Personal Injury Laws in Maine: Deadlines, Fault Rules & Damages

In Maine, you generally have six years from the date of an accident to file a personal injury lawsuit — this is set by 14 M.R.S. § 752, Maine's general six-year statute of limitations for civil actions, and it is one of the longest injury-filing windows in the country (most states allow two to three years). Miss that deadline and, with rare exceptions, a Maine court will dismiss your case no matter how strong it is. Below is what an ordinary injured person in Maine needs to know about deadlines, fault rules, damage limits, insurance, and dog-bite liability — with citations to Maine's official statutes so you can confirm the current law yourself.

Maine's Personal Injury Statute of Limitations

Maine's default rule, found at 14 M.R.S. § 752, gives you six years from the date the cause of action accrues to file most negligence-based personal injury claims — car crashes, slip-and-falls, product injuries, and similar cases. The clock generally starts on the date of the injury, though Maine courts have applied a "discovery rule" in some cases (for example, certain medical or exposure-related injuries) where the harm isn't reasonably discoverable right away.

Some claim types have their own, shorter deadlines that override the general six-year rule. Wrongful death claims, for instance, must be brought within three years of the death (six years if the death resulted from a homicide), under 18-C M.R.S. § 2-807. Claims against government bodies also run on a different, much shorter track (see below). Because exceptions exist and statutes are amended by the Legislature, don't assume six years applies to your specific claim — check the current text of the relevant Maine statute or talk with a Maine attorney before you rely on any deadline.

Shared Fault: Maine's Modified Comparative Negligence Rule

Maine follows modified comparative negligence with a 50% bar, codified at 14 M.R.S. § 156. Here's how it works in plain terms:

• If you were partly at fault for your own injury, your damages are reduced by your percentage of fault. A jury that finds you 20% responsible would cut your award by 20%.
• If a jury finds you equally at fault (50/50) with the other party, the statute says you "may not recover" — you are barred entirely.
• You can still recover something as long as your share of fault is less than the other side's (i.e., you're 49% or less at fault).

In cases with multiple defendants, Maine law generally holds each at-fault defendant jointly and severally liable for the full judgment, though the statute lets any defendant ask the jury to allocate a specific percentage of fault to each party. If an insurance adjuster tells you that you were "too much at fault to recover," ask exactly what percentage they're assigning and why — that number is often negotiable.

Damage Caps in Maine

For an ordinary personal injury or medical malpractice claim against a private person or business, Maine does not cap economic damages (medical bills, lost wages, future care costs) and, importantly, Maine has no general statutory cap on non-economic damages (pain and suffering) either — unlike states such as California or Texas that cap med-mal pain-and-suffering awards. Punitive damages in ordinary tort cases aren't statutorily capped either, but Maine courts require clear and convincing proof of actual or implied malice before a jury can award them at all, so they remain rare.

The exceptions to know:

• Wrongful death cases are different: under 18-C M.R.S. § 2-807, non-economic damages for loss of comfort, society, and companionship are capped (currently around $1,000,000, adjusted annually for inflation for deaths occurring in 2024 or later), and punitive damages in a wrongful death case are capped at $500,000.
• Claims against a Maine state or local government entity are capped at $400,000 total per occurrence (covering damages and costs combined), and punitive damages are not allowed at all against a governmental entity — see 14 M.R.S. § 8105.

Damage-cap laws change frequently nationwide and get challenged in court, so confirm the current dollar figures and any inflation adjustment directly from the statute (or a current Maine court decision) before relying on a specific number.

Car Insurance: Maine Is an At-Fault (Tort) State

Maine is a tort / at-fault insurance state, not a no-fault state — Maine does not require Personal Injury Protection (PIP) coverage the way true no-fault states do. The driver who caused the crash (and their insurer) is responsible for the other party's damages, including pain and suffering, up to the at-fault driver's policy limits.

Maine's mandatory minimum auto coverage, per the Maine Bureau of Insurance, includes:

• Bodily injury liability: at least $50,000 per person / $100,000 per accident
• Property damage liability: at least $25,000 per accident
• Uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage: at least $50,000 per person / $100,000 per accident
• Medical payments coverage: at least $2,000 per person (this is required in Maine even though there's no PIP system)

Because Maine is at-fault, you can generally pursue the at-fault driver's liability insurer directly for your medical bills, lost income, and pain and suffering — you're not limited to your own policy's medical payments coverage first, as you would be in a no-fault state.

Dog Bites in Maine: Strict Liability (in Most Situations)

Maine imposes strict liability on dog owners under 7 M.R.S. § 3961(2) when a dog injures someone who is not on the owner's or keeper's property at the time. In that situation, you generally don't have to prove the owner knew the dog was dangerous or was careless — only that the person owned/kept the dog, the dog caused the injury, and you weren't on the owner's premises.

If the bite happens on the dog owner's own property, the strict-liability provision doesn't apply the same way, and a victim typically has to show the owner was negligent under general common-law principles. One more wrinkle from the same statute: your own damages can't be reduced for your fault in a strict-liability dog-bite claim unless a court finds your fault exceeded the dog owner's — a more favorable rule than the general 50% bar used elsewhere in Maine tort law.

Claims Against the Government: Shorter Deadlines

If your injury involves a Maine state agency, a city or town, a school district, or another public entity, the Maine Tort Claims Act (14 M.R.S. §§ 8101–8118) applies instead of the ordinary six-year rule — and it moves much faster:

• You must generally file a written notice of claim within 365 days of when the claim accrues, under 14 M.R.S. § 8107 (a claimant who shows good cause why notice could not reasonably have been filed in time may have a limited extension — confirm the current text applies to your claim date).
• The notice must go to the correct person or office and include specific details: your name and address, the date/time/place/circumstances of the incident, the nature of your injuries, and the damages claimed.
• Total recovery against a governmental entity is capped at $400,000 per occurrence, and punitive damages aren't available at all against the government (14 M.R.S. § 8105).

This notice deadline is separate from, and usually much shorter than, the deadline to actually file the lawsuit — missing the notice window can bar your claim even if you're still within the general filing period. If a government vehicle, employee, sidewalk, or building may be involved, treat the notice deadline as urgent and confirm the current requirements immediately.

What to Do in Maine After an Injury

1. Get medical care and document everything. Prompt treatment protects your health and creates the medical record that supports your claim.
2. Identify who might be responsible — another driver, a property owner, a dog owner, a business, or a government entity — since that affects which deadline and which rules apply.
3. If a government entity may be involved, don't wait. Confirm the Maine Tort Claims Act notice requirement and deadline right away; it is far shorter than the general injury deadline.
4. Preserve evidence: photos, witness names, incident/police reports, and copies of your insurance policies (including your own medical payments and UM/UIM coverage).
5. Understand how shared fault could affect you under Maine's 50% comparative-negligence bar before accepting an insurer's fault percentage.
6. Track your deadline. Confirm which statute of limitations applies to your specific claim (general six-year rule, three-year wrongful death rule, or the Tort Claims Act's separate notice and filing deadlines) using the current text at the Maine Legislature's website or Maine's court system.
7. File in the right court. Personal injury lawsuits in Maine are generally filed in Maine's Superior Court (or District Court for smaller claims), depending on the amount at stake and the county where the injury occurred; case information and forms are available through the Maine Judicial Branch.

This article is for general information only and is not legal advice; confirm current Maine statutes and deadlines with an official source or a licensed Maine attorney before acting.