Idaho Personal Injury Laws and Statutes of Limitations

Idaho's Time Limits for Filing Personal Injury Lawsuits

Idaho has a deadline, called a "statute of limitations," on filing PI lawsuits in court. We'll begin by explaining the basic time limit, then we'll look at some exceptions and special rules that might apply in certain cases.

The Basic Rule: Two Years From the Date of Injury

For most Idaho personal injury claims, you have two years from the date you were injured to file a lawsuit in court. (Idaho Code § 5-219.4 (2023).) This limitation period expressly includes lawsuits for:

• professional (including medical) malpractice
• personal injuries
• wrongful death
• defamation
• assault
• battery, and
• false imprisonment

Note that you might have more time to file a medical malpractice lawsuit if:

• a foreign object was inadvertently left in your body by a hospital or health care provider, or
• your injury was "fraudulently and knowingly concealed" from you.

Exceptions and Special Time Limits

Idaho law includes a variety of exceptions to the two-year general rule, as well as special time limits that apply in particular circumstances. Here are some—but not all—of them.

Time Limits for Suits by Minors

When a minor (in Idaho, younger than 18 years old) is injured, the limitation period is "tolled" (temporarily stopped) until the earlier of:

• six years after the date of the injury, or
• the person's 18th birthday.

(Idaho Code § 5-230 (2023).)

Once the tolling period ends, the statute of limitations begins (or resumes) running.

Responsible Party Leaves the State

When the party who's responsible for your injuries leaves the state, the limitation period is tolled until the earlier of:

• six years after the date of your injury (Idaho Code § 5-230 (2023)), or
• the date the absent party returns to Idaho. (Idaho Code § 5-229 (2023).)

Here too, the limitations period begins or resumes when the tolling period ends.

Claims Against the Government or Government Employees

Special—and very short—time limits apply to PI claims against Idaho, its political subdivisions, and their employees. Here are the basics.

Claims Against Idaho and Its Employees

Before you can sue Idaho or its employees in court for your PI claim, you must first file your claim with the Idaho Secretary of State. Idaho Code § 6-907 (2023) describes what your claim must include. The Secretary of State has an online claim form you can use. Note, importantly, that filing a claim with the Secretary of State is not the same as filing a lawsuit in court.

The filing deadline is short: You must file your claim within 180 days after the date you were injured or the date you should have discovered you were injured. (Idaho Code § 6-905 (2023).) Minors must file their claims within 180 days from the earlier of:

• six years after the date of the injury or the date the injury reasonably should have been discovered, or
• their 18th birthday. (Idaho Code § 6-906A(1) (2023).)

If you want to file a PI lawsuit against Idaho or its employees, you must do so within two years from the date you were injured or you reasonably should have discovered your injury. Failure to file within the deadline means your lawsuit is "forever barred." (Idaho Code § 6-911 (2023).)

Claims Against Idaho Political Subdivisions and Their Employees

Generally speaking, the claim and lawsuit filing rules that apply to claims against Idaho also apply to claims against Idaho political subdivisions (as defined in Idaho Code § 6-902.2 (2023)) and their employees. Here are the main differences.

You've got 180 days from the date you were injured or the date you reasonably should have discovered your injury to file your PI claim with "the clerk or secretary of the political subdivision." (Idaho Code § 6-906 (2023).) Contact that office to find out what your claim needs to include and whether there's a form you should use. Once again, filing a claim with the municipality is not the same as filing a lawsuit in court.

The two-year statute of limitations applicable to lawsuits against Idaho (Idaho Code § 6-911 (2023)) also applies to lawsuits against most Idaho political subdivisions. But here's one important exception to that two-year deadline: Any claim against an Idaho county must be filed in court within the earlier of six months from the date the claim is first rejected by the board of county commissioners (Idaho Code § 5-221 (2023)) or two years after the date of injury.