Old Debts And Time Limits
Mo. Rev. Stat. § 516.120 and § 516.110 — five years for most contracts and injuries, ten for a writing to pay
- Actions on contracts, obligations or liabilities, other than the ten year kind below.
- Actions on a liability created by statute, other than a penalty.
- Trespass on land, taking or damaging goods, and other injuries to a person or their rights not arising on contract.
- Fraud, counted from discovery, which must come within ten years.
Those have five years in Missouri.
Ten years for a writing to pay. An action on any writing, sealed or not, for the payment of money or property has ten years, as does an action for relief not otherwise provided for.
Sources for this section (2)
- Mo. Rev. Stat. § 516.120 — What actions within five years
- Mo. Rev. Stat. § 516.110 — What action shall be commenced within ten years
Legal information, not legal advice. Verified as of October 2026. Applying it to a particular situation is the work of a licensed Missouri attorney.