Tag Archives: Statute of Limitations

Improvement or Malpractice? Florida Court of Appeals Addresses Applicable Statute of Limitations

This entry was posted by Kyle Rice on June 30, 2023.

In Am. Auto. Ins. Co. v. FDH Infrastructure Servs. LLC., No. 3D22-1143, 2023 Fla. App. LEXIS 3662, the Court of Appeals of Florida, Third District (Court of Appeals) addressed whether Florida’s two-year statute of limitations governing professional malpractice actions or four-year statute of limitations governing improvements to real property was applicable to a claim involving a construction accident due to erroneous structural engineering calculations. The Court of Appeals determined that the four-year statute governing improvements to real property was more specific and governed only construction-based claims and, thus, was the appropriate governing statute. Continue reading →

This entry was posted in Construction Defects, Florida, Malpractice, Statute of Limitations-Repose and tagged Construction Defects, Florida, Improvement, Malpractice, Statute of Limitations.

Florida Continues Enacting Tort Reforms, This Time Shortening the Statute of Repose

This entry was posted by William L. Doerler on April 14, 2023.

On April 13, 2023, Florida’s governor, Ron DeSantis, signed into law SB 360 which, among other things, shortens the statute of repose period for improvements to real property. The law also revises the date on which the statute of limitations period runs for these types of damage claims. Florida’s revision of this law provides further evidence of the state’s tort reform efforts.

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This entry was posted in Construction Defects, Florida, Statute of Limitations-Repose and tagged Construction Defects, Florida, Statute of Limitations, Statute of Repose.

Florida Passes Tort Reform Bill

This entry was posted by William L. Doerler on March 27, 2023.

On Friday, March 24, 2023, Florida’s governor, Ron DeSantis, signed into law a tort reform bill, HB 837. The bill impacts, among other things, bad faith actions and attorney’s fee awards. Of particular importance to subrogation professionals are provisions impacting comparative fault, the statute of limitations and premises liability with respect to the criminal acts of third persons.

With respect to the statute of limitations, the bill amended Fla. Stat. § 95.11(3) and (4), to reduce the statute of limitations for negligence actions from four (4) years to two (2) years.

As for comparative fault, Fla. Stat. § 768.81 was amended to move Florida from a pure comparative fault jurisdiction for negligence actions to a modified comparative fault jurisdiction. Pursuant to § 768.81(6), as revised, in a negligence action subject to that section, “any party found to be greater than 50 percent at fault for his or her own harm may not recover any damages.” Section 768.81(6), however, does not apply to actions for damages for personal injury or wrongful death arising out of medical negligence.

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This entry was posted in Comparative-Contributory Negligence, Contribution-Apportionment, Florida, Negligence, Statute of Limitations-Repose and tagged Apportionment, Comparative Fault, Condominiums, Florida, Negligence, Non-Party at Fault, Statute of Limitations.

Hold on Just One Second: Texas Clarifies Starting Point for Negligence Statute of Limitations

This entry was posted by Lian Skaf on June 3, 2022.

In construction or similar ongoing projects, problems often pop up. Sometimes they can pop up again and again. Making things even more complicated, one problem may affect another, seemingly new problem. When these construction problems result in property damage, timelines tend to overlap and determining when a statute of limitation begins to run for a particular claim can be difficult. Especially in states with short statute of limitations for tort claims like Texas, knowing when a statute begins to run is crucial for a subrogation professional. Continue reading →

This entry was posted in Construction Defects, Negligence, Statute of Limitations-Repose, Texas and tagged Construction Defects, Negligence, Statute of Limitations, Statute of Limitations - Tolling, Texas.

Tick Tock: Don’t Let the Statute of Repose or Limitations Time Periods Run on Your Construction Claims

This entry was posted by Gus Sara on February 23, 2022.

In Wascher v. ABC Ins. Co., No. 2020AP1961, 2022 Wisc. App. LEXIS 110 (Feb. 9, 2022), the Court of Appeals of Wisconsin considered whether the plaintiffs were barred — by Wisconsin’s 10-year statute of repose for improvements to real property claims and the six-year statute of limitations for breach of contract claims — from bringing a lawsuit against the original builders of their home. The plaintiffs alleged negligence and breach of contract against the masonry subcontractors, asserting that they improperly installed the exterior stone cladding. The court found that the plaintiffs’ claims against the original builders were time-barred. Continue reading →

This entry was posted in Construction Defects, Contracts, Statute of Limitations-Repose, Wisconsin and tagged Construction Defects, Contracts, Statute of Limitations, Statute of Limitations – Discovery Rule, Statute of Repose, Substantial Completion, Wisconsin.