Florida’s filing deadline for spinal cord injury claims
Florida law sets a clock on most personal injury lawsuits. A claim that involves a city, county, or state agency has an extra notice step that often comes first.
This article is for education. It is not legal advice, and it does not say what any person’s claim is worth. Palm Court Trial Group is a fictional sample firm.
The general personal injury clock
Florida Statutes s. 95.11 lists how long a person has to start most civil actions other than those for the recovery of real property. For “an action founded on negligence,” the statute currently places the claim in the two-year group. That language lives in s. 95.11(5)(a).
Most spinal cord injury claims against a private person or company are negligence claims. In ordinary terms, the injured person (or a family member with authority) generally has two years from when the claim accrued to file a lawsuit. In many crash and premises cases, the claim accrues on the date of the injury. Some facts delay accrual. This page cannot pick the date for you.
A 2023 change shortened the negligence window
House Bill 837 (chapter 2023-15, Laws of Florida), effective March 24, 2023, moved ordinary negligence out of the old four-year bucket. Causes of action that accrued on or after that date generally fall under the two-year period in s. 95.11(5)(a). Claims that accrued before that date generally kept the prior four-year period. Confirm the accrual date before you count.
Talking with an insurer, finishing medical treatment, or waiting on a life-care plan does not, by itself, stop the clock. If the deadline passes without a timely filing, Florida courts generally treat the claim as barred.
When a city, county, or state agency is involved
If the injury may involve a government body (a city street department, a county vehicle, a state agency, a public hospital district, or a similar subdivision), a second statute sits in front of the lawsuit: Florida Statutes s. 768.28, the limited waiver of sovereign immunity.
Before a lawsuit can be filed, the claimant must present the claim in writing to the appropriate agency. For many state-level claims, a copy also goes to the Department of Financial Services. Claims against a municipality or a county have their own notice path under the same section.
That written notice has its own deadline. For most tort claims under s. 768.28, notice must be presented within three years after the claim accrues. Wrongful death notice is shorter (two years to the Department of Financial Services). Suit generally cannot be filed until the agency denies the claim in writing, or six months pass without a final disposition (ninety days in some medical malpractice and wrongful death claims). Those waiting periods are measured in months.
The notice step is the one that often comes first, even when the later lawsuit still has to meet s. 95.11. Missing the notice, sending it to the wrong body, or filing suit too early can end the claim. Do not assume the private-party calendar is the only calendar that matters.
What this page does not do
It does not assign a value to a spinal cord injury. It does not tell you which defendant, if any, is responsible. It does not start a lawsuit. If you want a lawyer to look at dates, the SAMPLE intake is a review request, not a hiring.
Sources: Florida Statutes s. 95.11 (2025), including s. 95.11(5)(a); Laws of Florida ch. 2023-15; Florida Statutes s. 768.28(6) and (14). Official text: the Florida Senate statute pages for s. 95.11 and s. 768.28. This SAMPLE page is not a substitute for reading the current statute or for advice on a specific injury.