Have You Been Injured? We're Ready to Fight for You.

What Limits Are in Place for Suing After an Assault/Crime?

Published on Oct 12, 2017 by Thomas Law Offices.

One of the first things our firm looks at when investigating a case is whether you or a loved one is limited in bringing a lawsuit for personal injuries.  If you or a loved one are the victim of an assault or some other criminal activity and are seeking compensation for your injuries, then you should know that one of the most important things affecting your ability to bring a case is the statute of limitations. A statute of limitation is a law which limits the amount of time for you to bring a case against a person who injured you or a loved one through reckless, negligent, or intentional action.

In Missouri, a criminal act which caused you or a loved one harm would likely be considered an “intentional act”. Under Missouri law, there is a much shorter time period to bring a case involving harm caused by the intentional acts of another person.  As a victim of an intentional act, like an assault or some other crime, you are required bring a case against the person causing the injuries within two years.

This means you have up to two years from the date of the assault, robbery, burglary, or other intentional criminal act to bring a case against the person who harmed you.  If you try to sue the person who intentionally caused your harm after two years, the court will likely dismiss your case.  For example, if you are punched by someone and suffer a severe head injury, you only have two years to bring a case against the person who punched you.

However, even if you have not brought your suit within two years against the person or persons responsible for your injuries, there are still options available to you to bring a case. For instance, our firm has had success in bringing cases against additional or third parties like landowners, property owners, and others who may share responsibility for your injuries. Often times, the statute of limitations in those cases is up to five years.

For instance, our firm has had success in bringing cases against third parties like bar owners, bouncers, property owners, landowners, and others.  Through investigation, we have discovered that these other parties share responsibility for a victim’s injuries because the property owner, landowner, or security personnel didn’t not do enough to protect the victim from a criminal act. 

Unfortunately, there are other limitations which can affect a victim’s ability to hold all parties responsible for his/her injuries.  Typically these cases involve situations where a case resolves and not all the potentially responsible parties were named in a lawsuit or part of the settlement agreement.  Occasionally, a person or an attorney doesn’t do enough initial investigation into a case and will just name the criminal or criminals in the lawsuit.  Sometimes those cases are thrown out because of the short statute of limitations (as discussed above), and other times the case either settles or resolves and removes any chance of a victim suing a third party (like a property owner).

In other words, if you bring a suit against someone responsible for your injuries, the law requires you to sue all the people responsible for your injuries in that suit. If you settle your suit or get a favorable jury verdict and only name the criminal or main actor, then you may be stuck trying to collect against a person who has no resources to help you pay your medical bills or for other injuries.  Then, you will likely have limited your chances to bring a case against a third party who may share some responsibility for your injuries.   That’s why it’s extremely important to do a significant amount of investigation to determine what parties may share responsibility for  your or a loved one’s injuries.

If you’re the victim of a crime and/or an assault in Missouri and have questions about who may share responsibility for your injuries, then you should contact an experienced attorney who has handled cases like yours. At Thomas Law Offices, we have handled a number of cases involving assaults and other types of criminal activity on public and private land which results in injury to others. We look at every potential party and person responsible for your harm, and leave no stone unturned.

Feel free to contact our office today for a free consultation. You may also wish to learn more about limitations by watching our video below:

Free Case Evaluation

At Thomas Law Offices, our personal injury attorneys recognize that our potential clients are likely going through some of the most difficult times of their lives. We don't want you to have to worry about paying out of pocket for legal advice when you're just starting to learn your legal rights and options. That's why we provide free case evaluations. We'll offer our expert advice about your potential case and walk you through how we can help you.

Call us or fill out the form below to tell us about your potential case and a personal injury lawyer will get back to you as quickly as possible.

Meet Our Founder

Tad Thomas - Trial Lawyer

Tad Thomas

Managing Partner

Tad Thomas has dedicated his practice to representing plaintiffs in various types of civil litigation, including personal injury, business litigation, class actions, and multi-district litigation.

After graduating with his law degree in 2000 from Salmon P. Chase College of Law at Northern Kentucky University, Mr. Thomas immediately opened his own private practice and began representing injury victims.

In 2011, Thomas Law Offices was established in Louisville, Kentucky. Over the past decade, Mr. Thomas has expanded his firm and now has offices in three additional locations: Cincinnati, Ohio, Columbia, Missouri, and Chicago, Illinois. He is also a frequent lecturer on topics like trial skills and ethics and technology.

Legal & Firm News

Former Nebraska Women’s Basketball Player Sues Coach & University Over Alleged Sexual Grooming

A February 18 civil lawsuit filed by a former University of Nebraska basketball player alleges that the male associate head coach of her then-team used their position of authority to groom her into a sexual relationship with them. This alleged sexual misconduct occurred between 2020 and 2022. Listed as defendants in the lawsuit are the […]

Read More

Iowa Nursing Home Staff Abused and Laughed at Patients According to Records

A whistleblower retaliation lawsuit filed on Feb. 15, 2024, reveals how there was pervasive mistreatment of nursing home residents at a DesMoines, Iowa nursing home beginning as early as March 2022.   A later Iowa Department of Inspection and Appeals (DIA) investigation, launched after her dismissal, confirmed the majority of those reports (and others) alleging staff […]

Read More

Tad Thomas Named Lawdragon 500 Leading Consumer Plaintiff Lawyer for 2024

Thomas Law Offices is proud to announce that founder, Tad Thomas, has been recognized by Lawdragon on the 2024 Lawdragon 500 Leading Plaintiff Consumer Lawyers list. Tad has been a trial lawyer for over 20 years. He founded Thomas Law Offices in Louisville, Kentucky, and over the years, his reputation and practice have grown, expanding […]

Read More
Tad Thomas on The National Crime Victim Bar Association
National Civil Justice Institute - Trustee
Tad Thomas on Lawyer Minds
Tad Thomas on American Association for Justice
Southern Trial Lawyers Association
Illinois Trial Lawyers Association
Ohio Association for Justice
Kentucky Justice Association
Fellows of the Litigation Counsel of America
Martindale Hubbell Preeminent
2021 Public Justice Member
AAJ Masters of Trial Law: Champion