If you were hurt in Utah by someone else's conduct, you generally have four years from the date of the injury to file a personal-injury lawsuit. The deadline comes from Utah Code section 78B-2-307(3), and the clock starts on the date the harm occurred. Miss the window and the courthouse door closes, even if the underlying case is strong.
The four-year number is one of the longer windows in the United States. The bigger trap is the Utah Governmental Immunity Act (UGIA) one-year notice required for any claim against a state or local government entity under Utah Code section 63G-7-401. This post walks through what the four-year SOL really means in 2026, where the exceptions are, and the fact patterns we see trip people up most.
The default Utah PI window: four years under Utah Code 78B-2-307(3)
Utah Code section 78B-2-307(3) sets a four-year statute of limitations for actions for relief on the ground of fraud or mistake and for any action for which no other period is prescribed. The four-year window is the operative deadline for general personal-injury claims, premises liability, dog bites, and most negligence-based actions.
For specific intentional torts (e.g., assault, battery), Utah Code section 78B-2-302 sets a one-year window. Verify the claim type before assuming four years applies.
The clock starts on the date the injury occurred. Utah recognizes a discovery rule in narrow latent-injury categories.
Utah is a no-fault auto-insurance state. Drivers carry Personal Injury Protection (PIP) coverage under the Utah Auto No-Fault Insurance Act, Utah Code chapter 31A-22. Minimum PIP is $3,000 per person. To step outside the no-fault system and sue for general damages (pain and suffering), the injury must meet the threshold in Utah Code section 31A-22-309: medical expenses over $3,000, permanent disability, permanent impairment, dismemberment, or death.
Exception one: the UGIA one-year notice trap
The Utah Governmental Immunity Act, Utah Code sections 63G-7-101 through 63G-7-904, governs claims against the State of Utah, its political subdivisions, and their employees. Utah Code section 63G-7-401 requires the claimant to file a written notice of claim within one year of the date the claim arose.
After notice is filed, the government has 60 days to approve or deny the claim. If the claim is denied (or deemed denied by inaction), the claimant has one year to file suit under Utah Code section 63G-7-403.
Damage caps under Utah Code section 63G-7-604: generally $791,000 per person and $2,757,000 per occurrence for most state-tort claims (caps are adjusted periodically).
The most common UGIA trap: a claimant assumes the four-year general SOL applies, files notice at month 14, and learns the UGIA one-year notice ran two months ago. The general four-year SOL never controlled.
Exception two: medical malpractice
Medical-malpractice cases run under Utah Code section 78B-3-404: a two-year SOL from the date the plaintiff discovered or should have discovered the injury, with a four-year statute of repose (no claim more than four years after the act, regardless of discovery), except in cases of foreign-object retention or fraudulent concealment.
A 90-day pre-litigation notice under Utah Code section 78B-3-412 is required before filing suit, and a Division of Professional Licensing review is required under Utah Code section 78B-3-416 for most claims.
Exception three: minors
Utah Code section 78B-2-108 tolls the SOL during minority for general PI claims. A minor under age 18 generally has until one year after reaching majority to file. The toll does NOT apply to UGIA notice deadlines under Utah Code section 63G-7-401(4), which run from accrual regardless of the claimant's age.
What Utah's modified 50% comparative-fault rule means
Utah follows a modified comparative-fault rule with a 50% bar under Utah Code section 78B-5-818. A plaintiff less than 50% at fault recovers, reduced by the percentage of plaintiff fault. A plaintiff 50% or more at fault recovers nothing.
The 50% threshold (not 51% as in some neighboring states) is where Utah defense lawyers focus. Pushing fault from 49% to 50% ends the case.
A common Utah fact pattern that ends cases early
A driver is hit by a city snowplow on a residential street in Salt Lake City. The driver is treated, released, and assumes the city's insurer will resolve the claim. Fourteen months later, no resolution; the driver retains an attorney; the attorney discovers the city was never given written UGIA notice and the one-year notice deadline ran two months ago. The case is dismissed for failure of a prerequisite condition.
The takeaway: if any Utah government entity is potentially involved (state agency, county, municipality, school district, public transit), treat the UGIA one-year notice as the operative limit and act within it, not the four-year general SOL.
Other Utah-specific PI rules worth knowing
Dog bites. Utah applies a strict-liability rule under Utah Code section 18-1-1 when the dog bites a person lawfully on public or private property. The owner cannot rely on lack of prior knowledge as a defense. Four-year SOL.
Wrongful death. Wrongful-death claims are governed by Utah Code section 78B-3-105 with a two-year SOL under Utah Code section 78B-2-304. Standing follows the statutory hierarchy.
Premises liability and slip-and-fall. Four-year SOL. Utah applies the invitee/licensee/trespasser framework. The 50% modified-comparative bar applies.
How the LawSensai Personal Injury Recovery Center helps with Utah matters
We built the Recovery Center to handle the day-one organizational work in a Utah PI case so that nothing falls through the cracks during the four-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 UGIA one-year notice, the 60-day government review window, the no-fault PIP threshold, the medmal four-year repose, the $791K/$2.757M government caps, and the underlying Utah Code 78B-2-307(3) four-year window. When the matter is well-documented and ready, we route it to a verified personal-injury attorney licensed in Utah. Start your Utah 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 the highest-volume jurisdictions. The full LawSensai PI Recovery Center routes 50-state coverage at /personal-injury.
- Colorado (2-year SOL)
- Arizona (2-year SOL)
- Nevada (2-year SOL)
- Idaho (2-year SOL)
- California (CCP 335.1, MICRA)
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 Utah before relying on any window described here.
Last verified: 2026-06-03.