THE LIMITS OF REVENGE

One thing I hear a lot from friends of mine going through bad divorces is, "I'll sue him for that!"  The person they want to sue can be anyone--their attorney, the sucky accountant, the GAL, yes, the GAL is a big one to sue even though I have the feeling that they've got almost complete judicial immunity, the teacher who bad mouthed them about the kids or maybe even the custody evaluator who did worse.

All of these folks are rotten to the core and ought to be sued in my opinion.  Of course, after a year or so in a bad divorce, you pretty much have grounds to sue at least half a dozen people.  It's amazing how many people there are out in the world ready and prepared to make your life miserable, all for money, power, and position.  So, it isn't surprising that sooner or later litigants in family court start talking about how they are going to sue. 

Unfortunately, a lot of them start talking about it long after the opportunity is gone.  

Why?

Because, ladies and gentlemen, there is something called "The Statute of Limitations."  Every state has one, including Connecticut.  This means that after a certain amount of time, unless a legal exception applies, you can no longer sue a person for an injury because the Statute of Limitations has run out. 

The following is a list of some of the common limitations on your right to sue in Connecticut:
Defamation - 2 years
Fraud - 3 years
Injury to personal property - 2 years from date injury was discovered
Libel - 2 years
Medical malpractice actions - 2 years from date of injury
Breach of Oral Contract - 3 years
Personal injury actions - 2 years from date of injury
Professional malpractice - 2 years from date of injury
Slander - 2 years
Breach of Written Contract - 6 years
Wrongful Death - 2 years from date of death

These are mostly civil actions.  I believe there is no Statute of Limitations in regard to criminal actions.  Furthermore, the Statutes of Limitations vary according to cause of action, and they also vary by state. 

The timeframes I have provided are strictly those of the State of Connecticut.  If you live in another state, you will find different Statutes of Limitation for that other state.  

So when does a Statute of Limitations start to run?   A Statute of Limitations is said to start running at the time a claim accrues.  Ordinarily, that is the time at which an injury is suffered.  After that things become more complicated. 

For example, there is the Discovery Rule.  The Discovery Rule states that sometimes it isn't possible to figure out that an injury has occurred until long after it has happened.  For example, you may not notice an error in a will until the person dies and the will is being executed. 

When the Discovery Rule is applied to a situation, you can extend the Statute of Limitations in regard to your case.  However, you really have to read up on your matter and consult with an attorney to see if your claim to extend the Statute of Limitations will hold up in court. 

Another way to extend the Statute of Limitations is by arguing the Statute has been tolled because the victim was a minor, or because the victim was mentally incompetent at the time the injury occurred.  Or, perhaps you were in a coma and unable to pursue your legal rights.  Unfortunately, at this point, Connecticut has no law which extends the Statute of Limitations for injured minors. 

Any of these Statutes of Limitation can be circumvented by a prior agreement of the Parties involved.  So make sure you look at any agreements you sign to make sure that you preserve your rights. 

One problem for victims of high conflict divorce is that they miss the Statutes of Limitations because the divorce is still underway.  That means they are too exhausted with the ongoing litigation to get around to filing a lawsuit. 

Plus, in the end, as I have said, there are so many people to sue, who you gonna start with, right! 

Still, if you think you have a good case and you really want to pursue it, don't mess up the opportunity by missing the Statute of Limitations.  Keep track of when you have to file and consult with a lawyer about how to safeguard your right to sue. 

Usually, the lawyers, mental health professionals, and accountants who have victimized you have already victimized multiple other people before they got to you.  So the work you do in following up and pursuing a wrongdoer will save other people from suffering the way you suffered and, bottom line, it is absolutely worth it.