The clock starts on the date of injury. The controlling statute is Tenn. Code § 28-3-104. Filing one day late dismisses the case with prejudice.
If you were injured in Tennessee and intend to sue the at-fault party, the most important date on your calendar is the statute-of-limitations deadline. Nothing else matters if you cross it.
Tennessee applies the same 1-year limitations period to personal injury, medical malpractice, and wrongful-death claims (Tenn. Code § 28-3-104). Property-damage claims run separately, with a 3-year deadline.
The statute itself, Tenn. Code § 28-3-104, is the controlling authority. Interpretive decisions come from TN Sup. Ct., which has repeatedly enforced the deadline against late-filed plaintiffs.
The deadline runs from the date the injury "accrued" , usually the date of the accident itself. Under Tennessee case law, a cause of action accrues at the moment the plaintiff suffers a legally compensable harm, even if the full extent of the injury is not yet known.
The discovery rule in Tennessee is narrowly applied. Courts generally require evidence that the injury was inherently undiscoverable, not merely that the plaintiff was unaware. Routine soft-tissue injuries from a car accident almost never qualify.
If a complaint is filed after the deadline, the defendant's counsel files a Rule 12(b)(6)-equivalent motion to dismiss. The judge will grant it as a matter of law , there is no judicial discretion to forgive the lateness absent a recognized tolling exception.
Children injured in Tennessee get a tolling rule: the statute does not begin running until the minor reaches the age of majority. This means a five-year-old injured in a car accident generally has until age 18 + the standard SOL years to file.
Tennessee courts have recognized tolling for plaintiffs whose mental condition prevents them from understanding or pursuing their legal rights. The burden of proof is on the plaintiff. Temporary impairment after the accident, such as pain medication or short hospitalizations, does not qualify in most Tennessee cases.
If the at-fault party leaves Tennessee after the injury, the SOL is typically tolled for the period of absence. Modern long-arm statutes and the increasing availability of service via the Tennessee insurance commissioner have narrowed this rule.
If the defendant actively concealed the cause of action, Tennessee courts can extend the SOL until the concealment is discovered or could have been discovered with reasonable diligence. Passive non-disclosure does not usually qualify.
If your injury was caused by a Tennessee state or local government entity , a city bus, a police officer, a public-school employee , you generally must file a separate "notice of claim" within a much shorter window (typically 60 to 180 days) BEFORE filing a civil suit. Missing the notice deadline bars the lawsuit even if the longer SOL has not yet expired.
Filing on time gets you into court. Winning at trial is a separate question, and Tennessee's comparative-fault rule is the next major hurdle.
Tennessee applies modified comparative fault (50% bar). Tennessee uses modified comparative fault with 50% bar. Authority: McIntyre v. Balentine (1992).
| Claim type | Deadline | Statute | Clock starts |
|---|---|---|---|
| Personal injury (negligence) | 1 year | Tenn. Code § 28-3-104 | Date of injury |
| Medical malpractice | 1 year | Tenn. Code § 28-3-104 | Discovery or treatment end |
| Wrongful death | 1 year | Tenn. Code § 28-3-104 | Date of death |
| Property damage | 3 years | Tenn. Code § 28-3-104 | Date of damage |
Tennessee is a pure at-fault (tort) state for car-accident claims. That means injured parties can sue the at-fault driver directly. The minimum liability coverage required under Tenn. Code § 55-12-102 is 25/50/15.
Tennessee requires UM coverage at a minimum of 25/50 (Tenn. Code § 56-7-1201). Stacking treatment: limited.
Tennessee caps non-economic damages in medical-malpractice cases at $750,000. Punitive damages are limited per statute ($500K or 2x compensatory). Authority: Tenn. Code § 29-39-102.
Tennessee tolls the running of the SOL while the defendant is absent from the state. The defense bears the burden of proving the dates of absence, and tolling typically does not apply to defendants who can be served via long-arm statute or through their Tennessee insurer.
Insurance negotiations do not toll the statute. Tennessee courts have repeatedly held that an adjuster's willingness to talk settlement is not a waiver of the SOL defense. Plaintiffs' lawyers routinely file protective complaints in the final 30 days even if talks are ongoing.
No. A workers' compensation claim is a separate administrative remedy with its own deadlines. If a third party (not your employer) caused the injury, you must still file the civil personal-injury suit within the standard Tennessee SOL.
Tolling pauses the clock. Tennessee recognizes tolling for minority, mental incapacity, defendant absence, and (in narrow cases) fraudulent concealment of the cause of action by the defendant.
Choice-of-law principles generally apply the SOL of the state where the injury occurred (the lex loci delicti rule), but Tennessee courts also look at the borrowing statute and the parties' connections. Cross-state cases benefit from early counsel.
Yes, in limited circumstances. Tennessee permits tolling agreements between the parties that extend the deadline, but they must be in writing, signed by an authorized representative of each side, and entered before the original deadline expires.
No. Only proper filing of a civil complaint in a Tennessee court stops the SOL. Demand letters, pre-suit mediation, and adjuster negotiations have no legal effect on the statutory deadline.
In most states the personal-injury SOL applies uniformly to negligence-based claims regardless of accident type. Tennessee does have separate deadlines for medical-malpractice, wrongful-death, and certain intentional-tort claims, addressed on dedicated pages.
Last verified against primary sources on 2026-05-16.