The general rule: two years
Under 10 Del. C. § 8119, no action for the recovery of damages upon a claim for alleged personal injuries may be brought after two years from the date the injuries were sustained. This same two-year period covers most negligence claims, including car accidents, slip and falls, and medical malpractice.
Wrongful death and property damage: also two years
A separate but parallel statute, 10 Del. C. § 8107, sets the same two-year deadline for wrongful death claims, generally running from the date of death, and for claims involving damage to personal property.
Minors: three years from 18, not just two
Delaware is genuinely generous here. Under 10 Del. C. § 8116, a minor who suffers a personal injury has three years after their 18th birthday to file — not simply the standard two-year window measured from age 18. This gives a young injury victim considerably more runway than the ordinary rule alone would suggest. There's one important carve-out: other statutes, like Delaware's medical malpractice law, can require faster action in specific situations.
A special protection for very young children in malpractice cases
Delaware's medical malpractice statute includes a genuinely distinctive rule for the youngest patients: a child under 6 years old has until the later of their 6th birthday or the date the general malpractice deadline would otherwise expire, under 10 Del. C. tit. 18, § 6856(2). This protects very young children from having a malpractice claim time out before they're even school-age.
Suing the City of Wilmington: a genuinely unusual rule
This is the detail most people have never heard of. Before suing the City of Wilmington specifically, the injured person must notify the Mayor "of the time, place, cause and character" of the injury at least one year before filing the lawsuit, under 10 Del. C. § 8124. See our full guide to this unusual Wilmington notice requirement for exactly how it works.