Home › Personal Injury Laws by State › Oregon Personal Injury Laws

Oregon generally requires most personal injury lawsuits based on negligence to be filed within two years after the claim accrues. Claims against public bodies require a formal notice within a much shorter period, and different rules, 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 Oregon attorney reviewing the facts can do that.

Oregon generally follows an at-fault system for motor-vehicle injury claims. Liability ordinarily depends on who caused the collision. The compensation available in any particular matter 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.

Oregon 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 share of the fault is greater than half of the total fault involved. 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.

Oregon generally requires vehicle owners to maintain insurance that meets minimum requirements established by state law, including liability coverage, personal injury protection benefits that pay certain expenses regardless of fault, and uninsured-motorist coverage that includes underinsurance protection. Oregon law may also limit some categories of compensation otherwise available to a person who did not carry required insurance. The coverage available in any particular situation depends on the policies involved and current law.

Oregon does not currently impose a general cap on compensatory damages in most personal injury cases; Oregon courts have held that an earlier cap could not constitutionally be applied to most bodily-injury claims, and the remaining statutory limit applies to wrongful-death claims, where its application continues to be litigated. Special rules also apply to certain claims and parties, including claims involving public bodies. 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.

Oregon personal injury lawsuits may be filed in the state's circuit courts, which have general civil jurisdiction, with small claims departments available for some more limited 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 Oregon attorney can evaluate.

A licensed Oregon 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 Oregon communities listed below, based on availability. Requesting a connection is free and carries no obligation to hire an attorney.