Guide · Deadlines & Process
How Long Do You Have To Sue After an Accident in New Jersey?
The short answer
In most New Jersey personal injury cases you have two years from the date of the accident to file a lawsuit. But if a government entity is involved, including an NJ Transit bus or a municipal vehicle, you may have as little as 90 days to file a notice of claim. Miss it and the case can be gone.
The general rule: two years
For most New Jersey injury cases, including ordinary car crashes, truck crashes, and rideshare crashes, you have two years from the date of the accident to file suit.
Two years feels like a long time. It is not. Building a case properly takes months: medical treatment has to run its course, records have to be gathered, experts have to be retained. A lawyer who gets a case with three weeks left on the clock is working at a serious disadvantage, and some of them will simply decline it.
The exception that ends cases: 90 days
If a public entity or a public employee is involved, everything changes.
Under New Jersey’s Tort Claims Act, before you can sue a government entity you generally have to file a formal notice of claim within 90 days of the incident. Only after that can a lawsuit follow.
This applies when the vehicle or the property belonged to: NJ Transit, including its buses · a municipality, county, or state agency · a school district · a public hospital or public authority · a police, fire, or public works vehicle. Also potholes, defective roadways, dangerous public property, and poor maintenance of a public road.
This is the deadline that quietly destroys otherwise strong cases. Someone gets hit by a municipal truck, spends three months focused on getting well, calls a lawyer in month four, and finds out the window closed at day 90 while they were in physical therapy.
Check your deadline in 30 seconds →The deadlines, side by side
“It has been more than two years. Am I done?”
Maybe not. There are doctrines that can extend or pause the clock, including the discovery rule, which can apply where an injury or its cause was not reasonably discoverable right away.
These arguments are narrow, they are fact-specific, and they are not something to bet on. But if you think you are out of time, do not assume you are out of options. Ask. The call is free, and the worst outcome is a straight answer.
Two questions, thirty seconds, a real answer.
Tell us when the crash happened and what hit you. We will tell you what deadline you are actually working against.
Call (201) 719-1669Common questions
How long after an accident can you sue in New Jersey?
Generally two years from the date of the accident. If a government entity is involved, you may have as little as 90 days to file a notice of claim first.
Is it too late to sue someone after 2 years?
Usually yes for an ordinary injury claim, though narrow exceptions exist. Do not assume, and do not wait to find out. Ask.
What happens if I miss the 90-day notice deadline?
Late-notice applications are possible in limited circumstances and within a limited window, but they are discretionary and they are not something to rely on. If a public entity was involved, treat 90 days as a hard wall.
Does the deadline change if the injured person is a child?
Generally the clock does not begin until the child turns 18. But claims involving public entities can work differently, so get specific advice rather than assuming.
Does the deadline change for a wrongful death claim?
It generally runs two years from the date of death rather than from the date of the accident.
Written and reviewed by Dominick Succardi
Personal injury attorney, admitted in New Jersey since 2014. About Dominick →