawsuit deadline. For injuries from a defective highway, the injured person must serve a notice on the governmental agency within 120 days of the injury. The notice must specify the exact location and nature of the defect, the injury and the known witnesses. MCL 691.1404(1). If the injured person is under 18, the notice is due within 180 days, and the same 180 days runs from the end of a physical or mental incapacity. MCL 691.1404(3).
Courts enforce this requirement as written. The Michigan Supreme Court held that the 120-day notice rule applies whether or not the agency was harmed by the delay. Rowland v Washtenaw Co Rd Comm, 477 Mich 197 (2007). In 2021 it also held that the GTLA’s 120-day notice provisions, not the 60-day notice in the County Road Law, MCL 224.21(3), govern suits against county road commissions under the highway exception, while leaving open whether the earlier decision it relied on was correct. Estate of Pearce v Eaton Co Rd Comm, 507 Mich 183 (2021). Because that question was left open, serving notice well inside 60 days is the safer course.
Claims against the State of Michigan have their own rule. A claim, or a written notice of intention to file a claim, must be filed with the clerk of the Court of Claims within one year after the claim accrued, and, for a claim for personal injuries or property damage, within 6 months after the event that gives rise to the claim. It must be signed and verified. MCL 600.6431(1), (2), (4). Other government defendants can have other notice requirements, so identify who owns the road, building or vehicle right away.
No-fault benefits have their own one-year rule
A lawsuit against the at-fault driver and a claim for your own no-fault benefits are different things with different deadlines. An action for personal protection insurance benefits may not be commenced later than one year after the accident unless written notice of injury has been given to the insurer within that year, or the insurer has already paid benefits for the injury. MCL 500.3145(1). Once notice has been given or a payment made, the action may be commenced within one year after the most recent allowable expense, work loss or survivor’s loss was incurred. You may not recover benefits for any portion of the loss incurred more than one year before the date the action was commenced. MCL 500.3145(2). The period is tolled from the date of a specific claim for payment until the insurer formally denies it, but not if you fail to pursue the claim with reasonable diligence. MCL 500.3145(3). The statute was amended in 2019, so older materials may describe it differently.
Children, wrongful death and concealment
- Minors and incapacity: a person who is under 18 or insane when the claim accrues has one year after the disability is removed to bring the action, even if the regular period has run, though the statute treats some medical malpractice claims by young children separately. MCL 600.5851.
- Wrongful death: the action must be brought by the personal representative of the estate, MCL 600.2922(2), and the general period is three years after the death. MCL 600.5805(2).
- Fraudulent concealment: if a person who may be liable fraudulently conceals the claim or the identity of the person liable, the action may be commenced within two years after discovery, even if it would otherwise be barred. MCL 600.5855.
Why not to wait
Three years sounds like a long time, but notice deadlines and the one-year no-fault rule can arrive much sooner, and some of them can end a claim before you ever speak with a lawyer. Evidence also disappears, because video is overwritten, vehicles are repaired and witnesses move. An early conversation lets someone check each deadline that could apply. More about how I handle injury cases is on my Grand Rapids personal injury and civil litigation pages, and you will find general answers on my Michigan legal FAQs page.
Questions about injury deadlines in Michigan
Is it three years for a car accident injury?
For a lawsuit over bodily injury, the general period is three years from the injury. MCL 600.5805(2). Your own no-fault benefits claim is different and has a one-year rule, so the two should be looked at separately.
Does the clock start when I learn how serious the injury is?
Usually not. A claim accrues when the wrong was done, regardless of when damage results, and the Michigan Supreme Court has held that the common-law discovery rule no longer applies. Medical malpractice has its own statutory discovery provisions.
What if I was hurt on a county or city road?
A written notice may be due within 120 days of the injury, or 180 days for a minor or someone who is incapacitated. MCL 691.1404. Give the notice quickly and keep proof of how and when it was served.
Does my child have the same deadline?
Not always. A person under 18 when the claim accrues may have one year after turning 18 to sue if the regular period has already run, but the 180-day notice rule for highway defects and the special medical malpractice provisions are separate. MCL 600.5851; MCL 691.1404(3).
The deadlines described here have exceptions, and a blog post is not a safe way to calculate your own. If you were hurt in West Michigan and are unsure what deadline applies, call my Grand Rapids office at (616) 213-3327 or use the contact page. This post is general information, not legal advice, and reading it does not make me your lawyer.