Arizona Medical Malpractice Statute of Limitations

Medical Malpractice Attorney Serving Phoenix, Tucson, Chandler, Yuma & Glendale

A statute of limitations is a rule that applies to almost all civil lawsuits, limiting the time in which a claimant has to file a legal claim against another person. For most medical malpractice claims, the Arizona statute of limitations is 2 years. This means that a patient who suffers injury as a result of medical malpractice has 2 years to file a Notice of Claim against the responsible party. If the victim does not file a formal legal action within this time frame, he or she will lose the right to file a lawsuit and seek financial damages.  A medical malpractice claim against a public entity may require a Notice of Claim within 180 days of the actionable incident. 

A medical malpractice victim’s right to legal action for his or her injuries may be crucial to building a better, brighter future. If you or a loved one has been injured due to any form of medical malpractice, be sure that you waste no time in consulting an attorney. By involving a Arizona medical malpractice lawyer as early on in the process as possible, you can help ensure that your claim, action or formal Notice of Claim is filed before any relevant statute of limitations or other time limit expires .  If you delay, you may lose your right to recover the financial compensation you deserve.

The Discovery Rule: Arizona Medical Malpractice Lawsuits

Although the general statute of limitations for medical malpractice lawsuits is 2 years, this is based on the rule of discovery, which allows a victim to file a lawsuit within 2 years of the time that an injury is discovered, or should have reasonably been discovered. Sometimes an injury will not present immediately. Or, a victim may be unaware of the cause of an injury, and it may be impossible to determine that medical malpractice was the involved. As such, the discovery rule may give a victim more time to take action, even if the actual instance of medical malpractice occurred more than 2 years ago.  In any event, you should always consult an attorney as soon as you have reason to believe that medical malpractice may have caused a serious injury so that you can hopefully avoid any time limitation issues.

Contact Arizona medical malpractice attorney David Cluff today for a free consultation regarding your case.