Statute of limitations in Missouri

5 yearsPersonal injury deadline

5 years (RSMo 516.120(4))¹

The details

Personal injury: 5 years for any other injury to the person or rights of another, not arising on contract and not otherwise listed (RSMo 516.120(4)).¹
Property damage: 5 years for trespass on real estate, or for taking, detaining or injuring goods (RSMo 516.120(3), (4)).¹
Written contract: 10 years on any writing for the payment of money or property (RSMo 516.110(1)). Other contracts 5 years (RSMo 516.120(1)).²¹
Oral contract: 5 years on contracts, obligations or liabilities, express or implied (RSMo 516.120(1)).¹
Medical malpractice: 2 years from the act of neglect, and never more than 10 years after it (RSMo 516.105).³
Defamation: 2 years for libel, slander or injurious falsehood (RSMo 516.140).⁴

The sources we read do not say: fraud, debt collection (open account), claims against the state government (notice deadline).

Deadlines usually run from the date of the harm or its discovery, and many exceptions apply. A lawyer can tell you how they apply to you.

Checked 1 November 2026. "Secondary" marks a source used only because the official page could not be read.