If a plaintiff dies, how long can her duly appointed representative sue on her behalf?

If a plaintiff dies, how long can her duly appointed representative sue on her behalf?

• A. Two years from death
• B. Three years from death
• C. One year from death
• D. Longer of 1 year from death or remaining SOL

Answer: (D)

The time allowed for a claim after the plaintiff dies is the longer of one year from death or the remaining time on the statute of limitations. This rule lets the decedent’s representative continue the lawsuit without losing the claim if there’s still a substantial amount of time left on the statute, while also guaranteeing at least a one-year window after death if the remaining period is shorter. Think through examples: if the original statute would run in 2 years and death occurs 6 months in, there are 1.5 years left—that longer period governs, so the representative has 1.5 years to sue. If death occurs only a month before the original deadline, there’s less than a year left, but the representative still gets a full year from death, so the suit can be brought within that one-year window. That’s why the best answer is the longer of one year from death or the remaining SOL. It isn’t a flat two or three years from death, and it isn’t always exactly one year unless that longer period would otherwise be shorter.

The time allowed for a claim after the plaintiff dies is the longer of one year from death or the remaining time on the statute of limitations. This rule lets the decedent’s representative continue the lawsuit without losing the claim if there’s still a substantial amount of time left on the statute, while also guaranteeing at least a one-year window after death if the remaining period is shorter.

Think through examples: if the original statute would run in 2 years and death occurs 6 months in, there are 1.5 years left—that longer period governs, so the representative has 1.5 years to sue. If death occurs only a month before the original deadline, there’s less than a year left, but the representative still gets a full year from death, so the suit can be brought within that one-year window.

That’s why the best answer is the longer of one year from death or the remaining SOL. It isn’t a flat two or three years from death, and it isn’t always exactly one year unless that longer period would otherwise be shorter.