Each state has a different Statute of Limitations. The time limits in each state range from one to four years, the average being two years. In addition, each state decides when that clock starts ticking, either by the injury rule or the discovery rule. Let’s talk about what that means.
Statutes of Limitations can be broken down into the types of cases that are being handled. For our purposes, we generally fall into the category that helps patients who have had a personal injury due to a faulty medical device or harmful drug.
One way that states decide how long you have to file your case is by starting the Statute of Limitations clock running on the date the injury occurred. For example, let’s say you have transvaginal mesh surgery for stress urinary incontinence (SUI). You may start having symptoms like pelvic pain or organ erosion/bleeding as a result of the procedure. In some states, you have to file your case within the state mandated time limit from the date of your surgery. Your attorney will be able to provide you with the legal counsel you need on this issue to ensure that your claim is protected.
But not all states start the Statute of Limitations when the injury occurs. Some states start the date when the injury was discovered or should have been discovered—typically giving you more time to file your claim.
Injuries resulting from defective drugs or devices sometimes don’t show up immediately. In light of that, some states maintain that the Statute of Limitations begins once you discover that you are injured, or when you should have discovered you were injured. Let’s take the example of transvaginal mesh. If you had a mesh procedure and experienced unexpected adverse effects, you may not have known right away that the debilitating pain and other symptoms were related to your procedure. In other words, it may take some time for you to discover that the injuries you are experiencing are related to a defective product or device.
Ideally, if a manufacturer begins to warn of a defect associated with their product or device, or even recalls a product, it’s required that they notify patients who might have been effected. Ideally, you would get a paper in the mail with big letters that says ‘THIS PRODUCT IS DEFECTIVE—you may be injured.’ But, unfortunately, this is almost never the case. There is no mandate that requires any notification of this kind and big pharmaceutical companies benefit from taking advantage of this. If a drug or device is recalled or if there is a new warning associated with it, you the consumer, have to search to find it. This is one of the reasons we are so passionate about educating people about these recalls and defects—because there are so few places that people can get this information. Despite the fact that you may have never been notified directly by the manufacturer or your doctor that you may have been injured by a defective drug or device, if the manufacturer recalls or begins to warn about an adverse effect—this starts the Statute of Limitations clock.
