Article By: Britney L. Hebert – Attorney at Law
The Louisiana Legislature has recently extended the statute of limitations, called prescription period, for personal injury claims from one year to two years. Previously, Louisiana had the shortest prescriptive period in the country, requiring personal injury claims to be filed within one year from the date of accident. The new two-year period aligns us more closely with other states by allowing additional time to pursue settlements outside of court.
All tort (delictual) claims in Louisiana, including intentional torts, negligence, and strict liability claims, now have a two-year prescriptive period. This means that claimants have two years before they must file a lawsuit or risk the claim being extinguished. If an attorney fails to file within the prescriptive period, it is considered malpractice.
The shift from a one- to two-year period benefits all parties by reducing the pressure to file costly lawsuits prematurely, thus fostering a more balanced system and allowing time for efficient and amicable resolutions.
It was nearly impossible to resolve a claim with serious injuries within the previous one-year time frame because more serious injuries require more medical treatment and time to heal. Healthcare providers cannot get the injured person to a point of maximum medical improvement (MMI) before the one-year time limit would hit. We need the injured person to be at a point of maximum medical improvement in order to determine what the damages are in terms of future medical treatment and lost wages.
Personal injury attorneys prefer to avoid filing lawsuits unless absolutely necessary, as litigation is extremely expensive and time-consuming, detracting from claimants, tortfeasors, and insurers who could settle the claims privately. The extension of the prescriptive period allows cases to be resolved without the need for court intervention, saving time, money, and stress for all involved.
Ultimately, Louisiana’s extended statute of limitations is a practical solution that promotes fairness, reduces rushed legal actions, and benefits individuals, insurance companies, businesses, and the entire legal system by encouraging balanced resolutions over costly court battles. The extended prescriptive period is expected to reduce the volume of lawsuits, alleviate congestion in the court system, and potentially lead to the ultimate goal of lower insurance premiums.
