Arizona Personal Injury Statute of Limitations

Reviewed by Joseph L. Woods, Esq.

The general deadline for most injury claims

For most Arizona personal injury claims — car crashes, slip and falls, and similar cases — you generally have two years from the date of the injury to file suit. Once that deadline passes, the court can dismiss the case regardless of how clear the other side's fault was.

Government claims: 180 days, not two years

If a city, county, the state, a school district, or a public employee is involved, the two-year deadline is not the one that matters first. Arizona requires a formal notice of claim served on the entity within 180 days of when the claim accrues, and a lawsuit filed within one year — far shorter than the ordinary deadline. A public bus, a police vehicle, or a dangerous condition on a public road can all put a case in this category.

Dog bites: a one-year deadline people rarely expect

Arizona gives dog-bite victims a strict-liability claim that does not require proving the owner knew the dog was dangerous — but that claim carries a one-year deadline, not two. A separate negligence theory may run longer. Because the strongest claim is usually the strict-liability one, treat a dog-bite injury as a one-year case and act well inside that window to keep both routes open.

Other claims that run on their own clocks

A single incident can create several claims with different deadlines — a wrongful-death claim, a claim for damage to your vehicle, or a product-defect claim against a manufacturer. Arizona also limits product claims with a statute of repose that can close the door a set number of years after a product first sold, independent of when you were hurt. When more than one claim is in play, confirm each deadline separately.

When the clock can start later, or pause

The deadline does not always begin on the day of the accident. Arizona recognizes a discovery rule, under which the clock may start when you knew or reasonably should have known you were harmed and who caused it — which matters for injuries that surface later. Deadlines can also be paused while an injured person is a minor or is of unsound mind. These exceptions are narrow and fact-specific.

Why waiting is the expensive choice

Deadlines are only half the reason to move early. Vehicles get repaired, surveillance footage is overwritten on a schedule, and witnesses become impossible to find. In a government or dog-bite case, the window can close before most people have finished treating. A free, confidential review will tell you which deadline actually governs your situation — and there is no cost to find out.

Frequently asked questions

This is general information about California injury law, not legal advice. Every situation is different, and deadlines can turn on specific facts.

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