Home › Personal Injury Laws by State › Kansas Personal Injury Laws

Kansas generally requires most personal injury lawsuits based on negligence to be filed within two years after the claim accrues. Claims against governmental entities generally involve additional notice requirements, and different rules, accrual questions, exceptions, and tolling provisions may apply depending on the claim and the parties involved. This page cannot determine which deadline applies to any particular situation; only a licensed Kansas attorney reviewing the facts can do that.

Kansas generally follows a no-fault system for motor-vehicle injury claims, under which a person's own insurance generally pays certain benefits after a collision regardless of who caused it, while a claim against an at-fault driver is generally available only in circumstances defined by state law. In such claims, liability ordinarily depends on who caused the collision, and the compensation available generally depends on the injuries or losses involved and the insurance coverage that applies. How these rules apply in any individual situation depends on its facts, and if the parties involved cannot agree on liability, the court process may be necessary to resolve it.

Kansas follows a modified comparative-fault rule. In general terms, compensation may be reduced according to an injured person's share of fault, and recovery is generally barred when that person's fault is equal to or greater than the fault attributed to the opposing party or parties. Whether and how fault is attributed in any particular matter depends on its facts and may have to be determined by a court of law.

Kansas generally requires vehicle owners to maintain insurance that meets minimum requirements established by state law, including liability coverage and personal injury protection benefits that apply regardless of fault. Kansas policies also generally include uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage under state law. The coverage available in any particular situation depends on the policies involved and current law.

Kansas does not currently impose a general cap on compensatory damages in most personal injury cases; the state's earlier cap on non-economic damages was held unconstitutional by the Kansas Supreme Court. Limits remain for certain claims and categories, including wrongful-death and punitive damages and claims involving governmental entities. Because these rules can vary by claim and may change, this page does not state a dollar figure or determine whether any limit applies to a particular matter.

Kansas personal injury lawsuits may be filed in the state's district courts, which have general civil jurisdiction, with limited-actions procedures available for some smaller matters. Many injury claims are resolved through insurance processes or negotiation without a lawsuit being filed. Which court, if any, would be appropriate depends on the nature of the claim, the relief involved, and other facts that a licensed Kansas attorney can evaluate.

A licensed Kansas attorney can explain how rules involving deadlines, fault, insurance, damages, and procedure may apply to a specific situation—something a general reference page cannot do. This platform helps injured people seek connections with participating local personal injury attorney offices in the Kansas communities listed below, based on availability. Requesting a connection is free and carries no obligation to hire an attorney.