Virginia Personal Injury and Medical Malpractice Blog

Court rules that case brought within 2 years in another state satisfied Virginia's statute of limitations

Here is an unusual situation:

The plaintiff was injured in Virginia in a car accident with a resident of Ohio. He filed suit within 2 years in Ohio and he filed an identical suit here in Virginia after two years had passed.

After much legal wrangling, the Virginia court said that the lawsuit filed in Ohio (even though that Court ordered the case transferred to Virginia) was good enough to stop the running of the statue of limitations.

In this case an action was filed in the Ohio court one day before the running of the statute of limitations. The fact that the original action was filed in another state, and perhaps in an improper venue, is of no concern to this Court. The plain language of the tolling statute contemplates "any action" commenced within two years. Code § 8.01-229(E)(1). The commencement of the Ohio action falls within the statute.

This action was also brought within the remaining period allowed by the statute of limitations once the original action had ended, in this case one day. The fact that this action was commenced before the tolling period ended is not of consequence.

Thornton v. Estes Express Lines, 15 Cir. CL0800086500, 77 Va. Cir. 455 (2009)