Medical Malpractice Claims Raise Unique Statute of Limitations Issues

18.05.12

Most people are aware of the concept of a statute of limitations period which is a time frame in which a claim must be brought or is lost forever. There many subtleties that must be understood as well and it is these that cause injured people the most problems.

There are different limitations periods for different types of claims. For example, in New Mexico, there is a three-year statute of limitations period for a personal injury claim . Personal injury claims encompass claims in which a person is injured due to a car accident, slip and fall, medical negligence or malpractice and any other type injury to the person that is because of some other person or entity's negligence.

However, that three-year limitation period has some conditions. The three years applies to claims against a person or entity that is not a public entity. Public entities are municipalities, counties and states, and their agencies. There are also numerous hospitals that are public entities, some obvious which are tied to a state university, such as the University of New Mexico Hospital, and some not, with names that do not immediately suggest that the entity is public.

Source: JD Supra (press release)