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Your Scranton Personal Injury Attorney
A personal injury claim in Scranton runs on fixed reference points: a two-year limit for most lawsuits, a 51% fault bar, and special notice rules for claims against government bodies. Each is explained below with the statute behind it. 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. Talking with an attorney who knows Lackawanna County practice can turn these general rules into a plan for your claim.
Quick Answers on Deadlines, Fault, and Claims
- 2 years is the general limit to file a lawsuit for a personal injury or a wrongful death (42 Pa.C.S. § 5524), with different rules for minors and government defendants.
- Six months is the notice window for claims against government units (42 Pa.C.S. § 5522), and damages against them are capped by statute (§§ 8528, 8553).
- If you are partly at fault, you may still recover unless your share is greater than the defendants’ (42 Pa.C.S. § 7102). At 51% or more, recovery is barred.
- After a car accident, check your tort option. Under limited tort, pain and suffering requires a serious injury as the statute defines it (75 Pa.C.S. §§ 1702, 1705).
- If a loved one died: a wrongful death action (42 Pa.C.S. § 8301) and a survival action (§ 8302) each have a two-year limit (§ 5524).
How Long Do You Have to File an Injury Lawsuit?
The main deadline is set by 42 Pa.C.S. § 5524: an action for injuries to the person, or for the death of an individual caused by another’s wrongful act, neglect, unlawful violence, or negligence, must be commenced within two years.
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.
When an injury leads to death, 42 Pa.C.S. § 8301 gives the family a wrongful death action and § 8302 lets the decedent’s own cause of action survive. The limit in § 5524 is two years for both.
Claims against a government unit start sooner. Within six months of the injury, a written statement giving the injured person’s name and address, the date, hour, and place of the accident, and the name of any attending physician must be filed with the government unit, and with the Attorney General if a Commonwealth agency is involved (42 Pa.C.S. § 5522(a)(1)). If it is not filed, the case is dismissed unless the court finds a reasonable excuse (§ 5522(a)(2)).
Some relief exists for local government cases: incapacity from the injury (not more than 90 days) is excluded, the six months begins at death when the injury is fatal, and actual or constructive notice to the unit means missed formal notice is not a bar (42 Pa.C.S. § 5522(a)(3)).
If the injury came from medical care, a seven-year statute of repose applies in addition to the general filing rules, with an exception for a foreign object unintentionally left in the body (MCARE Act § 513, 40 P.S. § 1303.513).
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Shared Fault: Pennsylvania's 51% Rule
The rule is in 42 Pa.C.S. § 7102(a): a plaintiff who is partly at fault can still recover as long as the plaintiff’s negligence was not greater than the negligence of the defendants sued, and the recovery is diminished by the plaintiff’s share of the fault.
Put in numbers, a plaintiff 40% at fault receives 60% of the damages found, a plaintiff 50% at fault receives half, and a plaintiff 51% at fault receives nothing. The gap between 50% and 51% is where many disputes are fought.
With several defendants, the default under 42 Pa.C.S. § 7102(a.1) is several liability: each pays its own share. The exceptions that allow recovery of the full award from one defendant are an intentional tort, intentional misrepresentation, a defendant 60% or more liable, a Hazardous Sites Cleanup Act release, and a Liquor Code § 497 violation.
The Pennsylvania Tort Option After a Crash
Under 75 Pa.C.S. § 1705, the tort option on a private passenger auto policy is either full tort or limited tort. Full tort preserves claims for noneconomic loss (subsection (c)); limited tort preserves economic loss claims but precludes noneconomic loss claims unless there is a serious injury (subsection (d)).
The definition in 75 Pa.C.S. § 1702 is narrow: death, serious impairment of body function, or permanent serious disfigurement. An injury that is painful but does not meet it can be treated differently under limited tort.
Read the exceptions before assuming limited tort ends a claim. Recovery as if under full tort is allowed when the at-fault person was convicted of or accepted ARD for DUI in that accident, was driving an out-of-state vehicle, intended to injure, or was uninsured as the chapter requires (75 Pa.C.S. § 1705(d)(1)); § 1705(d)(2) and (3) preserve other full tort rights.
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.
Suing a Government Unit in Pennsylvania
Local agencies, such as cities, boroughs, and townships, are generally immune from damages (42 Pa.C.S. § 8541), and liability exists only for the listed exceptions, where the damages would be recoverable at common law and the injury was caused by the negligent acts of the agency or an employee (§ 8542(a)). The listed categories include operating a motor vehicle, care of personal property, care of real property, traffic controls and street lighting, utility service facilities, streets, sidewalks, and animals (§ 8542(b)).
Damages against local agencies are capped at $500,000 in the aggregate for the same cause of action or occurrence (42 Pa.C.S. § 8553(b)), and recoverable losses are limited to past and future earnings and earning capacity, medical and dental expenses, loss of consortium, loss of support, property losses, and pain and suffering only for death or a permanent loss of a bodily function, permanent disfigurement, or permanent dismemberment where medical and dental expenses exceed $1,500 (§ 8553(c)).
Commonwealth parties, such as state agencies and their employees, have sovereign immunity with listed exceptions, including vehicle liability, medical-professional liability, care of personal property, Commonwealth real estate, highways and sidewalks, potholes and other dangerous conditions of highways, and animals (42 Pa.C.S. § 8522(b)). Damages are limited to $250,000 for any plaintiff and $1,000,000 in the aggregate (§ 8528(b)).
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.
The Courts That Hear Lackawanna County Injury Cases
Three numbers frame the choice of court: unlimited jurisdiction in the Court of Common Pleas (42 Pa.C.S. § 931), $12,000 for civil claims before a magisterial district judge (§ 1515(a)(3)), and $50,000 as the ceiling for compulsory arbitration (§ 7361(b)(2)).
In Lackawanna County the Court of Common Pleas is the Forty-fifth Judicial District (42 Pa.C.S. §§ 901, 951). It is the court for a lawsuit from Scranton, and Scranton is the county seat.
What Kinds of Injury Cases Do We See in Scranton?
Auto Accident Injuries
A crash claim starts with proving who was at fault and how the injuries occurred, and then with the auto policies involved. The tort election (75 Pa.C.S. § 1705) and the required $5,000 medical benefit (§ 1711(a)) shape what is available, and the fault rule in 42 Pa.C.S. § 7102 reduces the award by the injured person’s share.
A person bound by limited tort still recovers as if under full tort when the at-fault vehicle was registered in another state (75 Pa.C.S. § 1705(d)(1)).
Slip and Fall and Premises Injuries
When someone is hurt on another’s property, the case centers on what the owner knew or should have known and what was done about it, and on how much of the fault the injured person shares under 42 Pa.C.S. § 7102(a).
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.
Dog Bites and Animal Attacks
After a dog bites or attacks a person, the dog must be immediately confined, and it is isolated for a minimum of ten days to determine the results of confinement (3 P.S. § 459-502(a)). The Dog Law also says the cost to the victim for medical treatment resulting from an attacking or biting dog must be paid fully by the owner or keeper of the dog (§ 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.
Wrongful Death and Survival Claims
A wrongful death action may be brought for the death of an individual caused by the wrongful act or neglect or unlawful violence or negligence of another, and the right of action exists for the benefit of the spouse, children, or parents of the deceased (42 Pa.C.S. § 8301(a), (b)). It is brought by the personal representative for the benefit of those entitled by law (Pa.R.C.P. 2202(a)).
Damages are distributed to the beneficiaries in the proportion they would take the decedent’s personal estate in intestacy (42 Pa.C.S. § 8301(b)).
Defective Products and Work Injuries
A product liability claim alleges that a product was defective. In Tincher v. Omega Flex, 104 A.3d 328 (Pa. 2014), the Pennsylvania Supreme Court held that a plaintiff in a strict liability case may prove a defect under either a consumer-expectations standard or a risk-utility standard.
For injuries at work, an employer’s liability under the Workers’ Compensation Act is exclusive (77 P.S. § 481(a)), but an injured employee may bring an action at law against a third party who caused the injury (§ 481(b)).
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A Note on Scranton and the Local Courts
The rules on this page are statewide, but the practical details are local. For a Scranton claim that means Lackawanna County, the Court of Common Pleas of Lackawanna County, and the county seat of Scranton. Asking a local attorney how long cases usually take there helps put the deadlines in context.
Criminal cases follow different Pennsylvania rules, covered on our Scranton criminal defense page.
Other Pennsylvania cities nearby: personal injury representation from Towanda.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is there a deadline to sue after an accident in Scranton?
Yes. The general limit is two years for injuries to the person and for deaths caused by another’s negligence (42 Pa.C.S. § 5524), and a claim against a government body needs written notice within six months (§ 5522).
What if a government body caused my injury?
A written notice must be filed within six months of the injury with the government unit, and with the Attorney General for a Commonwealth agency (42 Pa.C.S. § 5522(a)(1)). If it is not, the case is dismissed unless the court finds a reasonable excuse (§ 5522(a)(2)).
What if I was 50% at fault?
You can still recover, reduced by 50%, because your negligence is not greater than the defendants’ (42 Pa.C.S. § 7102(a)). At 51% you could not.
What is the difference between limited tort and full tort?
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 precludes noneconomic loss unless the injury is a serious injury (§ 1705(d)).
Why do insurers dispute the serious injury threshold?
The definition in 75 Pa.C.S. § 1702 (death, serious impairment of body function, or permanent serious disfigurement) decides whether a person bound by limited tort can claim pain and suffering (§ 1705(d)), so a lot can turn on it.
What is the difference between a wrongful death and a survival action?
A wrongful death action is for the benefit of the spouse, children, or parents (42 Pa.C.S. § 8301). A survival action lets the decedent’s own cause of action continue (§ 8302). They are separate claims.
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 does Pennsylvania law say about dog bites?
The Dog Law requires immediate confinement of a dog that bites or attacks a person, isolation for at least ten days, and notice to the victim of the results, and it makes the owner or keeper pay the victim’s medical treatment costs (3 P.S. § 459-502).
Do I have to go to a courthouse in Scranton for an injury claim?
A lawsuit is filed in the Court of Common Pleas, here the Court of Common Pleas of Lackawanna 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)).
Is a workplace injury a personal injury case in Pennsylvania?
Partly. The claim against the employer is handled through workers’ compensation (77 P.S. § 481(a)), and a claim against another party, such as an equipment maker, can be a personal injury case (§ 481(b)).
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