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★ Alabama · back & spine

Back & spine settlements
in Alabama.

By Reviewed by Abd Shanti, Founder9 min read

A woman who slipped on a wet tile floor at a Huntsville mall said the fall injured her spine and knee, and she became partially paralyzed after disk replacement surgery in Germany; the mall could not pull the German hospital into the case. A city employee hurt in a work car crash claimed back, rib and head injuries but won benefits only for her shoulder.

Facts that decide a back & spine claim in Alabama

Deadline to sueTwo years for “all actions for injury to the person or rights of another not arising from contract and not specifically enumerated.”Ala. Code § 6-2-38(l), as quoted in Nelson v. Megginson (Ala. 2014)
Loss of earning ability in compA comp award for an unscheduled injury must address how the injury affected the worker’s ability to earn, not only the medical impairment rating.Billingsley v. City of Gadsden (Ala. Civ. App. 2015)
Claims against governmentCities need a claim within 6 months and counties within 12 months; claims against the State go to the Board of Adjustment within 1 year. City and county liability is capped at $100,000 per person and $300,000 per occurrence.Ala. Code §§ 11-47-23, 11-12-8, 41-9-65, 11-93-2; see our notice table
united states · sister site
Your back & spine claim in Alabama. See the number for your own case.

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★ AL · reported back & spine outcomes

What Alabama courts have awarded.

Real Alabama decisions and verdicts, each linked to the court record or official report.

  • Ex parte Stenum Hospital (Duncan v. Madison Square Associates)
    Supreme Court of Alabama · 2011
    Third party claim against German hospital dismissed

    In February 2007 Elizabeth Duncan slipped on a wet tile floor at Madison Square Mall in Huntsville. She alleged a fractured kneecap and injuries to her neck and back, and she became partially paralyzed after disk replacement surgery at Stenum Hospital in Germany. When she sued the mall owners and managers, they tried to add the German hospital as a third party defendant. The Supreme Court held the mall parties lacked standing to do so and ordered that claim dismissed.

  • Billingsley v. City of Gadsden
    Alabama Court of Civil Appeals · 2015
    Shoulder award reversed in part; case sent back

    Lillie Billingsley was in a car crash while working for the City of Gadsden in August 2008 and claimed injuries to her ribs, back, legs and shoulder, headaches, a closed head injury and post traumatic stress. The trial court found only a 25 percent impairment of her left shoulder; brain MRI and EEG studies were normal. The appellate court affirmed the limits on her claim but reversed the partial disability award and sent it back to decide the effect on her earning ability.

★ AL · back & spine · in practice

What changes the number here.

What actually moves a back & spine settlement in Alabama.

  1. 1

    Defendants may try to blame later medical treatment. The mall in Duncan tried to bring in the German hospital that operated on her spine.

  2. 2

    In comp, normal scans can limit a claim. Billingsley’s head injury claim failed after normal MRI and EEG results.

  3. 3

    Two years is short for spine cases that need months of treatment before the full picture is clear.

★ AL · statute of limitations
2 years from date of injury

Ala. Code § 6-2-38

★ AL · fault rule
Pure contributory negligence

Pure contributory negligence, even 1% of fault attributed to the claimant bars all recovery. Alabama is one of only five US jurisdictions to retain this rule.

★ AL · caps

What caps recovery.

Statutory caps that may bear on a back & spine settlement in Alabama.

★ back & spine · same region & fault regime

Compare to like jurisdictions.

How Alabama's fault rule and limitation period compare to jurisdictions in the same US region and to those running the same fault rule for back & spine claims.

JurisdictionFault ruleLimitationBack & spine page
Alabama · you are herePure contributory negligence2 years from date of injury—
ArkansasModified comparative, 50% bar3 years for personal injury; 2 years for medical malpracticeAR · back & spine →
FloridaModified comparative, 51% bar2 years from date of injury (was 4; reduced by HB 837)FL · back & spine →
GeorgiaModified comparative, 50% bar2 years from date of injuryGA · back & spine →
KentuckyPure comparative negligence1 year for personal injury (one of the shortest in the US)KY · back & spine →
LouisianaModified comparative, 51% bar1 year (la prescription), extended to 2 years by Act 423 (2024) for tort claims accruing on or after July 1, 2024LA · back & spine →
MississippiPure comparative negligence3 years from date of injuryMS · back & spine →
District of ColumbiaPure contributory negligence3 years from date of injuryDC · back & spine →
MarylandPure contributory negligence3 years from date of injuryMD · back & spine →
North CarolinaPure contributory negligence3 years from date of injuryNC · back & spine →
VirginiaPure contributory negligence2 years from date of injuryVA · back & spine →
AlaskaPure comparative negligence2 years from date of injury or discoveryAK · back & spine →
ArizonaPure comparative negligence2 years from date of injuryAZ · back & spine →
★ AL · back & spine · frequently asked

Common questions.

Each answer is independently coherent and references the relevant statute or authority document.

united states · sister site
Hurt in a car crash in Alabama? See what your own claim could be worth.

FairSettlement, our US sister site, gives you a free estimate in about two minutes. No cost and no obligation.

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Sources

Checked 2026-09-29.

★ all of AL
Alabama overview

Fault rule, statute, caps, and key facts for Alabama as a whole.

★ national frame
Back & spine in United States

Back & spine band structure and severity tiers at the US level.

★ all 15 countries
Back & spine · everywhere

Cross-jurisdiction comparison of back & spine bands.

★ editorial note

Figures on this page are not quotes for any specific case. For representation, consult an attorney admitted in Alabama. See /methodology, /sources, and /disclaimer.