Who qualifies

UPDATED FEB 2026

PFAS Lawsuit Statute of Limitations by State

Part of the PFAS Water Contamination investigation

The short answer

The statute of limitations for PFAS personal injury claims is typically 2 to 3 years from diagnosis or from when you discovered the PFAS-illness connection. Because military and industrial PFAS contamination was not publicly disclosed until 2016–2020 in most communities, courts have been receptive to delayed discovery arguments.

Act now — deadlines are real, and missing them permanently bars your claim.

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How the Discovery Rule Works in PFAS Cases

In toxic exposure cases, the statute of limitations typically begins running when the claimant discovered — or with reasonable diligence should have discovered — both the injury and its connection to PFAS exposure. This is the discovery rule. Because most communities near military bases did not receive formal DoD notification of PFAS contamination until 2016–2020, and because PFAS health effects were not broadly understood by the public until media coverage of the Camp Lejeune and Flint-related contamination crises, courts have been receptive to delayed discovery arguments for PFAS claimants whose diagnoses predate their knowledge of the contamination. Claimants who received a PFAS-linked cancer diagnosis before they knew their water was contaminated have strong delayed discovery arguments. MDL 2873 has also issued tolling orders that paused statutes of limitations for enrolled claimants, providing additional protection for those who joined the MDL before applicable cutoff dates.

State-by-State PFAS Statute of Limitations Summary

Alabama: 2 years from discovery (Ala. Code § 6-2-38). Alaska: 2 years from discovery (AS 09.10.070). Arizona: 2 years from discovery (A.R.S. § 12-542). California: 3 years from discovery for environmental toxic tort (CCP § 338) — most favorable major state. Colorado: 2 years from discovery (C.R.S. § 13-80-102). Florida: 4 years for product liability with discovery rule (Fla. Stat. § 95.11) — one of the most favorable. Georgia: 2 years from discovery (O.C.G.A. § 9-3-33). Illinois: 2 years from discovery (735 ILCS 5/13-202). Michigan: 3 years from discovery (MCL 600.5805) — favorable for Great Lakes PFAS claimants. New Hampshire: 3 years from discovery (RSA 508:4) — applies to Pease ANGB claimants. New Jersey: 2 years from discovery (N.J.S.A. 2A:14-2). New York: 3 years from discovery under CPLR § 214-c for toxic substance exposure — very favorable. North Carolina: 3 years from discovery (N.C.G.S. § 1-52) — applies to GenX/Chemours claimants. Ohio: 2 years from discovery (ORC § 2305.10) — C8 community claims. Pennsylvania: 2 years from discovery (42 Pa. C.S. § 5524). South Carolina: 3 years from discovery (S.C. Code § 15-3-530) — MDL 2873 home district. Texas: 2 years from discovery (Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code § 16.003). Washington: 3 years from discovery (RCW 4.16.080) — applies to JBLM claimants.

Act Now — Every Deadline Is Final

Statutes of limitations are absolute legal deadlines. A claim filed one day late is permanently barred — regardless of how strong the evidence, how serious the injury, or how financially solvent the defendants. If you or a family member developed kidney cancer, testicular cancer, thyroid disease, or ulcerative colitis and you have any reason to believe PFAS-contaminated water may have been involved, contact a PFAS attorney immediately for a free consultation. The consultation is free, takes 15 minutes, and could mean the difference between preserving your rights and losing them forever.

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