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What Is the Statute of Limitations in West Virginia?
The statute of Limitations in West Virginia is the law that sets strict deadlines for initiating legal proceedings, whether civil lawsuits or criminal charges. These laws ensure that defendants are not forced to defend against stale claims after an unreasonable period and when the witnesses’ memories are still reliable. In West Virginia, these statutes vary depending on the specifics and type of crime and offense, and the courts enforce them strictly. Failing to file within the applicable timeframe typically results in the dismissal of the case regardless of merits, thus understanding and complying with time limits is critical for preserving legal rights.
How Long Is the Statute of Limitations in West Virginia?
Civil cases involve disputes between individuals or entities on matters such as personal injury, contract disputes, or property. Criminal cases involve the state prosecuting individuals for their offenses. Criminal and civil cases have differing time limits for filing a lawsuit in West Virginia. For example, civil cases such as personal injury have a statute of limitations of two years, while criminal cases such as misdemeanors have one year, perjury is three years, and bribery in political and official matters is six years.
| Case Type | Statute of Limitations | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Personal Injury | 2 years | From the date of the injury |
| Wrongful Death | 2 years | From the date of death and not that of the injury |
| Medical Malpractice | 2 years to a maximum of 10 | From injury or discovery, but not exceeding 10 years |
| Product Liability | 2 years | From the date of the injury |
| Libel or Slander | 1 year | From the date of the defamatory statement |
| Fraud | 2 years | From the date of discovery |
| Written Contracts | 10 years | From the date of breach |
| Oral Contracts | 5 years | From the date of breach |
What Crimes Have No Statute of Limitations in West Virginia
Most felonies are crimes with no statute of limitations in West Virginia, meaning prosecutors may pursue charges and suspects may be prosecuted at any time in West Virginia, even if many years have passed since the crime. The state considers these offenses to be serious, and the pursuit of justice is deemed critical, outweighing the possibility of evidence degradation or the reliability of witnesses. Some crimes without a statute of limitations in West Virginia include:
- Violent Felonies
- Sex Crimes
- Drug-Related Felonies
- Crimes against public trust
- Property felonies
- Other serious felonies, such as treason or terrorism related crimes
Criminal Statute of Limitations in West Virginia
West Virginia’s criminal statute of limitations sets the deadline for prosecutors to initiate criminal charges against a defendant. West Virginia has specific time limits for various crimes, and felony time limits in West Virginia are mostly non-existent as most felonies are exempted. Exempted felonies include murder, kidnapping, sexual assault, and drug trafficking. This means the state will pursue justice for these crimes even if witnesses are unavailable and the evidence degrades over time.
The misdemeanor statute of limitations in West Virginia is within one year after the crime, and this includes petty theft, assault, and vandalism. Bribery in political and official matters has a six-year statute of limitations. When the suspect leaves West Virginia and is not available, the time of their absence is removed from the time limit to ensure that they are not able to evade justice by fleeing. Also, where the criminal is not detected immediately, as in the case of fraud, the clock will only start when the crime is discovered. Pausing of the statute of limitations is referred to as “polling”.
Below is a summary of the criminal statute of limitations in West Virginia:
| Crime Type | Statute of Limitations | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Misdemeanors | 1 year | Vandalism, simple assault, petty theft |
| Most felonies | None | Sexual assault, drug trafficking, Murder, kidnapping, |
| Perjury | 3 years | Lying under oath |
| Political or Official Bribery | 6 years | Offering a bribe to a public official |
Is There a Statute of Limitations on Attempted Murder?
No, unlike some states in the U.S., there is no statute of limitations for attempted murder in West Virginia. This is per West Virginia Code §61-11-8, which classifies attempts to commit felonies punishable by life imprisonment as felonies with no statute of limitations. This means that attempted murder in the state is treated similarly to murder, and therefore, there are no time limits for how long someone may be charged with attempted murder in West Virginia. There are no carved-out exceptions that apply under West Virginia’s criminal statute of limitations.
Statute of Limitations on Sexual Assault in West Virginia
The sexual assault statute of limitations in West Virginia has distinct time limits for civil lawsuits and criminal prosecutions. For criminal charges, West Virginia does not impose time limits for felony sexual assault offenses such as child sexual assault, rape, and sexual abuse, and prosecutors may bring charges at any time, even if it has been many years after the crime. This ensures that there is no rape reporting deadline in West Virginia.
For civil lawsuits, adult victims must file a lawsuit no longer than two years from the date of the assault. Victims who were under 18 at the time of the incident must file within 18 years of reaching 18 or 4 years after discovery. Lawsuits against organizations that aided or concealed abuse must be filed within 18 years after the victim reaches 18.
Pending legislative changes, such as A 2025 bill (HB 3516), proposing to modify the filing window against public schools and other state-insured entities. This aims to reduce it to 2 years after age 18 for minors for filing sexual abuse claims in West Virginia.
Civil Statute of Limitations in West Virginia
The civil statute of limitations in West Virginia is the state-set time frame that sets the point after which a wronged person in the state may no longer file a civil matter in a court in the state. The defined time depends on the type of legal claim. After these deadlines, courts in the state will generally dismiss the case.
Some examples of civil case types and their statute of limitations are below:
| Case Type | Statute of Limitations |
|---|---|
| Personal Injury | 2 years from the date of injury |
| Property damage | 2 years from the date of damage |
| Breach of written contracts | 10 years |
| Breach of oral contracts | 5 years |
| Defamation (Slander / Liberal) | 1 year from the date of the statement |
Persons seeking to pursue civil cases in the state should have an idea of the civil lawsuits deadline in West Virginia, as this helps them to answer questions such as: “How long do you have to sue in West Virginia?".
Statute of Limitations for Medical Malpractice in West Virginia
Individuals in West Virginia who may have been harmed by a doctor, hospital, or healthcare provider may refer to the medical malpractice statute of limitations in West Virginia for guidance. These set the malpractice claim deadlines in West Virginia, during which they may seek damages by filing a lawsuit. In most cases, a patient has a deadline of two years from the date of the malpractice to file a lawsuit per the Medical Professional Liability Act (MPLA), found at West Virginia Code §§ 55-7B-1 through 55-7B-12.
Examples of medical malpractices in West Virginia include:
| Malpractice Type | Example |
|---|---|
| Surgical errors | Leaving surgical instruments in a patient's body, operating on the wrong body location |
| Delayed diagnosis or misdiagnosis | Failing to diagnose a condition such as heart disease on time for prompt treatment |
| Birth injuries | Negligence during the birth process may cause harm to the baby or the mother |
| Medication errors | Prescribing the wrong drug or dosage, or not taking into consideration potential drug interactions |
Statute of Limitations for Debt in West Virginia
Unpaid credit card debt in West Virginia, along with loans and medical bills, has a six-year statute of limitations. However, credit reporting is for seven years from the date of the first failure to pay. As such, even after the end of the statute of limitations, the debt may still appear on a debtor’s credit report and negatively impact their credit score.
Making payments or acknowledging the debt may help reset the statute of limitations in West Virginia. The clock will reset to zero, and creditors have a new time frame to sue for the refund of the full amount.
The debt statute of limitations in West Virginia refers to how long debt may be collected legally in West Virginia by a creditor. After this time period, the debt is time-barred, and the creditor may no longer sue for repayment. Examples of time frames for statute of limitations in West Virginia include:
| Type of Debt | Statute of Limitations |
|---|---|
| Auto Loans | 10 years |
| Oral Personal Loans | 5 years |
| Promissory Notes | 6 years |
| Credit card | 10 years |
| Medical | 10 years |
| Written Personal Loans | 10 years |
| Mortgages | 10 years |
Statute of Limitations for Child Abuse and Child Support in West Virginia
The statute of limitations for child abuse in West Virginia includes statutes for civil and criminal cases. These deadlines depend on the severity of the offenses. Generally, most misdemeanor criminal offenses have a one-year statute of limitations, while felony offenses have a five-year limit. Serious felonies such as sexual assault may not have any statute of limitations, and prosecutors may still prosecute the cases at any time. Victims who were minors at the time of the sexual abuse have 18 years after reaching 18 to file a personal action for damages against the perpetrator under §55-2-15 of the West Virginia Code. Victims of childhood sexual abuse may bring civil action for damages within 18 years of reaching 18.
Child support obligations are taken seriously in the state, leading to robust child support enforcement in West Virginia. Child support continues until the child is 18 or 20 if the child has yet to complete a secondary or vocational educational program. West Virginia enforces payment for overdue support under §48-14-204, which permits executions on overdue support until 15 years after the youngest child reaches 18 years or becomes emancipated. West Virginia will enforce these collections by:
- Withholding income
- Interception of Tax Refunds
- Criminal Penalties
- Liens and executions