State litigation guide · Indiana

Coal Ash Contamination Lawsuit in Indiana

Time limits apply in Indiana. Find out if you still qualify.

Free Case Review

Check your eligibility — free

Answer 2-3 quick questions to review your potential case.

People's Justice Research TeamUpdated July 24, 2026Fact-checked

Verified against court and regulatory records · No upfront fees · Your information is never sold

Statute of limitations — Indiana

Indiana Code § 34-11-2-4 provides a 2-year statute of limitations for personal injury claims arising from toxic exposure. Property damage claims carry a more generous 6-year limitations period under IC § 34-11-2-7. The discovery rule applies — the clock begins when the plaintiff knows or should have known of the injury and its connection to coal ash contamination. Indiana's short PI SOL makes timely legal consultation critical.

2 years PI (IC § 34-11-2-4), 6 years property

Filing venue

Where to File in Indiana

Indiana state court claims proceed in Superior or Circuit Courts. Key venues include Vermillion County (Cayuga station), Gibson County (Gibson station), Floyd County (Gallagher station), and Spencer County (Rockport plant). Federal claims may be filed in SDIN (Indianapolis/Evansville/New Albany). Indiana applies a modified comparative fault system under the Indiana Comparative Fault Act — plaintiff recovery is reduced by their percentage of fault and barred if over 50%. Indiana does not cap compensatory damages in environmental tort cases but does cap punitive damages at the greater of $50,000 or three times compensatory damages under IC § 34-51-3-4. The state's strong coal industry presence can influence jury pools in rural coal-producing counties.

Indiana data

Exposure in Indiana

Estimated coal combustion residuals stored at Indiana power plant sites, making Indiana one of the top five states for coal ash storage volume in the United States

100+ million tons

Source: EPA Coal Combustion Residuals National Inventory

Duke Energy's Gibson Generating Station in Gibson County is one of the largest coal-fired power plants in the western hemisphere, with coal ash ponds spanning hundreds of acres adjacent to the Wabash River floodplain

Gibson Station

Source: Duke Energy / Indiana DEM

Indiana Department of Environmental Management monitoring has documented arsenic, boron, molybdenum, and lithium exceedances at coal ash sites across the state, affecting drinking water aquifers

Groundwater exceedances

Source: Indiana DEM Coal Combustion Residuals Reports

Keep reading