Colorado statute of limitations by claim
In Colorado you generally have 2 years to sue for personal injury, 2 years for property damage, 3 years on a written contract and 3 years on an oral one, but only 1 year for defamation.[1][4] The table lists every common civil claim with the statute and the notes that change it.
| Claim | Deadline | Statute |
|---|---|---|
| Personal injury | 2 years | Colo. Rev. Stat. § 13-80-102(1)(a)Injury from the use or operation of a motor vehicle: 3 years (§ 13-80-101(1)(n)). Assault, battery and false imprisonment: 1 year (§ 13-80-103(1)(a)). |
| Medical malpractice | 2 years | Colo. Rev. Stat. § 13-80-102.5Repose: 3 years after the act or omission, except for an unauthorized foreign object, knowing concealment, or an injury and cause that could not reasonably have been known within 3 years (then 2 years from discovery) (§ 13-80-102.5) A child under 6 at the time of the act may sue any time before the 8th birthday. |
| Wrongful death | 2 years | Colo. Rev. Stat. § 13-80-102(1)(d)4 years against a defendant who committed vehicular homicide and also left the scene in the same episode (§ 13-80-102(2)). |
| Property damage | 2 years | Colo. Rev. Stat. § 13-80-102(1)(a)Motor vehicle property damage: 3 years (§ 13-80-101(1)(n)). Taking, detaining or converting goods: 3 years (§ 13-80-101(1)(h)). |
| Written contract | 3 years | Colo. Rev. Stat. § 13-80-101(1)(a)Actions to recover a liquidated debt or a determinable sum of money: 6 years (§ 13-80-103.5(1)(a)). |
| Oral contract | 3 years | Colo. Rev. Stat. § 13-80-101(1)(a)Same 3-year period for written and oral contracts; liquidated debts are 6 years (§ 13-80-103.5). |
| Credit card / account debt | 6 years | Colo. Rev. Stat. § 13-80-103.5(1)(a)Applies to a liquidated debt or an unliquidated but determinable amount of money, which covers typical credit card and account balances. Claims under the Uniform Consumer Credit Code are 3 years (§ 13-80-101(1)(g)). No statutory revival rule for payments was found in these sections. |
| Fraud | 3 years | Colo. Rev. Stat. §§ 13-80-101(1)(c), 13-80-108(3) |
| Defamation | 1 year | Colo. Rev. Stat. § 13-80-103(1)(a)Same 1-year period for libel and slander. |
| Product liability | 2 years | Colo. Rev. Stat. § 13-80-106(1)Applies to injury, death or property damage claims against a manufacturer or seller under any theory, except UCC warranty claims (§ 4-2-725). No statute of repose in § 13-80-106. Claimants under 18, incompetent, imprisoned or abroad with no guardian may sue after the disability ends (§ 13-80-106(2)). |
What is different in Colorado
Colorado splits negligence claims by cause: a car crash gets 3 years, a fall in a store only 2. Contract claims are 3 years, but a suit to collect a liquidated debt, such as a credit card balance, gets 6. Civil claims for sexual misconduct that accrued on or after January 1, 2022 have no limit at all.
- Injury and property damage claims from motor vehicle accidents get 3 years, while other negligence claims get 2 years. (Colo. Rev. Stat. §§ 13-80-101(1)(n), 13-80-102(1)(a))[10]
- Civil claims based on sexual misconduct that accrued on or after January 1, 2022 (or were still timely then) can be filed at any time. (Colo. Rev. Stat. § 13-80-103.7)[11]
- Suing any public entity requires written notice within 182 days of discovering the injury; missing it bars the claim. (Colo. Rev. Stat. § 24-10-109)[12]
- Contract claims are 3 years, but suits to collect a liquidated debt or a determinable sum of money get 6 years. (Colo. Rev. Stat. §§ 13-80-101(1)(a), 13-80-103.5(1)(a))[13]
When the clock starts and stops
Colorado's discovery rule is statutory: injury claims accrue when the injury and its cause are known or should have been known; fraud, contract and wrongful-possession claims accrue when discovered or discoverable. (Colo. Rev. Stat. § 13-80-108(1), (3), (6), (7))
Minors. Colorado pauses the clock while the injured person is a minor: the period starts at age 18. For a minor with no court-appointed legal representative, the claim can be brought within the normal period or 2 years after turning 18, whichever is later. If a legal representative (such as a guardian or conservator) is appointed, the normal period runs, with at least 2 years from appointment. Medical malpractice: a child under 6 may sue before the 8th birthday (§ 13-80-102.5). Sexual misconduct claims accruing on or after January 1, 2022 have no limit (§ 13-80-103.7).[6]
Other tolling. Mental incompetence tolls under the same rules as minority (§ 13-81-103); claims against public entities get extra time to cover the 90-day waiting period after a notice of claim (§ 24-10-109(6)).
Suing the government in Colorado
Claims against a public body follow their own rules, and a missed notice can end the claim even when the ordinary limitation period is still open.[7][8]
| Defendant | Deadline | Statute |
|---|---|---|
| State agencies | Written notice of claim to the Attorney General within 182 days after discovery of the injury (a jurisdictional prerequisite)Suit only after denial or 90 days after the notice, and within the periods in articles 80 and 81 of title 13 (generally 2 years, § 13-80-102(1)(h)) | Colo. Rev. Stat. § 24-10-109(1), (3) |
| Cities, counties and other local entities | Written notice of claim to the entity's governing body or its attorney within 182 days after discovery of the injurySuit after denial or 90 days, within the ordinary limitation period | Colo. Rev. Stat. § 24-10-109(1), (3) |
Criminal statute of limitations in Colorado
Most felonies in Colorado: 3 years. Misdemeanors: 18 months (misdemeanor); 1 year (class 1-2 traffic misdemeanor); 6 months (petty offense).[9] Prosecutors must file charges within these periods; the victim’s civil deadline is separate.
| Offense | Time limit | Statute |
|---|---|---|
| Felonies | 3 yearsVehicular homicide and leaving the scene of a fatal accident: 5 years (10 if both are charged together). Time out of Colorado is excluded, up to 5 years (§ 16-5-401(2)). | Colo. Rev. Stat. § 16-5-401(1)(a) |
| Misdemeanors | 18 months (misdemeanor); 1 year (class 1-2 traffic misdemeanor); 6 months (petty offense) | Colo. Rev. Stat. § 16-5-401(1)(a) |
| No time limit | Murder, kidnapping, treason, forgery, felony sex offenses against a child, and attempt, conspiracy or solicitation to commit them; felony sexual assault when the offender is identified by DNA and the crime was reported within 20 years | Colo. Rev. Stat. § 16-5-401(1)(a), (8)(a.7)(III) |
| Sexual assault | Adult victims: 20 years for felony sexual assault, with no limit if the offender is identified by DNA and the crime was reported within 20 years; child victims: no limit for felony sex offenses against a child. | Colo. Rev. Stat. § 16-5-401(1)(a), (8)(a.7) |
| Theft | Theft, embezzlement and many fraud offenses run from discovery, not commission: 3 years for felony theft and 18 months for misdemeanor theft (§ 16-5-401(4.5)). |
Worked example
A ski-resort parking-lot fall in Summit County on February 8, 2025: under the personal injury deadline is February 8, 2027. If the injured person was a child born September 3, 2012, the clock would not start until September 3, 2030, making the deadline September 3, 2032. A motor vehicle injury on the same date would have 3 years instead.
For a claim of $7,500 or less, Colorado’s small claims (Small Claims Division of the County Court) is usually faster and cheaper; compare the small claims limit by state.[14] To value an injury claim, try the car accident settlement calculator; for medical cases, compare the medical malpractice statute of limitations in other states. All states are on the statute of limitations by state page.
Frequently asked questions
How long do you have to sue for personal injury in Colorado?
What is the statute of limitations on debt in Colorado?
Does the statute of limitations pause for minors in Colorado?
What crimes have no statute of limitations in Colorado?
What is the statute of limitations for a car accident in Colorado?
Sources
- Colo. Rev. Stat. § 13-80-102(1)(a): personal injury limitation period
- Colo. Rev. Stat. § 13-80-102.5: medical malpractice limitation period
- Colo. Rev. Stat. § 13-80-102(1)(d): wrongful death limitation period
- Colo. Rev. Stat. § 13-80-101(1)(a): written contract limitation period
- Colo. Rev. Stat. § 13-80-103.5(1)(a): credit card / account debt limitation period
- Colo. Rev. Stat. §§ 13-81-101, 13-81-103: tolling for minors
- Colo. Rev. Stat. § 24-10-109(1), (3): claims against the state
- Colo. Rev. Stat. § 24-10-109(1), (3): claims against local government
- Colo. Rev. Stat. § 16-5-401(1)(a): criminal limitation periods
- Colo. Rev. Stat. §§ 13-80-101(1)(n), 13-80-102(1)(a)
- Colo. Rev. Stat. § 13-80-103.7
- Colo. Rev. Stat. § 24-10-109
- Colo. Rev. Stat. §§ 13-80-101(1)(a), 13-80-103.5(1)(a)
- Colorado small claims (official court self-help)