If you were hurt in Massachusetts by someone else's conduct, you generally have three years from the date of the injury to file a personal-injury lawsuit. The deadline comes from M.G.L. chapter 260 section 4, and the clock starts on the date the injury occurred or, in latent cases, the date it was discovered. Miss the window and the courthouse door closes, even if the underlying case is strong.
The three-year number is the rule most Massachusetts injury searches return. The biggest traps are the two-year MTCA presentment for any claim against the Commonwealth, a city, a town, or a public employer; the PIP tort threshold that limits pain-and-suffering recovery in auto cases until medical bills hit $2,000; and the modified 51% comparative-fault bar. This post walks through what the three-year SOL really means in 2026, where the exceptions are, and the fact patterns we see trip people up most.
The default Massachusetts PI window: three years under M.G.L. c.260 s.4
M.G.L. chapter 260 section 4 sets a three-year statute of limitations for actions of tort for personal injuries. It is the catch-all for the vast majority of Massachusetts PI cases: car crashes, slip-and-falls, dog bites, premises liability, and most negligence claims.
The clock starts on the date the cause of action accrues, which is the date the injury was sustained. Massachusetts recognizes the discovery rule for inherently unknowable injuries: the clock starts when the plaintiff knew or reasonably should have known of the injury and its causal link to the defendant.
Massachusetts is a no-fault state for auto. M.G.L. chapter 90 section 34M requires every motor-vehicle policy to carry $8,000 of Personal Injury Protection (PIP), which pays the first $2,000 of medical bills and 75% of lost wages regardless of fault.
Exception one: the PIP tort threshold
M.G.L. chapter 231 section 6D limits the right to sue for pain and suffering arising from an auto accident. A plaintiff may recover non-economic damages only if reasonable and necessary medical expenses exceed $2,000 OR if the injury includes:
- death,
- loss of a body member,
- permanent and serious disfigurement,
- loss of sight or hearing, or
- a fracture.
Under the threshold the case is paid by PIP and that is the end of it. Above the threshold the tort action proceeds.
This is a different gate than no-fault PIP itself. PIP pays regardless of fault. The threshold determines whether the injured party can also sue the at-fault driver for pain and suffering.
Exception two: the MTCA presentment
If your injury involves the Commonwealth, a city, a town, a school district, the MBTA, or any other public employer, the Massachusetts Tort Claims Act (M.G.L. chapter 258) governs and the operative pre-suit hard deadline is presentment within two years of the cause of action under M.G.L. chapter 258 section 4.
Presentment must be in writing, delivered to the executive officer of the public employer, and describe the basis of the claim. Substantial compliance is required, and Massachusetts courts read the content requirement strictly. A defective presentment is treated the same as no presentment at all.
The 3-year general SOL still runs in parallel. Suit must be filed within three years AND presentment must be made within two years. The presentment deadline is the earlier of the two and is the trap that ends most MTCA cases.
Damage cap under MTCA: $100,000 per claimant for most personal-injury claims, with limited exceptions.
The single most common Massachusetts MTCA trap: a claimant hurt on a city sidewalk or by a public employee assumes the three-year SOL covers everything, contacts an attorney 25 months later, and learns the two-year presentment has already run.
Exception three: modified 51% comparative-fault bar
Massachusetts follows a modified comparative-fault rule with a 51% bar under M.G.L. chapter 231 section 85. A plaintiff whose negligence is not greater than the total negligence of the persons against whom recovery is sought recovers, reduced by the plaintiff's percentage of fault. At 51% the plaintiff recovers nothing.
The practical line is 50%. At 50% the plaintiff still recovers (halved). At 51% the case ends.
Exception four: medical malpractice
Massachusetts medical malpractice runs under M.G.L. chapter 260 section 4: three-year SOL from the date the cause of action accrued. M.G.L. chapter 231 section 60B requires a tribunal hearing within 15 days of joining a defendant's answer; the tribunal screens whether the case has sufficient evidence to proceed. A bond is required if the tribunal rules against the plaintiff and the plaintiff still wants to proceed.
There is a statute of repose: no medmal case may be brought more than seven years from the date of the negligent act, regardless of discovery (with a narrow exception for foreign objects left in the body).
Exception five: minors
M.G.L. chapter 260 section 7 tolls the general SOL during minority. The toll does not apply to the MTCA presentment deadline.
A common Massachusetts fact pattern that ends cases early
A pedestrian is struck by a city plow in Boston, treated at MGH, and assumes Mass auto-no-fault PIP plus the three-year SOL covers everything. Twenty-six months later, with ongoing physical therapy and pain that has clearly outgrown the PIP threshold, the pedestrian retains counsel. The two-year MTCA presentment has already run. The three-year SOL still has 10 months on it, but the only available defendant was the city, and presentment was the predicate. The case ends.
Other Massachusetts-specific PI rules worth knowing
Dog bites. M.G.L. chapter 140 section 155 imposes strict liability on the dog owner or keeper for injuries caused by the dog, with narrow exceptions for trespass and provocation. Three-year SOL.
Wrongful death. M.G.L. chapter 229 section 2: three-year SOL from the date of death. The action runs through the executor or administrator of the estate.
Premises liability. Three-year SOL. M.G.L. chapter 84 sections 15 and 18 impose a 30-day notice requirement for snow-and-ice claims against municipalities, in addition to the MTCA presentment. Two strict deadlines stacked together.
How the LawSensai Personal Injury Recovery Center helps with Massachusetts matters
We built the Recovery Center to handle the day-one organizational work in a Massachusetts PI case so that nothing falls through the cracks during the three-year window. We document the incident through a calm, save-and-resume intake, build a medical-and-evidence timeline, and surface every applicable deadline, including the two-year MTCA presentment, the 30-day municipal snow-and-ice notice, the PIP tort threshold, the medmal tribunal, the seven-year medmal repose, and the underlying M.G.L. c.260 s.4 three-year window. When the matter is well-documented and ready, we route it to a verified personal-injury attorney licensed in Massachusetts. Start your Massachusetts intake here.
We are not a law firm and we do not give legal advice. We are the file-organization and deadline-surfacing layer that sits in front of a real attorney.
Personal injury statute of limitations in other states
Each state has its own SOL window, government-notice deadline, comparative-fault regime, and case-type quirks. The deep-dive posts here cover several other jurisdictions. The full LawSensai PI Recovery Center routes 50-state coverage at /personal-injury.
- New York (CPLR 214(5), 90-day GML notice, serious-injury threshold)
- Connecticut (CGS 52-584 2-year SOL, highway defect)
- Rhode Island (RIGL 9-1-14 3-year SOL, pure comparative)
- New Hampshire (RSA 508:4 3-year SOL, BRM notice)
- Maine (14 M.R.S. 752 6-year SOL, 180-day MTCA)
- Vermont (12 V.S.A. 512 3-year SOL, 6-month VTCA)
Informational only
LawSensai is not a law firm and does not provide legal advice. The information in this post is general and does not account for your specific facts. No attorney-client relationship is created by reading this post or by using the Personal Injury Recovery Center. Deadlines, exceptions, and procedural rules vary by case type and by the parties involved; verify your specific situation with a licensed attorney in Massachusetts before relying on any window described here.
Last verified: 2026-06-03.