28-c-4 Filing a Lawsuit

• Library: A Jailhouse Lawyer's Manual (2020 Edition)

28-C-4. Filing a Lawsuit

As mentioned above, the ADA and Section 504 do not require that you file with the DOJ, although, because of the PLRA, you may have to file with the DOJ. If you are in a jurisdiction that does not require you to file first with the DOJ, you may go directly to court if you have first completely used your prison's internal grievance process.²²⁰ If you do file with the DOJ, you can bring a lawsuit even if the DOJ does not find a violation of your rights, but you must also completely use your prison's internal grievance process. The statute of limitations (deadline) for filing a lawsuit under Title II and Section 504 depends on your state. Because neither law has its own statute of limitations, most federal courts use the statute of limitations for personal injury claims in the state.²²¹ Other federal courts use the statute of limitations for the most similar state law.²²² Note that some of these deadlines²²³ are fairly long (six years in Minnesota),²²⁴ while others are very short (180 days in North Carolina).²²⁵

220. Jones v. Bock, 549 U.S. 199, 127 S. Ct. 910, 166 L. Ed.2d 798 (2007)...