COVID-19: Ohio General Assembly Passes HB 197 Tolling the Statute of Limitations

Original post was dated March 27, 2020 - please continue reading towards end for future updates.

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the General Assembly has passed House Bill 197 to provide relief in many areas of our lives (i.e. unemployment benefits, extending primary voting, school testing, etc.) which have been devastated.    

For civil claimants and litigants, H.B 197 tolls several important dates:

  • The statute of limitations for claims set to expire between March 9, 2020, and July 30, 2020;

  • The time within which discovery or any aspect of discovery must be completed; and

  • The time within which a party must be served.

Tolling is a legal doctrine which effectively pauses the clock on any legal time period.   The provisions of H.B. 197 – if signed into law – apply retroactively to the date of the emergency declared by Executive Order 2020-01D, issued on March 9, 2020 and will expire on the date the period of emergency ends or July 30, 2020, whichever is sooner.

On its surface, H.B. 197 provides much-needed relief for civil claimants and litigants in these uncertain times.  However, there are many questions still to be answered:

  • For example, if there is a current statute of limitations to expire on May 1, 2020, does the claimant get the benefit of the tolling period (i.e. 143 days) after the date the period of emergency ends or July 30, 2020, whichever is sooner?  

  • Or is it calculated from May 1st, the original statute of limitations?

  • Or must he or she file immediately on Friday July 31, 2020 or the day after the order is lifted if sooner than July 30th?

  • For medical and dental malpractice claimants, how does H.B. 197 effect the time period in which one must serve a doctor, hospital or health provider with a 180-day letters?

  • How does the delay in discovery effect important dates in pending litigation like dispositive motion deadlines, expert deadlines, and trial?  

This is a developing area of law and I will strive to provide updates, clarity and guidance as new information emerges. 

House Bill 197 is awaiting Governor DeWine’s signature.

UPDATE - March 30, 2020 - 1:00 P.M. - On Friday, March 27, 2020, Governor DeWine signed H.B. 197 into law. Questions still remain, however, here are a number of useful resources:

UPDATE - July 14, 2020 - 11:26 A.M. - As previsouly discussed, the tolling provisions of HB 197 will expire on the date Governor DeWine rescinds Executive Order 2020-01D, issued on March 9, 2020, or July 30, 2020, whichever is sooner. Please keep in mind, Executive Order 2020-01D is different from orders issued by the Ohio Department of Health. Since it does not appear that Governor DeWine is going to rescind the EO before then, the tolling will continue to July 30, 2020 at which point it expires.

It is important to know that only statutes of limitations that fall between March 9, 2020 and July 30, 2020, are tolled. If your statute of limitations is July 31, 2020 or later, HB 197 does not toll your time and you should file your case on or before the original statute of limitations date. For the statute of limitations that have been tolled under HB 197, the new statute of limitation can be calculated by:

  1. Counting the number of days from March 9, 2020 to the original statute of limitation date

  2. Adding that number to July 30, 2020

For example, if your original statute of limitation was March 20, 2020, you add 11 days (March 9th to March 20th) to July 30, 2020 and arrive at your new statute of limitation date of Monday, August 10, 2020.  

Please be sure to check out The OAJ and the Ohio Supreme Court websites for additional resources on this topic on their COVID-19 Resources pages.