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Your McKeesport Personal Injury Attorney
If you or someone in your family was injured in McKeesport, you are probably looking for plain answers about time limits, fault, and what a claim involves. Pennsylvania sets several of those by statute, so many answers can be checked. The sections that follow cover the filing deadlines, the fault rule, the limited tort and full tort choice, claims against government bodies, the courts, and the kinds of injuries most often behind a claim. The facts of your injury decide which rule controls, and an attorney who practices in Pennsylvania courts can sort that out quickly.
Pennsylvania Injury Claim Rules at a Glance
- The two-year rule: most injury and wrongful death actions must be started within two years (42 Pa.C.S. § 5524).
- Hurt on public property or by a public vehicle? Give written notice within 6 months (42 Pa.C.S. § 5522), and get advice quickly.
- Pennsylvania’s comparative fault rule: damages are reduced in proportion to your fault, and barred if your fault is greater than the defendants’ (42 Pa.C.S. § 7102).
- Limited tort versus full tort is chosen when you buy auto insurance, and it controls pain and suffering claims after a crash (75 Pa.C.S. § 1705).
- Wrongful death: the action is brought by the personal representative for the spouse, children, or parents (42 Pa.C.S. § 8301; Pa.R.C.P. 2202), and a separate survival action is allowed (§ 8302).
How Pennsylvania Counts the Time to Sue
Pennsylvania’s general injury deadline is two years (42 Pa.C.S. § 5524). It applies to actions for injuries to the person or for death caused by the wrongful act or negligence of another, and to many other tort claims that no other section addresses.
A claim by a child is counted from adulthood: for an unemancipated minor, the period of minority is not part of the time to sue, and the person has the same time after reaching age 18 (42 Pa.C.S. § 5533(b)(1)). Under § 5533(a), insanity or imprisonment does not extend the time unless a statute provides otherwise.
Families should know that a wrongful death action (42 Pa.C.S. § 8301) and a survival action (§ 8302) are separate claims, and that § 5524 sets two years for actions for a death caused by another’s negligence.
Six months is the number to remember for public defendants. Under 42 Pa.C.S. § 5522(a), a written notice describing the injury, the date and hour, and the location must be filed with the government unit, and with the Attorney General where a Commonwealth agency is involved. Late notice can be excused only on a showing of reasonable excuse (§ 5522(a)(2)).
Section 5522(a)(3) softens the rule for units other than the Commonwealth: incapacity from the injury (up to 90 days) does not count against the six months, a death starts the period at the death, and actual or constructive notice of the incident or condition prevents a bar.
One caution: claims that a doctor or hospital caused the injury fall under the MCARE Act, which sets a seven-year outer limit (40 P.S. § 1303.513) and other special requirements beyond the ordinary injury rules.
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How Pennsylvania Handles Partial Fault
Pennsylvania uses a modified comparative negligence rule. If the plaintiff’s negligence is not greater than the defendants’ causal negligence, recovery is allowed but reduced by the plaintiff’s share (42 Pa.C.S. § 7102(a)).
In practice that is the 51% bar. A person found 20% at fault recovers 80% of the damages, a person found 50% at fault recovers half, and a person found 51% or more at fault recovers nothing. Insurers know this, and arguing about percentages is a common way they try to reduce a claim.
Multiple defendants change the math. Under 42 Pa.C.S. § 7102(a.1), each defendant is generally liable only for its own proportion, but joint and several liability applies to intentional misrepresentation, intentional torts, a defendant held at least 60% liable, hazardous site releases, and Liquor Code § 497 violations.
Why Your Auto Policy Can Change a Crash Claim
The choice is made on the auto policy. Full tort keeps the right to seek both economic and noneconomic damages after a crash caused by another person (75 Pa.C.S. § 1705(c)). Limited tort keeps the right to economic loss, but bars a claim for noneconomic loss such as pain and suffering unless the injury is a serious injury (§ 1705(d)).
What counts as serious is set by 75 Pa.C.S. § 1702: death, serious impairment of body function, or permanent serious disfigurement. Records and medical opinions carry most of the weight.
There are exceptions. Under 75 Pa.C.S. § 1705(d)(1), someone bound by limited tort recovers as if under full tort if the at-fault person was convicted of or accepted ARD for DUI in the accident, drove a vehicle registered in another state, intended to injure, or lacked required financial responsibility. Full tort rights are also retained against vehicle manufacturers and repairers for defects (§ 1705(d)(2)) and by occupants of vehicles other than private passenger vehicles (§ 1705(d)(3)).
Working out the applicable option can take some care. Under 75 Pa.C.S. § 1705(b)(2), the named insured’s choice covers other insureds on the policy, and when two policies conflict the occupant rule decides, with full tort as the fallback. Someone with no registered vehicle and no policy coverage is not precluded from seeking noneconomic loss (§ 1705(b)(3)). Separately, § 1711(a) requires the policy to include a $5,000 medical benefit.
Injuries on Public Property or Involving Public Vehicles
Local governments have broad immunity under 42 Pa.C.S. § 8541. The exceptions in § 8542(b), including vehicles, personal property, real property, traffic signs and lights, utility facilities, streets, sidewalks, and animals, apply only where damages would be recoverable at common law and the agency’s negligence caused the injury (§ 8542(a)).
Even a successful claim against a local agency is capped: $500,000 in the aggregate under 42 Pa.C.S. § 8553(b), with pain and suffering limited by § 8553(c) to death and permanent loss of a bodily function, disfigurement or dismemberment where medical and dental expenses are over $1,500.
State-level defendants are limited by 42 Pa.C.S. § 8528(b) to $250,000 per plaintiff and $1,000,000 in the aggregate, and can be sued only within the exceptions listed in § 8522(b), which include vehicles, personal property, Commonwealth real estate, highways and sidewalks, and dangerous conditions such as potholes.
Because notice within six months (42 Pa.C.S. § 5522) and these limits apply together, an injury involving a public road, a public building, or a public vehicle should be looked at quickly.
From Magisterial District Judge to Common Pleas
Injury lawsuits usually belong in the Court of Common Pleas, which has unlimited original jurisdiction (42 Pa.C.S. § 931). A magisterial district judge can hear civil claims up to $12,000 (§ 1515(a)(3)), and compulsory arbitration cannot be required above $50,000 (§ 7361(b)(2)).
The Court of Common Pleas of Allegheny County hears lawsuits arising in McKeesport. It forms the Fifth Judicial District under 42 Pa.C.S. § 901, and its county seat is Pittsburgh.
The Injuries Behind Most Claims From McKeesport
Auto Accident Injuries
In a car, truck, or motorcycle case, three things usually decide the outcome: who was at fault under 42 Pa.C.S. § 7102, which tort option applies under 75 Pa.C.S. § 1705, and whether the injury meets the serious injury definition in § 1702 when limited tort is in play.
Damages for economic loss remain available under either option (75 Pa.C.S. § 1705(c), (d)).
Falls and Unsafe Property Conditions
Premises injuries, such as a fall on a wet floor, an unlit stairway, or a broken step, turn on whether the owner or occupier was negligent. The injured person’s own share of the fault is weighed under 42 Pa.C.S. § 7102, and the two-year deadline in § 5524 applies.
If the property belongs to a local government, such as a city sidewalk or public building, special notice and immunity rules apply (42 Pa.C.S. §§ 5522, 8541, 8542), and § 8542(b) lists real property and sidewalk exceptions.
Animal Bite Claims
Pennsylvania’s Dog Law addresses what happens after a bite: the dog is confined and isolated for at least ten days, and the investigating officer notifies the victim of the medical results of the dog’s confinement (3 P.S. § 459-502(a), (b)). The owner or keeper must pay the victim’s medical treatment costs, and the Commonwealth is not liable for them (§ 459-502(b)(1)).
Claims for losses beyond medical costs follow the ordinary injury rules, including the two-year limit in 42 Pa.C.S. § 5524 and the fault rule in § 7102.
Death Caused by Another’s Negligence
Under 42 Pa.C.S. § 8301(b), a wrongful death right of action exists only for the spouse, children, or parents of the deceased, and § 8301(d) lets the personal representative recover medical, funeral, and administration expenses if no one is eligible under subsection (b).
If the death resulted from medical care, the MCARE Act requires the action to be commenced within two years after the death in the absence of affirmative misrepresentation or fraudulent concealment (40 P.S. § 1303.513(d)).
Injuries From Products and On the Job
Product claims are strict liability claims, and Tincher v. Omega Flex, 104 A.3d 328 (Pa. 2014) says the defect may be established under either a consumer-expectations or a risk-utility test.
Workplace injuries have a special rule: the employer’s liability is exclusive (77 P.S. § 481(a)), and a lawsuit against someone other than the employer is preserved by § 481(b).
Not sure which deadline applies to your injury? Get matched with an attorney.
A Note on McKeesport and the Local Courts
An injury in McKeesport belongs to Allegheny County and its Court of Common Pleas. Local practice, such as how quickly cases are listed and how arbitration is used, shapes how the general rules on this page play out, and a local attorney can tell you what that looks like in Pittsburgh and in the magisterial district that may hear a smaller claim.
Charged with a crime rather than injured? Read about criminal defense in McKeesport.
Other Pennsylvania cities nearby: the Grove City personal injury resource.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much time do I have to sue for an injury in Pennsylvania?
Generally two years (42 Pa.C.S. § 5524). Different rules apply to minors, whose years before age 18 are not counted (§ 5533(b)(1)), and to government defendants (§ 5522).
Is there a shorter deadline for claims against the government?
Yes, six months for written notice (42 Pa.C.S. § 5522(a)), compared with two years to file a lawsuit (§ 5524). A court must excuse a failure to give notice on a showing of reasonable excuse (§ 5522(a)(2)).
Is Pennsylvania a comparative negligence state?
Yes, in its modified form. 42 Pa.C.S. § 7102(a) allows recovery when the plaintiff’s negligence is not greater than the defendants’ causal negligence, with damages reduced proportionally.
Can I get pain and suffering under limited tort?
Only if the injury is a serious injury, which the statute defines as death, serious impairment of body function, or permanent serious disfigurement (75 Pa.C.S. §§ 1702, 1705(d)), or if an exception applies.
What counts as a serious injury under limited tort?
The statute defines a serious injury as a personal injury resulting in death, serious impairment of body function, or permanent serious disfigurement (75 Pa.C.S. § 1702).
How long do we have to file a wrongful death claim?
Two years for an action for the death of an individual caused by another’s negligence (42 Pa.C.S. § 5524). Claims against a government unit also require written notice within six months, and for a unit other than the Commonwealth that period starts at the death (§ 5522(a)(3)(ii)).
What happens to the two-year deadline for minors?
For a minor, the two-year period under 42 Pa.C.S. § 5524 is counted from age 18 rather than from the injury (§ 5533(b)(1)).
What should I do after a dog bite in McKeesport?
Get medical care, report the bite so the dog can be confined as the Dog Law requires (3 P.S. § 459-502(a)), and keep records of your treatment costs, which the owner or keeper must pay under § 459-502(b)(1).
Do I have to go to a courthouse in McKeesport for an injury claim?
A lawsuit is filed in the Court of Common Pleas, here the Court of Common Pleas of Allegheny County. Smaller civil claims, up to $12,000 exclusive of interest and costs, can go before a magisterial district judge (42 Pa.C.S. § 1515(a)(3)).
Can I bring an injury claim if I get workers’ compensation?
Possibly, against someone other than your employer. The employee may bring an action at law against a third party who caused the injury (77 P.S. § 481(b)), even though the employer’s liability is exclusive (§ 481(a)).
Get Started With an Attorney in McKeesport
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