The statute of limitations for wrongful death varies from one state's laws to the next. The general statute of limitations, or the time period in which one is required to file any wrongful death claim, is, on the average, between one and three years, with two years being probably the most common statute of limitations. If you fail to file a wrongful death claim within the required statutory period, you risk having your claim barred altogether. While there are some exceptions to the usual statute of limitations, it is always wise to ensure that you meet the appropriate deadlines in order to preserve your cause of action for wrongful death. Thus, even if negotiations as to a wrongful death claim are ongoing, and likely to resolve themselves informally, without a trial or other types of court proceedings, the statute of limitations period must still be observed, even if only for the sake of formalities.