Suing a City or State After an Injury: Notice Deadlines in 10 Big States

To sue a city, county or state agency for an injury, you usually must file a written notice first. The deadline is often 6 months or less. Miss that notice and most states bar the lawsuit, even though your ordinary statute of limitations is still running.

Many states also cap what a government can pay. Below are the notice deadlines, statutes and caps for 10 large states, checked against each statute's current text.

1. California

You must present a written claim to the public entity within 6 months of the injury under Government Code §911.2. If you miss it, you can apply for leave to file late, but no later than 1 year after the claim accrued, under §911.4.

California has no general cap on injury damages against public entities. It does bar punitive damages against them under §818.

Practical note: A rejection letter starts a new clock. Under §945.6, you have 6 months from the date the written rejection is delivered or mailed to file suit. See our California page.

2. Texas

A Texas government unit is entitled to notice within 6 months of the incident under Civil Practice and Remedies Code §101.101. The notice must describe the injury, the time and place, and the incident. City charters can set their own notice periods, and §101.101(b) ratifies them.

Caps under §101.023 are $250,000 per person and $500,000 per occurrence for the state and for cities. Other local units, such as counties, are capped at $100,000 per person and $300,000 per occurrence.

Practical note: The Texas Tort Claims Act covers only certain injuries. Under §101.021, they must come from motor vehicles or motor-driven equipment, or from a condition or use of tangible property. Look up the city's charter before assuming you have 6 months. See our Texas page.

3. Florida

Florida gives you 3 years to present a written claim to the agency under §768.28(6). Unless the defendant is a city, a county or the Florida Space Authority, you must also send the claim to the Department of Financial Services.

Damages are capped at $200,000 per person and $300,000 per incident under §768.28(5). Anything above that can be paid only by a separate act of the Legislature, known as a claim bill. A 2026 bill to raise the caps to $350,000 and $500,000, HB 145, was vetoed on June 30, 2026.

Practical note: You can't sue until the claim is denied. If the agency doesn't act within 6 months, the claim is treated as denied. The lawsuit itself must be filed within 4 years under §768.28(14). See our Florida page.

4. New York

Against a city, county, town or other local entity, you must serve a notice of claim within 90 days. The rule is General Municipal Law §50-e. The lawsuit must follow within 1 year and 90 days under §50-i.

Claims against the State of New York go to the Court of Claims. Under Court of Claims Act §10(3), you file the claim within 90 days. Or you serve a notice of intention within 90 days and file the claim within 2 years. New York has no statutory cap on these damages.

Practical note: Expect a "50-h hearing." Under §50-h, the municipality can question you under oath and have a doctor examine you before you sue. Judges can allow a late notice under §50-e(5), but only within the limitations period. See our New York page.

5. Illinois

Illinois has no separate notice for local governments, but the deadline to sue is short. A lawsuit against a city, county or other local entity must be filed within 1 year under 745 ILCS 10/8-101. The old notice rule in §8-102 is repealed.

Claims against the State of Illinois go to the Court of Claims. Under the Court of Claims Act, you must file a notice within 1 year (§22-1) unless you file the claim itself within 1 year. The claim is due within 2 years under §22(h).

Practical note: State tort awards are capped at $2,000,000 under §8(d), adjusted each year for inflation. The cap doesn't apply when a state employee was driving a state-owned or state-controlled vehicle. See our Illinois page.

6. Pennsylvania

You must file a written statement with the government unit within 6 months under 42 Pa.C.S. §5522. For a Commonwealth agency, a copy also goes to the Attorney General. The statement lists names, addresses, the date, hour and place, and any treating doctor.

The Commonwealth's caps are $250,000 per plaintiff and $1,000,000 in the aggregate under §8528. Local agencies are capped at $500,000 in the aggregate under §8553.

Practical note: Against a local agency, you can recover pain and suffering only in 2 situations. One is death. The other is permanent loss of a bodily function, disfigurement or dismemberment, with medical bills over $1,500. Other insurance benefits you receive are subtracted too. See our Pennsylvania page.

7. Georgia

Georgia has 3 different deadlines. Claims against a city need written notice within 6 months under O.C.G.A. §36-33-5. Claims against a county are due within 12 months under §36-11-1. Claims against the state need ante litem notice within 12 months under §50-21-26.

State claims are capped at $1 million per person and $3 million per occurrence under §50-21-29. For crashes involving local government vehicles since 2008, immunity is waived up to $500,000 per person and $700,000 per occurrence under §36-92-2.

Practical note: A notice to a city must state the specific dollar amount you're seeking, under §36-33-5(e). State notices go to the Risk Management Division of the Department of Administrative Services by certified mail, statutory overnight delivery or hand delivery. See our Georgia page.

8. Arizona

You must file a notice of claim within 180 days under A.R.S. §12-821.01. The lawsuit must follow within 1 year of the injury under §12-821.

Arizona has no damage cap. The state constitution, Article 2, §31, bars laws limiting damages for death or personal injury.

Practical note: The notice must include a specific amount for which the claim can be settled and the facts supporting that amount. A notice with only the facts of the accident can fail. See our Arizona page.

9. Washington

Washington has no short notice deadline. You must present a claim within the normal limitations period, which is 3 years for most injuries under RCW 4.16.080(2). Local claims go to the entity's designated agent under RCW 4.96.020.

Claims against the state go to the Office of Risk Management on its standard tort claim form under RCW 4.92.100. There is no cap. Under RCW 4.92.090, the state is liable as if it were "a private person or corporation."

Practical note: After you present the claim, you must wait 60 days before suing. The limitations period is paused during those 60 days under RCW 4.92.110 and RCW 4.96.020(4). See our Washington page.

10. Colorado

You must file written notice within 182 days after you discover the injury under C.R.S. §24-10-109. The statute calls this a "jurisdictional prerequisite," so a late notice ends the case. Notice against the state goes to the Attorney General.

Caps under §24-10-114 are adjusted every 4 years. For injuries on or after January 1, 2026, the Secretary of State's certificate sets them at $505,000 per person and $1,421,000 per occurrence. Injuries in 2022 through 2025 fall under $424,000 and $1,195,000.

Practical note: You can't file suit until the entity denies the claim or 90 days pass, whichever comes first, under §24-10-109(6). See our Colorado page.