Texas Medical Malpractice Statute of Limitations: CPRC § 74.251
Reviewed and current as of August 31, 2026. California law can change; verify against the current statute before relying on any date.
No health care liability claim may be commenced unless it is filed within two years from the occurrence of the breach or tort, or from the date the medical or health care treatment that is the subject of the claim, or the hospitalization for which the claim is made, is completed.
Separately, a claimant must bring the claim not later than 10 years after the date of the act or omission — a statute of repose that bars the claim regardless of discovery.
Source: Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code section 74.251 (as of August 31, 2026).
Three possible measuring points
Section 74.251(a) does not supply a discovery rule. It gives three fixed measuring points and requires filing within two years of the applicable one: the occurrence of the breach or tort, the date the treatment that is the subject of the claim is completed, or the date the hospitalization for which the claim is made is completed.
This is a materially harsher structure than California's section 340.5, which at least provides a one-year-from-discovery limb. A Texas claimant who does not learn of the injury within two years of the relevant measuring point may have no claim at all.
| Provision | Period | Runs from |
|---|---|---|
| Limitations — § 74.251(a) | 2 years | The breach or tort, completion of the treatment, or completion of the hospitalization |
| Repose — § 74.251(b) | 10 years | The date of the act or omission, regardless of discovery |
The ten-year repose
Subsection (b) states that a claimant must bring a health care liability claim not later than 10 years after the date of the act or omission, and that the subsection is intended as a statute of repose so that all claims must be brought within 10 years or they are time barred.
Repose operates on a different logic from limitations: it runs from the defendant's conduct rather than from accrual, and it can extinguish a claim before the plaintiff knows one exists. California has no equivalent outer bar in its medical malpractice statute — its three-year limb is subject to tolling for fraud, concealment, and foreign bodies. Texas's repose is not framed that way.
Key exceptions and tolling
- Minors under 12.The statute provides that minors under 12 have until their 14th birthday to file, which displaces the ordinary two-year computation for that group.
- No discovery rule in the statute.Section 74.251(a) supplies fixed measuring points rather than discovery-based accrual; do not assume delayed accrual is available.
- Repose is independent.Satisfying the two-year limitations period does not help if the ten-year repose in subsection (b) has run; both must be met.
- Chapter 74 notice requirements.Chapter 74 imposes pre-suit notice and expert report obligations that operate alongside the limitations period and carry their own deadlines.
- Governmental health care providers.Claims against public hospitals and their employees involve Tort Claims Act notice requirements that are far shorter.
Frequently asked
What is the statute of limitations for medical malpractice in Texas?
Two years from the occurrence of the breach or tort, or from the date the treatment or hospitalization that is the subject of the claim was completed, under Civil Practice and Remedies Code section 74.251(a). A separate ten-year statute of repose bars all claims after that period. This is general information, not legal advice.
Does Texas have a discovery rule for medical malpractice?
Section 74.251(a) does not supply one. It sets three fixed measuring points and requires filing within two years of the applicable one, and subsection (b) adds an absolute ten-year repose. This is significantly harsher than California's one-year-from-discovery limb.
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Not legal advice. This page is general information for licensed attorneys and is not a substitute for independent legal research or professional judgment. It does not address the facts of any specific matter. Statutes, case law, and court rules change; tolling, the discovery rule, equitable estoppel, and claims involving minors, government entities, or out-of-state defendants can all change the applicable deadline. Confirm every date against the current text of Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code section 74.251 and controlling case law. Using this page does not create an attorney-client relationship.
Statutory citations current as of August 31, 2026.