Key Terms
Plain definitions for the filing-deadline language used throughout this site — accrual, tolling, the discovery rule, open account, statute of repose, and more, each explained in everyday words.
- Accrual
- The moment a cause of action legally comes into existence and the filing clock starts. For most injury claims, accrual is the date of the harmful event, not the date a lawsuit is filed. Some claims accrue later, when the harm is found, which is why the start date is not always obvious.
- Tolling
- A pause or extension of the deadline. Common tolling reasons include the plaintiff being a minor, being mentally incapacitated, or the defendant leaving the state. The time does not run while tolling applies, so the remaining period resumes once the reason ends.
- Discovery rule
- A principle that starts the limit when the injury or wrongful act is discovered or reasonably should have been discovered, instead of when it occurred. Often applied to hidden medical or property harm, it protects people who could not have known they were injured right away.
- Open account
- A running line of credit with repeated charges and payments, such as a credit card. The collection deadline usually runs from the last activity or default on the account, not from the day the card was issued, which is why a recent payment matters.
- Statute of repose
- An outer cutoff date, often measured from a product’s sale or a construction’s completion, after which no claim may be filed even if the harm is discovered late. It is stricter than a standard limitation period and in some states cannot be tolled at all.
- Equitable tolling
- A court-created pause based on fairness, such as when a defendant actively concealed a wrong or when the plaintiff was prevented from filing by extraordinary circumstances. Unlike a named statute, a court grants it case by case after weighing the facts.
- Laches
- A defense in equity that bars a claim because of unreasonable delay and prejudice to the other side, even when a formal statutory deadline has not expired. It is most common in rare or older claims where evidence has gone stale over many years.
- Continuous treatment
- A rule in some medical malpractice laws under which the deadline runs from the end of a course of treatment with the same provider, not from each individual visit. It stops a patient from being time-barred midway through an ongoing relationship with one doctor or clinic.
- Pleading
- The formal written documents, such as a complaint, that start a lawsuit and state the claim. Filing the pleading within the limit is what stops the clock; a verbal demand or a letter to the other side does not count as filing, which is why the court date matters more than the dispute date.