According to the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO), the federal government reported $51.9 billion in liabilities for legal claims considered likely to result in payment as of September 30, 2024. The figure appeared in financial statements released in January 2025 and covered various legal matters, not just personal injury or negligence claims.
When a government agency or employee fails to exercise reasonable care, their actions or omissions may cause serious injuries, property damage, or other losses. But can you sue the government for negligence?
Bringing a claim may turn out to be more difficult than bringing a suit against an individual or even an entity owing to the operation of certain statutes, notices, and deadlines. That’s why it is important to understand the rules to determine whether a claim is possible and what steps to take.
Here’s what you need to know regarding government negligence claims.
Immunity Is the Starting Position
For an individual to file a suit against the government, it must have consented, but with some conditions attached.
In cases of the federal claim, liability is determined based on the jurisdictional laws under which such acts or omissions were committed. Simply stated, the same acts produce different outcomes based on the states in which there was an injury. There is no specific federal law of negligence below it.
What reaches the docket looks familiar to anyone who handles injury work. Treatment at a federal medical facility. A collision with a government vehicle. A fall on property the government maintains. But the corresponding state and local list consists of roads, sidewalks, public transport, playgrounds, and public utilities, where the problem is one of upkeep and past grievances.
Dangerous road conditions are one of the recurring categories. Bentley & More LLP, a Newport Beach practice working across Orange, Riverside, and San Bernardino counties, lists a $31.5 million jury verdict in a dangerous road conditions case among its published results, alongside a class action settlement of more than $720 million. Verdict lists like that are a reasonable place to see what categories of public-body matter actually get tried.
The Claim Comes Before the Lawsuit
Federal claims must be filed with the agency and not in court. The claim must be filed with the correct agency within two years of the cumulative date of the claim as stated clearly by the Department of Veterans Affairs.
Form 95 is the standard form, but the agencies will accept any written notice that contains these three items: the specific allegation, a specified amount in damages, and the signature of the claimant or his lawyer. Most of the work involved is in writing and documentation.
This is where any otherwise sound claim fails, which is called “sum certain.” A letter describing a case is not a claim under the regulatory regime unless it includes a definite monetary figure. Upon submission, the agency will have six months to resolve the claim.
After six months without a decision, the claimant may treat the silence as a denial and file suit. This will initiate a new six-month period to bring a lawsuit in district court from the day when the denial was mailed.
State and Local Bodies Run Their Own Clocks
Each state has its claims act, and the time frame allowed by that act is generally much shorter than the general statute of limitations for a suit against an individual defendant. This disparity will get individuals who believe they have a year or longer.
Late notice can end the matter regardless of how strong the underlying facts are, and the entity does not have to show it was harmed by the delay.
A government injury claim becomes time-sensitive on day one, well before anyone has decided whether to pursue it. Medical records, photographs of the hazard, incident reports and the names of everyone who responded all get harder to obtain as months pass.
None of that requires deciding to sue. It only requires keeping the option open while the paperwork clock runs.