An employee who suffers a work-related injury must file a claim within a specified period of time known as the Statute of Limitations.

The Statute of Limitations for worker’s compensation actions in New Jersey is two years. This means that a worker must file a claim with the secretary of the worker’s compensation bureau within two years after the date of injury.

• For example, a worker injured on January 1, 2000 would have to file a claim by December 31, 2001.
  
• If a worker over the age of 18 years does not file a claim within this 2-year time frame, that worker will be not allowed to file a lawsuit thereafter, although there are some limited exceptions to this law.
  
• If the worker is a minor when injured, the law allows that worker two years from the date of reaching the age of eighteen to file a claim.

The two-year Statute of Limitations applies even where a worker develops an occupational disease. However, the time period begins when a worker first becomes aware that the disease is employment-related. For example, the Statute of Limitations for an employee who develops lung cancer years after being exposed to asbestos on a work-site begins to run from the time the employee first becomes aware of the cancer.