Limitation periods are deadlines for commencing legal action. In Ontario medical malpractice cases, the basic framework is set by the Limitations Act, 2002, which establishes a general two-year limitation period running from the day the plaintiff first knew, or ought to have known, the basic facts that ground the claim. The discoverability principle in section 5 of the Act is the most heavily litigated aspect of medical malpractice limitations analysis, because patients often do not know that an adverse outcome was caused by negligent care until well after the outcome itself.
The Act also contains an ultimate fifteen-year limitation period in section 15, postponements for minors and incapable persons in sections 6 and 7, and exceptions for certain proceedings in section 16. The postponement for minors is particularly important in birth injury cases, where the limitation period does not begin to run against the injured child until they reach age 18, unless a litigation guardian acts earlier.
The Supreme Court of Canada’s decision in Grant Thornton LLP v New Brunswick, 2021 SCC 31, [2021] 2 SCR 829 clarified the discoverability standard, holding that a claim is discovered when the plaintiff has knowledge of the material facts on which a plausible inference of liability can be drawn against the defendant.
Posts tagged Limitation Periods analyze Ontario decisions interpreting the Limitations Act, 2002, including discoverability disputes, the application of postponement provisions, and the role of limitations in motions for summary dismissal.
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