Five years from the negligent act. O.C.G.A. § 9-3-71(b) says “in no event may an action for medical malpractice be brought more than five years after the date on which the negligent or wrongful act or omission occurred,” and (c) calls this a “statute of ultimate repose and abrogation.” It applies even if the patient had no way of knowing about the error.
That’s a different clock from the two-year statute of limitations in § 9-3-71(a), which runs from the date of the injury. A patient must meet both.
For example, imagine a biopsy misread in 2019, and a cancer found in 2025. The two-year period may be arguable, but the five-year limit from the 2019 reading has already passed.
Exceptions are narrow:
- Foreign object. Section 9-3-72 removes the limits but requires suit within one year of discovering the object. A “chemical compound, fixation device, or prosthetic aid or device” doesn’t count.
- Minor under five. Section 9-3-73 lets suit be brought until the 10th birthday.
- Minor five or older. Five years from the act.
- Legally incompetent person. Five years from the act, § 9-3-73(c)(1).
Section 9-3-96 tolls limitation periods when a defendant’s fraud deterred the suit. Whether that helps against a repose period is a separate legal question, so a patient who suspects concealment can ask a lawyer about it well before the date.
General information about Georgia law as of November 2026. It is not legal advice and does not create an attorney-client relationship.