Deadlines for a personal injury claim

Nova Scotia has legislation which limits your legal rights to recover compensation.  More specifically, there is a deadline to ‘file your action’ with the court. This limit is referred to as the limitation period.

The deadline to file your claim in Nova Scotia is generally 2 years. This two-year rule applies to all car accidents which occurred on or after September 1, 2015.

There are exceptions to the general rule of two years, including claims filed against the Halifax Regional Municipality and Fatal injury claim.

If you think you may have missed the deadline, you should consider filing your claim immediately. Your claim is not immediately invalid, but the argument might be made by the Defendant(s) that your claim has been brought too late. A judge will ultimately decide whether your claim should be dismissed. Delay causing prejudice to the Defendant, or claims without any likelihood of success are more likely to be dismissed.

The clock usually begins at the date of the accident. In the unlikely event that you were not aware that you had a legal claim, the limitation period would begin running at the date of discovery. No matter when a claim is discovered, an ultimate limitation period of 15 years applies to all claims and starts from the date of the accident.

Jeff Mitchell is the Principal Lawyer and Founder of NOVA Injury Law.  Jeff has dedicated his practice to the area of personal injury, accident, and disability benefits law. Contact 1.800.262.8104 or jeff@novainjurylaw.com to arrange for a free case review today.