Tolling

Tolling is the pausing or extending of a statute of limitations or other filing deadline. A deadline may be tolled by statute, by a court for fairness reasons, or by agreement between the parties, so that the time during the tolling period does not count.

Origin

The idea comes from the common-law view that limitations periods should not run when it would be unfair, such as while a plaintiff is a child or legally incapacitated. States later wrote many tolling grounds into their limitations statutes, and federal bankruptcy law adds its own extensions when a defendant files for bankruptcy.

Significance in Asbestos Context

Asbestos deadlines usually start at diagnosis or when the person knew or should have known the disease was asbestos-related, under the discovery rule. Tolling can then stop the clock for specific reasons, and the grounds vary by state: the claimant's minority or mental incapacity, the defendant's absence from the state, a defendant's fraudulent concealment, a pending class action in some situations, or a written tolling agreement in which a defendant agrees not to raise the deadline for a set period while the parties talk. When a defendant files for bankruptcy, federal law gives claimants some extra time after the automatic stay ends. Asbestos trusts have their own limitation rules, which often account for the time before the trust opened or for lawsuits already filed. Tolling is technical and depends heavily on the facts and the state, and courts read the grounds narrowly, so it should never be counted on as a substitute for filing on time.

Example Sentence

The defendant signed a tolling agreement pausing the deadline for six months while the parties exchanged medical records.

Related Terms

Statute of Limitation, Discovery Rule, Contra Non Valentem, Fraudulent Concealment, Statute of Repose, Chapter 11

Notes

• Never rely on tolling to save a claim; contact a lawyer soon after any asbestos diagnosis.
• Keep records of when you were diagnosed and when a doctor first linked your illness to asbestos.
• Any tolling agreement should be in writing; keep a copy.