Wyoming Personal Injury Laws and Statutes of Limitations

Wyoming's Statutes of Limitations for Personal Injury Lawsuits

Wyoming has several statutes of limitations that apply to PI lawsuits. We start with the state's four-year general rule. Then we'll have a look at some other rules that apply to specific kinds of cases.

Wyoming's General Rule: Four Years to File a Personal Injury Lawsuit

In most Wyoming personal injury cases, you have four years to sue. (Wyo. Stat. § 1-3-105(a)(iv)(C) (2024).) The four-year clock usually starts running on the date you're injured. This deadline applies to a wide range of PI claims, including lawsuits involving:

• auto accidents
• dangerous or poorly maintained real estate (a "premises liability" case)
• dangerous or defective products (a "product liability" suit), and
• dog bites and other animal attacks.

Other Limitations for Specific Kinds of Cases

Wyoming's four-year general rule doesn't apply in all PI cases. When there's another statute of limitations that's a better fit for a specific kind of case, that rule probably controls. Here are a few examples.

Intentional torts. When someone acts deliberately to harm you, the law calls it an "intentional tort." In Wyoming, these intentional torts are covered by a one year statute of limitations:

• assault and battery
• defamation (libel and slander)
• false imprisonment, and
• malicious prosecution.

(Wyo. Stat. § 1-3-105(a)(v) (2024).)

Medical malpractice. Special rules apply to medical malpractice lawsuits. In most cases, you must file within two years from the date the malpractice happens. What if you don't discover the malpractice right away? Wyoming's "discovery rule" lets you sue within two years of the date you discover the malpractice if:

• you couldn't reasonably discover it within two years from the date it happened, or
• you didn't discover it within two years after it happened, even though you diligently looked for signs and symptoms.

(Wyo. Stat. § 1-3-107(a) (2024).)

Injuries causing death. When injuries result in death, surviving family members might decide to bring a wrongful death lawsuit. The filing deadline is two years from the date of death. (Wyo. Stat. § 1-38-102(d) (2024).)

Can the Deadline Be Extended?

Sometimes, yes, Wyoming law allows a statute of limitations deadline to be extended. Keep in mind that these are exceptions to the case-filing deadline rules. If you're planning to rely on one of them, it's up to you to convince the court that it applies.

The discovery rule. Generally speaking, the limitation clock starts running on the date you're injured. But what if you don't know right away you've been hurt? Should that happen, Wyoming's discovery rule—mentioned above in connection with medical malpractice cases—might give you more time to file your case.

To take advantage of the discovery rule, you'll need to show that:

• you didn't know you were injured in time to file your case before the statute of limitations ran out, and
• you couldn't have discovered your injury in time, even if you were reasonably careful to look for it.

When the discovery rule applies—and importantly, it doesn't apply in all PI cases—the limitation clock won't start on the date you were injured. Instead, it runs from the earlier of:

• the date you discovered your injury, or
• the date you had enough facts that you should have discovered it, had you been reasonably careful.

Expect the defendant (the party you're suing) to put up a vigorous fight if you claim the discovery rule applies. That's not a battle you want to face alone. Hire experienced legal counsel to represent you and make your argument to the court.

Defendant leaves Wyoming or goes into hiding. The statute of limitations doesn't run during any period when the defendant leaves Wyoming or goes into hiding. (Wyo. Stat. § 1-3-116 (2023).) The Wyoming Supreme Court has interpreted this rule so that it only applies when:

• the defendant is absent from the state or in hiding, and
• as a result, you can't locate the defendant to serve them with your lawsuit.

(See Tarter v. Insco, 550 P.2d 905 (Wyo. 1976).)

Minors and people with legal disabilities. A minor or legally disabled person can't manage their own legal affairs—file a lawsuit, for example—without assistance from a parent or legal guardian. For this reason, the statute of limitations doesn't start running right away when they're injured. Instead, they must sue within the later of:

• the applicable statute of limitations, or
• three years after turning 18 or no longer being legally disabled.

(Wyo. Stat. § 1-3-114 (2024).)