Medical malpractice in New Hampshire
Struck caps, three-year filing period
New Hampshire medical malpractice claims generally must be filed within three years under the personal-injury statute of limitations. The state has no enforceable statutory cap on compensatory damages after Supreme Court decisions striking legislative ceilings.
Last reviewed September 22, 2026
- Damages cap
- None
- Usual filing window
- 3 years
- Printed two-year chapter
- Not controlling
Legislative ceilings were held unconstitutional
RSA 508:4, including a discovery rule
Do not badge RSA 507-C:4 as the live clock
Damage caps
New Hampshire does not enforce a statutory noneconomic or total damages ceiling in a medical malpractice case. Older reform caps were held unconstitutional. Economic and noneconomic damages are limited by proof and ordinary damages doctrine.
Not capped
Economic damages
Economic damages are limited by proof. There is no enforceable statutory ceiling.
No cap
Noneconomic damages
There is no enforceable statutory noneconomic or total damages ceiling for an ordinary medical malpractice claim. Carson v. Maurer and Brannigan v. Usitalo struck legislative damage caps under New Hampshire's equal-protection and remedy framework. Do not badge a printed historical cap figure as current law.
The result is constitutional case law, not a gap where the legislature simply never acted. A bill to revive a cap is not current law.
Carson v. Maurer. The New Hampshire Supreme Court struck medical malpractice damage caps in Carson v. Maurer, and later struck a broader damages cap in Brannigan v. Usitalo. This page does not treat a printed historical ceiling as enforceable.
Filing deadlines
Plan around a three-year limitations period under RSA 508:4, including discovery when the injury and its cause were not reasonably knowable earlier. Do not rely on the printed two-year medical chapter without counsel review.
- General rule
A personal action generally must be brought within three years of the act or omission. If the injury and its causal relationship were not discovered, and could not reasonably have been discovered, at the time of the act, the three years run from discovery.
- Printed medical chapter
RSA 507-C:4 still shows a two-year medical-injury period, with foreign-object and young-minor language. That printed period is not the controlling personal-injury limitations framework after Carson. This page does not badge two years as the live New Hampshire medical malpractice filing period.
- Minors and disability
RSA 508:8 and related disability rules may extend the time to sue. Confirm those rules with counsel.
- Expert proof
New Hampshire does not have a statewide certificate-of-merit filing gate of the kind used in some other states. Expert testimony remains necessary for trial and for summary judgment.
What cases often look like
These notes describe public legal patterns. They are not case counts, win rates, or rankings.
Compensatory damages are not capped
The valuation headline is the absence of an enforceable compensatory ceiling after Carson and Brannigan. Printed reform caps are historical.
Three years, not the printed two-year chapter
The calendar headline is RSA 508:4. The two-year medical chapter remains in print and is not the clock this page treats as controlling.
Payout context
Payment amounts vary by year, injury, and setting. This page does not state an average payout, a median, or a case count. To predict the payout for a New Hampshire case, use MedMalPredict AI - Medical Malpractice Outcome Prediction.
Without an enforceable damages ceiling, liability proof and damages evidence drive value.
Sources
Official statute and agency pages checked September 22, 2026. First research pass on September 22, 2026. This summary still needs legal review before it is treated as legal advice. New Hampshire has no enforceable statutory compensatory damage cap for medical malpractice. Med-mal-specific and later general damage caps were invalidated in Carson v. Maurer and Brannigan v. Usitalo. The absence of a ceiling is constitutional case law, not merely legislative silence. This page does not badge a printed historical cap figure. Courts apply RSA 508:4, generally three years, with discovery when the injury and its causal relationship were not reasonably discoverable. The printed two-year medical-injury period in RSA 507-C:4 remains in the books and is not the controlling personal-injury limitations framework after Carson. This page does not badge two years as the live medical malpractice filing period. There is no universal certificate-of-merit statute. RSA 508:8 and related disability rules may extend time. Confirm them with counsel. Any recent attempt to revive caps is a bill only until enacted.
- RSA 508:4 (statute mirror) (opens in a new tab)Accessed September 22, 2026
- RSA chapter 508 (opens in a new tab)Accessed September 22, 2026
- RSA 507-C:4 (printed medical chapter) (opens in a new tab)Accessed September 22, 2026
- Carson v. Maurer (opens in a new tab)Accessed September 22, 2026
Review a case with MedMalPredict
Use MedMalPredict to organize records and timelines. Speak with a New Hampshire attorney about the three-year clock and any disability tolling.