Personal injury practice areas
Some injury claims do not sit inside a single category. A wrongful death claim can arise from a collision, a fall, a defective product or a medical error, and the substantive rules follow the underlying event while the procedural rules follow the death. This section covers claim types that cut across the other silos. Law Offices Of SRIS, P.C. handles injury matters in Virginia, Maryland, the District of Columbia, New Jersey and New York.
Wrongful death is procedurally distinct
A wrongful death claim generally belongs to the estate and is brought by the personal representative, not by family members in their own names. That means someone has to be appointed before suit can be filed, and appointment takes time. Who may recover, and what categories of loss are recoverable, are set by each state’s statute rather than by general negligence principles.
Filing deadlines in wrongful death
Wrongful death claims run on their own clocks and are generally brought by the personal representative of the estate rather than by family members individually. Virginia: two years from the date of death, Va. Code § 8.01-244. Maryland: three years from the date of death, Md. Code, Cts. & Jud. Proc. § 3-904(g), which Maryland treats as the exclusive timeliness provision for these claims. District of Columbia: two years from the date of death, D.C. Code § 16-2702. New Jersey: two years from the date of death, N.J.S.A. 2A:31-3 — with no limitation period where the death resulted from murder, aggravated manslaughter or manslaughter for which the defendant has been convicted. New York: two years from the date of death, N.Y. E.P.T.L. § 5-4.1. Appointment of a personal representative takes time and must happen before suit, so these deadlines are tighter in practice than they appear. Confirm the deadline on your own facts.
Survival actions
Where a person survived for a period after the injury before dying, a separate survival claim may exist for what the person themselves endured, alongside the wrongful death claim brought for the losses of the statutory beneficiaries. The two claims have different measures of damages and are frequently pleaded together.
Filing deadlines
Every injury claim is governed by a statute of limitations, and the periods differ by state and by claim type. For personal injury actions the period is two years in Virginia under Va. Code § 8.01-243(A), accruing at the date of injury; three years in Maryland under Md. Code, Cts. & Jud. Proc. § 5-101; three years in the District of Columbia under D.C. Code § 12-301(8); two years in New Jersey under N.J.S.A. 2A:14-2; and three years in New York under N.Y. C.P.L.R. § 214(5). These are general periods. Discovery rules, tolling for minors and incapacity, claims against government entities — the District imposes a six-month notice-of-claim requirement for claims against the District government — and claim-specific statutes can shorten or extend them. Do not rely on a general period for your own case; have the deadline confirmed on your facts.
Pages in this section
This section covers wrongful death, survival actions, dog bite and animal attack, aviation incidents, and other injury claims that cross categories.
Speak with Mr. Sris
Injury claims are governed by filing deadlines that vary by state and by claim type, and evidence degrades quickly. Request a consultation. Reach our location at (888) 437-7747. Consultations are by appointment.
Last reviewed: August 22, 2026.
Attorney Advertising. Law Offices Of SRIS, P.C., principal office: 4008 Williamsburg Court, Fairfax, VA 22032. By appointment. Call (888) 437-7747 to schedule.
The information on this page is general and is not legal advice. No attorney-client relationship is created by reading it or by contacting the firm. Case results depend on a variety of factors unique to each case. Results may vary.
Attorney advertising. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.
Attorney responsible for this advertising: Mr. Sris.