## How the limitation period applies

The controlling primary authority for US-UT libel SOL (78B-2-302) is **78B-2-302**.

> **78B-2-302.** 2 << Previous Section (78B-2-301) Download Options PDF | RTF | XML Next Section (78B-2-303) >> Index Utah Code Title 78B Judicial Code Chapter 2 Statutes of Limitations Part 3 Other than Real Property Section 302 Within one year. (Effective 5/9/2017) Effective 5/9/2017 78B-2-302. Within one year. An action may be brought within one year: (1) for liability created by the statutes of a foreign state; (2) upon a statute for a penalty or forfeiture where the action is given to an individual, or to an individual and the state, except when the statute imposing it prescribes a different limitation; (3) except as provided in Section 78B-2-307.5 , upon a statute, or upon an undertaking in a criminal

## Use the calculator

DocketMath's statute-of-limitations tool can model these timelines once you identify the controlling claim type and accrual date. Use the source panel for the verified primary-source citations.

[Open the Statute of Limitations calculator](/tools/statute-of-limitations)

## Sources

- [78B-2-302 — 78B-2-302](https://le.utah.gov/xcode/Title78B/Chapter2/C78B-2-S302_2017050920170509.html)

All sources are official primary law published by `le.utah.gov`.

**Corroboration method:** government_primary_source_direct_fetch.


Statute of Limitations for Libel (written defamation) in Utah.

Statute of Limitations for Libel (written defamation) in Utah

An action may be brought within four years: (1) after the last charge is made or the last payment is received: (a) upon a contract, obligation, or liability not founded upon an instrument in writing;

(1) An action may be brought within six years:
(a) for the mesne profits of real property;
(b) subject to Subsection (2) , upon any contract, obligation, or liability founded upon an instrument in writing, except those mentioned in Section 78B-2-311 ; or
(c) to recover fire suppression costs or other damages caused by wildland fire.

(3) (a) As used in this Subsection (2) : (i) "Client" means the same as that term is defined in Section 78A-9-103 . (ii) "Unauthorized practice of law" means the same as that term is defined in Section 78A-9-103 . (b) (i) The Board of Commissioners for the Utah State Bar may only bring an action for the unauthorized practice of law described in Subsection 78B-9-103(4) within three years after the day on which the person engaged in the unauthorized practice of law.

An action may be brought within four years: (1) after the last charge is made or the last payment is received: (a) upon a contract, obligation, or liability not founded upon an instrument in writing; ... (4) for relief not otherwise provided for by law.

An action may be brought within one year: (1) for liability created by the statutes of a foreign state; (2) upon a statute for a penalty or forfeiture where the action is given to an individual, or to an individual and the state, except when the statute imposing it prescribes a different limitation; (3) except as provided in Section 78B-2-307.5 , upon a statute, or upon an undertaking in a criminal action, for a forfeiture or penalty to the state; (4) for libel, slander, false imprisonment, or seduction;

78B-3-404. Statute of limitations -- Exceptions -- Application. (1) A malpractice action against a health care provider shall be commenced within two years after the plaintiff or patient discovers, or through the use of reasonable diligence should have discovered the injury, whichever first occurs, but not to exceed four years after the date of the alleged act, omission, neglect, or occurrence. (2) Notwithstanding Subsection (1): (a) in an action where the allegation against the health care provider is that a foreign object has been wrongfully left within a patient's body, the claim shall be barred unless commenced within one year after the plaintiff or patient discovers, or through the use of reasonable diligence should have discovered, the existence of the foreign object wrongfully left in the patient's body, whichever first occurs; or (b) in an action where it is alleged that a patient has been prevented from discovering misconduct on the part of a health care provider because that health care provider has affirmatively acted to fraudulently conceal the alleged misconduct, the claim shall be barred unless commenced within one year after the plaintiff or patient discovers, or through the use of reasonable diligence, should have discovered the fraudulent concealment, whichever first occurs.

78B-2-307. Within four years. An action may be brought within four years: (1) after the last charge is made or the last payment is received: (a) upon a contract, obligation, or liability not founded upon an instrument in writing; (b) on an open store account for any goods, wares, or merchandise; or (c) on an open account for work, labor or services rendered, or materials furnished; (2) for a claim for relief or a cause of action under the following sections of Title 25, Chapter 6, Uniform Voidable Transactions Act : (a) Subsection 25-6-202(1)(a) , except in specific situations where the time for action is limited to one year under Section 25-6-305 ; (b) Subsection 25-6-202(1)(b) ; or (c) Subsection 25-6-203(1) ; (3) for a claim involving personal property damage to the aggrieved party's motor vehicle, as defined in Section 41-6a-102 , or personal property from an accident involving a motor vehicle; and (4) for relief not otherwise provided for by law.

A civil action under this part shall be brought within two years from the time the individual who would be the claimant in the action discovered, or in the exercise of due diligence should have discovered, both the harm and its cause.

An action described in Subsection (1)(a)(ii) may be brought within four years in accordance with Subsection 78B-2-307(3) for a claim involving damage to personal property from an accident involving a motor vehicle, as defined in Section 41-6a-102 , including an accident involving a motor vehicle and bicycle.

(1) (a) Except as otherwise provided in this Subsection (1) , an action may only be brought within three years: (i) for waste, trespass upon, or injury to real property; (ii) for taking, detaining, or injuring personal property, including actions for specific recovery; (iii) for relief on the ground of fraud or mistake; (iv) for liability created by statutes of this state other than for a penalty or forfeiture under the laws of this state; or (v) to enforce liability imposed by Section 78B-3-603 or for damages under Section 78B-6-1701 .

(1) An action for breach of any contract for sale must be commenced within four years after the cause of action has accrued. By the original agreement the parties may reduce the period of limitation to not less than one year but may not extend it.

78B-2-304. Within two years. An action may be brought within two years: (1) against a marshal, sheriff, constable, or other officer for liability incurred during the performance of the officer's official duties or by the omission of an official duty, including the nonpayment of money collected upon an execution; (2) for recovery of damages for a death caused by the wrongful act or neglect of another; (3) in causes of action against the state and its employees, for injury to the personal rights of another if not otherwise provided by state or federal law; or (4) in causes of action against a political subdivision of the state and its employees, for injury to the personal rights of another arising after May 1, 2000, if not otherwise provided by state or federal law.

An action may be brought within four years: (1) after the last charge is made or the last payment is received: (a) upon a contract, obligation, or liability not founded upon an instrument in writing; (b) on an open store account for any goods, wares, or merchandise; or (c) on an open account for work, labor or services rendered, or materials furnished;

An action may be brought within four years: (1) after the last charge is made or the last payment is received: (a) upon a contract, obligation, or liability not founded upon an instrument in writing; (b) on an open store account for any goods, wares, or merchandise; or (c) on an open account for work, labor or services rendered, or materials furnished; (2) for a claim for relief or a cause of action under the following sections of Title 25, Chapter 6, Uniform Voidable Transactions Act : (a) Subsection 25-6-202(1)(a) , except in specific situations where the time for action is limited to one year under Section 25-6-305 ; (b) Subsection 25-6-202(1)(b) ; or (c) Subsection 25-6-203(1) ; (3) for a claim involving personal property damage to the aggrieved party's motor vehicle, as defined in Section 41-6a-102 , or personal property from an accident involving a motor vehicle; and (4) for relief not otherwise provided for by law.

(1) An action may be brought within six years: (a) for the mesne profits of real property; (b) subject to Subsection (2) , upon any contract, obligation, or liability founded upon an instrument in writing, except those mentioned in Section 78B-2-311 ; or (c) to recover fire suppression costs or other damages caused by wildland fire.

(1) Except as otherwise provided by Subsection (2) or another provision of the Utah Code, a prosecution for: (a) a felony or negligent homicide shall be commenced within four years after it is committed; (b) a misdemeanor other than negligent homicide shall be commenced within two years after it is committed; and (c) any infraction shall be commenced within one year after it is committed. (2) (a) A prosecution for: (i) an offense listed in Subsections 76-3-203.5(1)(c)(i)(A) through (CC) may be commenced at any time if the identity of the person who committed the crime is unknown but DNA evidence is collected that would identify the person at a later date; (ii) an offense of forcible sexual abuse, as described in Section 76-5-404 , shall be commenced within eight years after the offense is committed, if within four years after the offense's commission, the offense is reported to a law enforcement agency.

(3) (a) Except as provided in Subsections (3)(b) and (c) , an action by or against a provider based in contract or warranty shall be commenced within six years after the date of completion or abandonment of an improvement. (b) If a provider is required by an express term of a contract or warranty to perform an obligation later than the six-year period described in Subsection (3)(a) , and the provider fails to perform the obligation as required, an action for that breach of the contract or warranty shall be commenced within two years after the day on which the breach is discovered or should have been discovered. (c) If a contract or warranty expressly establishes a different period of limitations than this section, the action shall be commenced within that limitations period.

An action may be brought within eight years upon the date of: (1) entry of a judgment or decree of any court of the United States, or of any state or territory within the United States; or (2) renewal of a judgment described in Subsection (1) according to the procedures and requirements of Title 78B, Chapter 6, Part 18, Renewal of Judgment Act.

(1) (a) Except as otherwise provided in this Subsection (1) , an action may only be brought within three years: (i) for waste, trespass upon, or injury to real property; (ii) for taking, detaining, or injuring personal property, including actions for specific recovery; (iii) for relief on the ground of fraud or mistake; (iv) for liability created by statutes of this state other than for a penalty or forfeiture under the laws of this state; or (v) to enforce liability imposed by Section 78B-3-603 or for damages under Section 78B-6-1701 . (d) An action described in Subsection (1)(a)(iii) does not accrue until the discovery by the aggrieved party of the facts constituting the fraud or mistake.

(1) An action may be brought within six years: (a) for the mesne profits of real property; (b) subject to Subsection (2) , upon any contract, obligation, or liability founded upon an instrument in writing, except those mentioned in Section 78B-2-311 ; or (c) to recover fire suppression costs or other damages caused by wildland fire. (2) For a credit agreement, as defined in Section 25-5-4 , the six-year period described in Subsection (1) begins the later of the day on which: (a) the debt arose; (b) the debtor makes a written acknowledgment of the debt or a promise to pay the debt; or (c) the debtor or a third party makes a payment on the debt.

Within four years.
An action may be brought within four years:
after the last charge is made or the last payment is received:
upon a contract, obligation, or liability not founded upon an instrument in writing;
on an open store account for any goods, wares, or merchandise; or
on an open account for work, labor or services rendered, or materials furnished;
for a claim for relief or a cause of action under the following sections of
Title 25, Chapter 6, Uniform Voidable Transactions Act
:
Subsection
25-6-202(1)(a)
, except in specific situations where the time for action is limited to one year under Section
25-6-305
;
Subsection
25-6-202(1)(b)
; or
Subsection
25-6-203(1)
;
for a claim involving personal property damage to the aggrieved party's motor vehicle, as defined in Section
41-6a-102
, or personal property from an accident involving a motor vehicle; and
for relief not otherwise provided for by law.

An action may be brought within one year: (1) for liability created by the statutes of a foreign state; (2) upon a statute for a penalty or forfeiture where the action is given to an individual, or to an individual and the state, except when the statute imposing it prescribes a different limitation; (3) except as provided in Section 78B-2-307.5 , upon a statute, or upon an undertaking in a criminal action, for a forfeiture or penalty to the state; (4) for libel, slander, false imprisonment, or seduction; (5) against a sheriff or other officer for the escape of a prisoner arrested or imprisoned upon either civil or criminal process; (6) against a municipal corporation for damages or injuries to property caused by a mob or riot; (7) except as otherwise expressly provided by statute, against a county legislative body or a county executive to challenge a decision of the county legislative body or county executive, respectively; (8) on a claim for relief or a cause of action under Title 63L, Chapter 5, Utah Religious Land Use Act ; or (9) for a claim for relief or a cause of action under Subsection 25-6-203(2) .

tice Act Section 404 Statute of limitations -- Exceptions -- Application. 78B-3-404. Statute of limitations -- Exceptions -- Application. (1) A malpractice action against a health care provider shall be commenced within two years after the plaintiff or patient discovers, or through the use of reasonable diligence should have discovered the injury, whichever first occurs, but not to exceed four years after the date of the alleged act, omission, neglect, or occurrence. (2) Notwithstanding Subsection (1) : (a) in an action where the allegation against the health care provider is that a foreign object has been wrongfully left within a patient's body, the claim shall be barred unless commenced wi

2 << Previous Section (78B-2-301) Download Options PDF | RTF | XML Next Section (78B-2-303) >> Index Utah Code Title 78B Judicial Code Chapter 2 Statutes of Limitations Part 3 Other than Real Property Section 302 Within one year. (Effective 5/9/2017) Effective 5/9/2017 78B-2-302. Within one year. An action may be brought within one year: (1) for liability created by the statutes of a foreign state; (2) upon a statute for a penalty or forfeiture where the action is given to an individual, or to an individual and the state, except when the statute imposing it prescribes a different limitation; (3) except as provided in Section 78B-2-307.5 , upon a statute, or upon an undertaking in a criminal

(1) (a) Except as otherwise provided in this Subsection (1) , an action may only be brought within three years: (i) for waste, trespass upon, or injury to real property; (ii) for taking, detaining, or injuring personal property, including actions for specific recovery; (iii) for relief on the ground of fraud or mistake; (iv) for liability created by statutes of this state other than for a penalty or forfeiture under the laws of this state; or (v) to enforce liability imposed by Section 78B-3-603 or for damages under Section 78B-6-1701 . (b) An action under Subsection (1)(a)(i) does not accrue until the discovery by the aggrieved party of the facts constituting the waste or trespass if the waste or trespass is committed by means of underground works upon any mining claim.

(1) An action for breach of any contract for sale must be commenced within four years after the cause of action has accrued. By the original agreement the parties may reduce the period of limitation to not less than one year but may not extend it. (2) A cause of action accrues when the breach occurs, regardless of the aggrieved party's lack of knowledge of the breach. A breach of warranty occurs when tender of delivery is made, except that where a warranty explicitly extends to future performance of the goods and discovery of the breach must await the time of such performance the cause of action accrues when the breach is or should have been discovered.

The statute of limitations for personal injury claims is four years after the cause of action occurs.

Under Utah Code § 78B-2-307(4), an action 'for relief not otherwise provided for by law' must be brought within four years. Utah has no PI-specific limitation; the four-year residual catch-all controls general personal-injury and negligence actions. Note: § 78B-2-304 imposes a separate 2-year limit on wrongful-death (3) and personal-rights claims against state employees (4) or political subdivisions (5), which fall outside this receipt's general-PI claim_type.

In Utah, a legal malpractice claim is governed by the four-year limitations period in Utah Code section 78B-2-307 for relief not otherwise provided for by law. Utah courts apply that four-year period to legal malpractice claims; accrual and tolling can depend on injury, discovery, and equitable-tolling facts.

Statute of limitations for personal injury in US-UT is 4 years under Utah Code § 78B-2-307(4).

Statute of limitations for account stated open account in US-UT is 4 years under Utah Code § 78B-2-307(1).

Statute of limitations for wrongful death in US-UT is 2 years under Utah Code § 78B-2-304.

Statute of limitations for medical malpractice in US-UT is 2 years under Utah Code § 78B-3-404.

Statute of limitations for product liability in US-UT is 2 years under Utah Code § 78B-6-706.

Statute of limitations for premises liability in US-UT is 4 years under Utah Code § 78B-2-307.

Statute of limitations for breach written contract in US-UT is 6 years under Utah Code § 78B-2-309.

Statute of limitations for breach oral contract in US-UT is 4 years under Utah Code § 78B-2-307.

Statute of limitations for ucc sale of goods in US-UT is 4 years under Utah Code § 70A-2-725.

Statute of limitations for fraud in US-UT is 3 years under Utah Code § 78B-2-305.

Statute of limitations for libel in US-UT is 1 year under Utah Code § 78B-2-302.

Statute of limitations for slander in US-UT is 1 year under Utah Code § 78B-2-302.

Statute of limitations for property damage in US-UT is 3 years under Utah Code § 78B-2-305.

Statute of limitations for trespass in US-UT is 3 years under Utah Code § 78B-2-305.

Statute of limitations for legal malpractice in US-UT is 4 years under Utah Code § 78B-2-307(4).

Utah allows an action upon a domestic (civil) judgment or decree to be brought within eight years of the date the judgment is entered, or within eight years of a judgment renewal under the Renewal of Judgment Act, per Utah Code 78B-2-311.

Utah Code 76-1-302(1)(a) sets a 4-year statute of limitations requiring that a prosecution for a felony or negligent homicide be commenced within four years after it is committed.

Utah Code § 78B-2-307 provides a 4-year catch-all SOL; equitable tolling may pause this period during concealment, incapacity, or fraudulent conduct by defendant.

Section 1983 has no federal statute of limitations; under Wilson v. Garcia it borrows the forum state's general personal-injury limitation period. In Utah that is the four-year residual catch-all of Utah Code § 78B-2-307(4) ('for relief not otherwise provided for by law'), so a section 1983 civil-rights claim arising in Utah must be brought within four years.

The Utah Consumer Sales Practices Act (Utah Code Title 13, Chapter 11) contains no internal limitation period for private actions; a consumer-fraud / deceptive-trade-practices claim is therefore governed by Utah's four-year residual catch-all in Utah Code § 78B-2-307(4) for relief not otherwise provided for by law.

First-party insurance bad faith in Utah sounds in contract; because the insurance policy is a written instrument, the claim must be brought within 6 years.

Utah § 78B-2-108 tolls the SOL for minors (under 18) and mentally incompetent persons without a guardian. The clock does not run on any non-real-property cause of action during the disability period.

Utah § 78B-2-104 tolls the SOL during defendant's absence from Utah, but only if the defendant is not reachable under Utah long-arm jurisdiction (§ 78B-3-205). The long-arm carve-out limits this tolling for modern out-of-state defendants.

Utah has no single statute covering fraudulent concealment tolling for non-medical claims. Bright v. Sorensen, 2020 UT 7 recognized the doctrine in the medical malpractice context (§ 78B-3-404(2)(b)); the common law doctrine applies more broadly. No statute governs this for general civil claims.

Utah applies a discovery rule: the SOL does not run until the plaintiff knew or by reasonable diligence should have known the facts giving rise to the claim. The rule is judicial in origin (common law) and is embedded in several specific statutes (medical malpractice, product liability, fraud).

(1) The Legislature finds that:
(a) child sexual abuse is a crime that hurts the most vulnerable in our society and destroys lives;
(b) research over the last 30 years has shown that it takes decades for children and adults to pull
their lives back together and find the strength to face what happened to them;
(c) often the abuse is compounded by the fact that the perpetrator is a member of the victim's
family and when such abuse comes out, the victim is further stymied by the family's wish to
avoid public embarrassment;
(d) even when the abuse is not committed by a family member, the perpetrator is rarely a
stranger and, if in a position of authority, often brings pressure to bear on the victim to ensure
silence;

An action may be brought within two years: (1) against a marshal, sheriff, or other officer for liability incurred during the performance of the officer's official duties or by the omission of an official duty, including the nonpayment of money collected upon an execution; (2) against a constable: (a) for the nonpayment of money collected upon an execution; or (b) acting at the direction of a city, as described in Section 10-7-87, or a county as described in Title 17, Chapter 78, Part 6, Constables, for liability incurred during the performance of the constable's duties;

If a cause of action accrues against a person while the person is out of the state and the person is not subject to the jurisdiction of the courts of this state in accordance with Section 78B-3-205, the action may be commenced within the term as limited by this chapter after his return to the state. If after a cause of action accrues the person departs from the state, the time of his absence is not part of the time limited for the commencement of the action unless Section 78B-3-205 applies.

(1) An individual may not bring a cause of action while the individual is: (a) under 18 years old; or (b) mentally incompetent without a legal guardian. (2) During the time that an individual is underage or mentally incompetent, the statute of limitations for a cause of action other than for the recovery of real property may not run.

Statute of Limitations for Libel (written defamation) in Utah

Current verified answer

Authority and key facts

How the limitation period applies

Use the calculator

Sources