Statute of Limitations for Sexual Harassment (state claims) in Michigan

Overview

In Michigan, the statute of limitations (SOL) sets a deadline for filing many kinds of state-law claims, including claims that arise out of sexual harassment when you’re suing under Michigan statutes or Michigan common-law theories (as opposed to federal claims).

DocketMath’s statute-of-limitations calculator is designed to help you compute that deadline using dates you control—especially the date the last actionable conduct occurred and the date you plan to file. This post focuses on Michigan state claims and explains the governing deadline Michigan courts generally apply.

Limitation period

Michigan’s general SOL period (default rule)

Michigan’s general SOL period is 6 years for the relevant civil claims covered by the default rule cited below.

• General SOL period: 6 years
• General statute: **MCL § 767.24(1)

Because you’re dealing with deadlines, the calculator needs to know which date is treated as the start of the SOL in your fact pattern. In practical terms, most SOL calculations turn on the triggering event date, commonly:

• the date of the last alleged harassment-related act (often treated as the latest date tied to the conduct), or
• the date the plaintiff knew or should have known of the basis for the claim (depending on the claim type and how Michigan courts treat accrual for that theory).

DocketMath simplifies this by letting you plug in the date you want to treat as the SOL start date. Your output then updates the filing deadline automatically.

How to use the SOL start date in DocketMath

In DocketMath, you typically provide:

• SOL start date (the date from which the clock starts)
• jurisdiction (Michigan, US-MI)
• (optionally) planned filing date to see whether the claim appears timely

Your output will produce:

• the computed SOL expiration date
• an indicator of whether the planned filing date is on/before that expiration date

Because the SOL start date drives the math, changing it changes the result. For example:

• If your SOL start date is 2019-06-15, a 6-year period generally pushes the SOL expiration to 2025-06-15.
• If you instead use 2020-01-01 as the triggering date, the expiration generally shifts to 2026-01-01.

Quick timing check (illustrative)

Below is a simple example table showing how a 6-year general SOL behaves when your SOL start date moves.

DocketMath will compute the exact expiration date based on the dates you enter.

Key exceptions

Michigan’s default is 6 years under the general rule stated above, but SOL outcomes can still change due to exceptions and accrual-related doctrines. Since this post is limited to the general/default period, think of the “exceptions” section as a checklist of what to verify in your specific situation.

Common SOL-altering themes to check

Use this list to guide what you look for (for example, in the complaint allegations or correspondence you have):

• Accrual timing

  • Some claims start later than the date misconduct occurred because of accrual rules tied to when the claim became reasonably discoverable.
• Continuing conduct / last act

  • Where the claim is anchored to a pattern of conduct, the “last act” framing can matter—especially if harassment continued over multiple dates.
• **Tolling (pause of the clock)

  • Certain legal events can pause or alter SOL calculations (for example, circumstances recognized by Michigan law).
• Different cause of action

  • Even within the general civil landscape, different legal theories can have different limitations rules. Here, you should treat the 6-year period as the default, not a guaranteed fit for every theory.

Practical takeaway for deadline management

If you’re nearing a filing deadline, the safest operational approach is to:

• identify the last alleged actionable date you intend to rely on, and
• confirm the trigger date you’re using for accrual, and
• run the date through DocketMath immediately.

That way, you avoid the common error of filing after an expiration date that was calculated from an earlier starting point.

Statute citation

• 6-year general SOL: **MCL § 767.24(1)

  • Michigan’s general statute sets the default period referenced by DocketMath for this category of state-law civil claims. (Jurisdiction basis: US-MI / Michigan.)

Source note: Michigan statutes are published and maintained by the State of Michigan (Michigan.gov).

Use the calculator

DocketMath’s statute-of-limitations calculator can calculate your Michigan SOL deadline using the dates that matter most to your case.

Go to the tool

Use this primary call-to-action: **/tools/statute-of-limitations

What inputs affect the result

Use these inputs to see how the output changes:

• SOL start date

  • Moving this date forward generally moves the expiration date forward.
• **Planned filing date (optional)

  • This lets you quickly check if you’re before/on the expiration date or after it.

What outputs you’ll get

The calculator will provide:

• the calculated SOL expiration date for the general 6-year rule, and
• a timing readout comparing your planned filing date to that expiration date.

Example workflow (Michigan / US-MI)

1. Open /tools/statute-of-limitations: **/tools/statute-of-limitations
2. Select **Michigan (US-MI)
3. Enter your SOL start date (e.g., the date of the last alleged harassment-related act you rely on)
4. Review the expiration date shown
5. Optionally enter your planned filing date to assess timing

Sources and references

Start with the primary authority for Michigan and confirm the effective date before relying on any output. If the rule has been amended, update the inputs and rerun the calculation.

• MCL § 600.5807

Related reading

• Choosing the right statute of limitations tool for Vermont — Tool comparison
• Statute of limitations in Singapore: how to estimate the deadline — How-to guide
• Choosing the right statute of limitations tool for Connecticut — Tool comparison