An order dated May 13, 2020, amends the order dated March 25 and thus sets the end of the legally protected period as June 23 (inclusive), rather than June 24. Learn about the implications for the statute of limitations on claims.
Today, we’re revisiting the topic of the legally protected period during this public health emergency. Initially, this period ran from March 12 through June 24, 2020, inclusive. Therefore, if any of your commercial claims became time-barred during this period, you had until August 24, 2020, to take action: For more information, feel free to watch our video on the effects of the legally protected period.
An ordinance dated May 13, 2020, amends the one dated March 25 and thus sets the end of the legally protected period as June 23 (inclusive), rather than June 24. A one-day difference may seem trivial, but when it comes to the statute of limitations, the stakes are considerable. The key takeaway, under current law, is that your commercial claims, for example, which would otherwise become time-barred on June 24, 2020, no longer fall within the legally protected period and will therefore be considered time-barred. You must therefore take action before that date to interrupt the statute of limitations.
As for those that occurred during the legally protected period—that is, from March 12 to June 23, 2020—the deadline for taking action is also extended by one day, to August 23, 2020. However, since that date falls on a Sunday, the deadline is naturally extended to the following day, August 24. Therefore, there is no significant impact on this last point.