Why Choose CM Injury
When you bring a Pennsylvania premises liability matter to CM Injury, we will start by listening to your account. We will review the information you provide and explain our assessment in direct terms. You deserve to understand what we think and why.
Pennsylvania Premises Liability
Guide contentsWhy Choose CM Injury
When you bring a Pennsylvania premises liability matter to CM Injury, we will start by listening to your account. We will review the information you provide and explain our assessment in direct terms. You deserve to understand what we think and why.
We will answer your questions about that assessment. If we accept your case, we will prepare it with attention to the information you have shared and explain the work we plan to undertake.
Filing deadlines in Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania sets a two-year filing period for an action seeking damages for personal injury or death caused by another’s wrongful act, neglect, unlawful violence or negligence.12
When does the clock start? Section 5502(a) states: “The time within which a matter must be commenced under this chapter shall be computed, except as otherwise provided by subsection (b) or by any other provision of this chapter, from the time the cause of action accrued, the criminal offense was committed or the right of appeal arose.”3
Subsection (b) addresses court rules: “Subsection (a) may be made more specifically applicable to particular classes of matters by general rules defining the acts, omissions or events from which the limitation shall be computed.”4 “Rules adopted pursuant to this section shall take effect only in the manner provided by section 503(b) (relating to procedures).”4
For an unemancipated minor, the statute states: “If an individual entitled to bring a civil action is an unemancipated minor at the time the cause of action accrues, the period of minority shall not be deemed a portion of the time period within which the action must be commenced.”5 “Such person shall have the same time for commencing an action after attaining majority as is allowed to others by the provisions of this subchapter.”5
For this paragraph of the statute, a “minor” is an individual under 18 years old.6
Section 5533(a) states: “Except as otherwise provided by statute, insanity or imprisonment does not extend the time limited by this subchapter for the commencement of a matter.”7
The Pennsylvania Supreme Court addressed the discovery rule in Fine v. Checcio:8
Today, we hold that it is not relevant to the discovery rule’s application whether or not the prescribed period has expired; the discovery rule applies to toll the statute of limitations in any case where a party neither knows nor reasonably should have known of his injury and its cause at the time his right to institute suit arises.
How negligence affects recovery
In Pennsylvania actions seeking damages for negligence resulting in death or injury to a person or property, the plaintiff’s contributory negligence does not bar recovery by the plaintiff or their legal representative “where such negligence was not greater than the causal negligence of the defendant or defendants against whom recovery is sought.”9
The plaintiff’s damages must be reduced in proportion to the amount of negligence attributed to the plaintiff.9
Where a Pennsylvania action may be filed
Pennsylvania Rule 1006 addresses which county an action may be filed in.10 For an action against an individual, the rule limits filing to its permitted counties, subject to this exception: “Except as otherwise provided by subdivisions (b) and (c) of this rule”.10
Here is one example of a permitted county: “Except as otherwise provided by subdivisions (b) and (c) of this rule,” an action against an individual may be filed in a county where an event occurred that gave rise to the lawsuit.10
The rule separately addresses corporations and similar entities: actions against them, “except as otherwise provided in subdivision (c),” may be brought in and only in the counties designated by Rule 2179.11
Reviewed and approved by Frank Mangiaracina
How we handle these cases
How We Approach Your Matter
We listen and review
For a Pennsylvania premises liability matter, we start by listening to your account. We review the information you provide about the incident and your injuries.
We explain our assessment
We explain our assessment of the information you have shared. We answer your questions about that assessment and our approach to your matter.
We prepare accepted cases
If we accept your case, we organize the information you have provided and explain our plan for preparing it.
A careful review and a straight answer.
Or call a partner now at (267) 936-2233.
No fee unless we win. We discuss costs at the start of every case.
