Illinois Lawyer Referrals and Legal Guidance
Statute of Limitations for Illinois Medical Malpractice Lawsuits
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Our site also provides a great deal of free information on Illinois medical malpractice which hopefully can guide your attorney search or aid your general knowledge of the law. For information about the statute of limitations in Illinois medical malpractice lawsuits please read on.
The statute of limitations is the time that you have to file a lawsuit until it is forever barred. In other words, you could have the best case in the world, but if you don't file a lawsuit in time, the case will get thrown out. Every type of case has a different statute of limitations. Within medical malpractice in Illinois there are different statutes of limitation depending on how old you are, who the defendant is and your mental condition.
Some people believe that having a statute of limitations is unfair. For example, if you are dealing with a serious illness, you are probably just focusing on your health and rightfully so. The fact of the matter is that even if you wait a while to file a lawsuit because you are ill or grieving the loss of a loved one or because you didn't know that you might have a case, if you wait too long your potential lawsuit will be barred forever.
In most Illinois medical malpractice lawsuits you have two years from the date you knew or should have known of the malpractice or injury, but no more than four years from the date it happened. In other words, if you had a chest x-ray that showed a tumor in 2005, but didn't discover that the doctor failed to diagnose it until 2010, it is likely too late to file a suit, even if the doctor admits his error.
The statute of limitations can be shorter than two years for cases against state or county run agencies. In most of those instances you have one year from the date you knew or should have known malpractice might have been committed or caused an injury.
Medical malpractice cases that result in a wrongful death generally have to be filed within two years from the date of the death.
Finally, if the injured party was under the age of 18 when the malpractice occurred, they have eight years to file their case from the date of the incident, but in no instance can it be filed after their 22nd birthday. If a potential claimant is mentally incompetent, the statute of limitations does not begin to run until the disability is removed. As a result, we have seen cerebral palsy cases where a successful lawsuit was filed after the statute of limitations would have otherwise run.
Please take this page as just general advice. Do not make a decision not to pursue a case without talking to an Illinois medical malpractice attorney first.
Findgreatlawyers.com focuses on finding lawyers in every part of the state of Illinois. From Chicago to Rockford, to Central Illinois, down to Southern Illinois, and every county in between. Whatever the legal area or location within the state of Illinois, we know the perfect lawyer for you Please call us at (312) 346-5320 or (800) 517-1614 or fill out our contact us form and we will contact you. All inquiries are kept in strict confidence.