By Michael Shemtoub, trial attorney, Beverly Law. Updated November 2026.
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Cancellation periods by state
These are the states whose consumer funding statutes we read that include a right to cancel. Laws in Kansas, New York, Ohio and Utah changed in 2025 or 2026, so confirm the current text before you rely on a date. The state law table has each state’s other rules.
| State | Time to cancel | Clock starts | Law |
|---|---|---|---|
| California | 5 business days | Funding date | Bus. & Prof. Code 6251 |
| Georgia | 5 business days | Later of signing or receiving the money | O.C.G.A. 7-10-6 |
| Illinois | 14 business days | Funding date | 815 ILCS 121/10 |
| Indiana | 5 business days | Funding date | Ind. Code 24-12-2-1 |
| Kansas | 10 business days | Funding date | 2026 Kan. Sess. Laws ch. 130 |
| Maine | 5 business days | Receipt of funds | 9-A M.R.S. 12-104 |
| Missouri | 10 business days | Funding date | RSMo 436.554 |
| Montana | 5 business days | Later of signing or receiving | Mont. Code 31-4-107 |
| Nebraska | 5 business days | Receipt of funds | Neb. Rev. Stat. 25-3303 |
| Nevada | 5 business days | Funding date | NRS 604C.350 |
| New York | 10 business days | Receipt of payment (one section says funding date) | Fin. Serv. Law art. 10 |
| Ohio | 10 business days (from Oct. 6, 2026) | Funding date | R.C. 1357.03 |
| Oklahoma | 5 business days | Funding date | 14A O.S. 3-806 |
| Tennessee | 5 business days | Later of signing or receiving | Tenn. Code 47-16-104 |
| Utah | 10 business days (from May 6, 2026) | Day the agreement is made | Utah Code 13-57-301 |
| Vermont | 5 business days | Signing or receipt of any funds | 8 V.S.A. 2253 |
| West Virginia | 5 business days | Later of signing or receiving | W. Va. Code 46A-6N-3 |
Arkansas regulates these advances through a rate cap, and its statute does not include a cancellation right.
How cancellation works
Every statute in the table makes cancellation depend on returning the money. California requires you to return “all funds disbursed,” and Kansas and Utah use the phrase “the full amount of the disbursed funds.” Returning part of it does not meet that condition.
Several states spell out the method. In Illinois, Indiana, Missouri, Nevada, Oklahoma and Utah you can deliver the company’s uncashed check to its office in person, or mail a notice of cancellation by insured, certified or registered U.S. mail to the address in the contract with the money enclosed as the company’s uncashed check, a certified check or a money order. Maine and Nebraska require that mailing to be postmarked inside the five-business-day window. Georgia and Montana let you cancel by sending a notice of cancellation to the address on page 1 of the contract and returning what you received. In Nevada the company must promptly forward the cancellation notice to your attorney.
Practical steps: if you are unsure about the deal, do not cash the check. If you already deposited it, use a method the statute names, keep the mail receipt and a copy of the notice, and tell your lawyer the same day.
Example only: if a contract with a 5-business-day window is funded on a Monday and that week has no holiday, the last day falls on the following Monday. Your contract and your state’s law decide how the days are counted, so ask the company to confirm the last day in writing.
If your state has no cancellation statute
Most states, including Texas and Washington, have no statute on consumer legal funding (see is pre-settlement funding legal in my state). There, any right to cancel exists only if the contract grants one. Look for a cancellation clause before you sign, and if there is none, ask for one in writing. Also check whether you can pay the balance off early without a penalty, a right that California, Kansas, Ohio and some other regulated states give by statute but that elsewhere depends on the contract. Texas cases are handled by the firm’s Texas-licensed attorneys, Joyce Ondich and John Efstathiou.
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What to ask before you sign
- What is the exact last day I can cancel, and will you put it in writing?
- Where and how do I return the money, and is a wire or electronic transfer accepted, or only the methods the statute lists?
- Will you notify my lawyer if I cancel?
- If I keep the money, what would I owe if I paid it back in three months?
Our funding contract checklist covers the other terms to read, and the lawsuit cash advance guide explains the basics.
Common questions
Can I cancel if I already spent part of the money?
Under the statutes above, cancellation requires returning the full amount, so spending part of it usually ends that option unless you can make up the difference before the deadline. The contract remains, and the question becomes how it gets paid, which how a lawsuit advance is paid back explains.
Do weekends count?
The statutes use business days. Check how your contract defines a business day and whether holidays are excluded, and get the company’s answer in writing.
Will cancelling affect my injury case?
Cancellation ends the contract “without penalty or further obligation,” the phrase used in California, Kansas, Missouri and several other states. Laws like California’s and Ohio’s already bar a funder from making decisions about your claim (6254; R.C. 1357.04), so the case goes on as before.
What if my lawyer never signed the contract?
In California a funding contract without the attorney’s written acknowledgment is void, and Illinois has a similar rule. See does my lawyer have to sign a funding contract.
Is cancelling the same as paying off early?
No. Cancelling undoes the deal inside the short window by returning the money. Paying off early happens later and usually means paying the funded amount plus the charges that have built up by then. Beverly Law does not offer or arrange lawsuit funding and receives no payment from funding companies. Beverly Law offers a free case review in English or Spanish at (310) 552-6959 if you have questions about your injury case. You owe no fees or costs unless we win.
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Related pages
Cash advance on a lawsuit · Laws by state · Injury law FAQs
Sources
- Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code 6251 (Justia, 2025 California Code) (law.justia.com)
- Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code 6254 (Justia, 2025 California Code) (law.justia.com)
- Georgia SB 69 (2025), O.C.G.A. 7-10-6, as signed (gov.georgia.gov)
- Illinois Consumer Legal Funding Act, 815 ILCS 121 (ilga.gov)
- Indiana Code 24-12 (copy posted by NCOIL) (ncoil.org)
- Kansas 2026 Session Laws ch. 130 (HB 2518) (kssos.org)
- Maine 9-A M.R.S. 12-104 (legislature.maine.gov)
- Missouri RSMo 436.554 (revisor.mo.gov)
- Mont. Code Ann. 31-4-107 (mca.legmt.gov)
- Neb. Rev. Stat. 25-3303 (nebraskalegislature.gov)
- Nevada NRS Chapter 604C (leg.state.nv.us)
- New York A.9442 (L. 2026, ch. 11), Financial Services Law art. 10 (nysenate.gov)
- Ohio Rev. Code 1357.03 (codes.ohio.gov)
- Ohio Rev. Code 1357.04 (codes.ohio.gov)
- Okla. Stat. tit. 14A, 3-806 (Justia) (law.justia.com)
- Tenn. Code 47-16-104 (Justia) (law.justia.com)
- Utah HB 280 (2026), enrolled (le.utah.gov)
- Vermont 8 V.S.A. ch. 74 (legislature.vermont.gov)
- W. Va. Code 46A-6N-3 (code.wvlegislature.gov)
Important: This page is general information, not legal or medical advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Every case is different; talk to a lawyer about yours. Texas cases are handled by the firm’s Texas-licensed attorneys, Joyce Ondich and John Efstathiou. Last reviewed: November 7, 2026.