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Nursing Home Abuse and Neglect

What is the statute of limitations for a nursing home abuse and neglect case?

A: In general, the statute of limitations for a nursing home abuse and neglect suit is 2 years from the date of injury. However, if the nursing home is operated by a local governmental entity, then the statute of limitations is only 1 year.

The statute of limitations begins to run when the injured person either knows or reasonably should know that they have been injured and that their injuries were wrongfully caused. In some cases, such as where there is a fall, the occurrence of a traumatic injury starts the statute of limitations running. In other cases, such as where a patient develops bed sores, the statute of limitations can be more difficult to compute. To be safe, you should plan on the earliest possible date in computing the statute of limitations date.

In case where a person is under legal disability and cannot handle his or her own legal affairs, the statute of limitations does not run until the disability is lifted. This means that for patients with advanced dementia or Alzheimer's, there is no real statute of limitations.

If you have any questions about when a statute of limitations will expire, you should consult with an experienced Chicago nursing home lawyer.

Have a long time before your statute of limitations expires? Many people use that as a good reason to put off making a decision about whether to hire a lawyer. However, there are at least 5 reasons to hire a lawyer long before the statute of limitations is going to expire. You can feel free to contact our office by calling (312) 263-1080 or by completing the contact form. There is no charge for contacting us, and we offer free initial consultations.

Our law firm is available to represent victims and their families throughout the State of Illinois, including Cook County, DuPage County, Will County, Lake County, Kankakee County, Kane County, Kendall County, McHenry County, LaSalle County, DeKalb County, Winnebago County, Champaign County and in the cities and towns of Illinois, including Chicago, Evanston, Schaumburg, Wheaton, Naperville, Aurora, Waukegan, Joliet, Geneva, St. Charles, Geneva, Woodstock, Crystal Lake, Sycamore, Rockford, Ottawa, Yorkville, Peoria, Springfield, Bloomington, Normal, and Rockford.