Statute of limitations in Kentucky

On paper, Kentucky's rule for personal injury cases looks simple. A person harmed by someone else's conduct generally has 1 year to file a lawsuit, under Ky. Rev. Stat. § 413.140. That single line, though, sits on top of a set of details that decide when the year starts, whether a longer window applies, and what happens if a deadline slips past.

The statute of limitations is the legal clock on a civil claim. Once it runs out, a court can dismiss the case no matter how strong the underlying facts might be. This is a question of timing, and Kentucky courts treat it as a threshold matter.

The headline figure here is 1 year for personal injury. One important detail hides in the note attached to that figure: some motor-vehicle claims brought under Kentucky's Motor Vehicle Reparations Act may allow 2 years instead. Whether a given crash claim falls under that provision depends on the facts, so the year you assume may not be the year that applies.

Because the margin between these periods is narrow, confirming the correct deadline early matters. The period that governs a given case turns on its specific facts, not on the headline figure alone.

A limitations period does not start on a calendar date you pick. It starts when the claim accrues. For many injury claims, accrual happens when the harm occurs, which for something like a fall or a collision is often the day of the event itself. From that point, the clock in Ky. Rev. Stat. § 413.140 begins to run.

Some injuries are not obvious right away. Kentucky law recognizes that a person cannot sue over harm they had no fair way to know about. In those situations, courts may look at when the injury was discovered, or reasonably should have been discovered, rather than the moment it first occurred. This discovery approach does not apply to every claim, and how it works depends on the type of case and the facts.

Counting matters too. The period is measured in calendar time, and weekends or holidays at the end of the window can affect the final filing day. Because a single day can separate a case that proceeds from one that is dismissed, treat the earliest plausible accrual date as your working deadline rather than the most generous reading.

Kentucky recognizes circumstances that pause, or toll, the limitations clock, and others that shorten the practical time to act. These rules are the reason two claims that look alike can carry different real deadlines.

Age and capacity are common examples. When the injured person is a minor or is under a legal disability, Kentucky law generally allows the clock to be tolled for a period tied to that status, so the standard window may not begin as it would for an adult of full capacity. A defendant's absence from the state can also affect the count, because the law does not let someone run out the clock by staying beyond the reach of Kentucky courts.

Claims against government bodies follow their own track. Suing a city, a county, a state agency, or their employees often requires meeting notice requirements and shorter timelines that differ from the general personal injury rule. This guide does not list those figures, and you should read the governing statute or ask a licensed Kentucky attorney before relying on any of them.

Tolling is fact-specific. Do not assume an exception applies to your situation without confirming it against the current code.

This page currently lists one claim type, so this section walks through that single row and what it covers.

Personal injury, 1 year, Ky. Rev. Stat. § 413.140. This category covers civil claims for bodily or personal harm caused by another party's negligent or wrongful conduct. Common examples include injuries from falls and other everyday accidents caused by ordinary negligence. The one-year period is the general rule for these cases in Kentucky.

The note on this row points to an exception for the road. Motor-vehicle claims brought under Kentucky's Motor Vehicle Reparations Act may allow 2 years rather than one. That longer window is tied to the reparations framework for vehicle crashes, and it does not automatically extend every injury claim that happens to involve a car. Whether it applies turns on the details of the claim and how the Act treats it.

Other claim types are not shown on this page, and their periods are not all the same as the personal injury figure. Contract disputes, professional malpractice, defamation, and property claims each run on their own schedules under different sections of the code. For those, check the official Kentucky Revised Statutes directly rather than assuming the one-year rule carries over.

Time works against a claim in quiet ways. Evidence fades, memories blur, and records get harder to pull the longer you wait. Acting well before any deadline gives a claim stronger footing, even when the filing date still looks far off.

Start by preserving what you have. Keep medical records, bills, photographs, repair estimates, correspondence, and the names of anyone who saw what happened. If a report was filed, whether a police report or an incident report, request a copy and store it somewhere safe.

Next, confirm which period actually governs your claim. The table on this page gives the general figure of 1 year for personal injury under Ky. Rev. Stat. § 413.140, with the possible 2-year window for certain motor-vehicle claims. Your facts decide which one fits, and an exception could shorten or extend the practical deadline.

A licensed Kentucky attorney can confirm the applicable deadline, flag any government-notice requirement, and explain how accrual and tolling apply to your situation. This guide offers general legal information, not legal advice about any specific matter. If your deadline may be close, treat that as a reason to seek that confirmation sooner rather than later.