Equitable Tolling

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Equitable tolling is a legal principle that allows a court to extend the deadline for filing a lawsuit if certain fairness considerations warrant it. Even if a statute of limitations has technically expired, a court may apply equitable tolling if the plaintiff can show they were prevented from filing their lawsuit due to circumstances beyond their control, such as fraud or mistake by the defendant.
The court applied equitable tolling to allow the plaintiff to file their lawsuit even though they had missed the statute of limitations deadline.
In Hernandez v. City of New York (2019), the court applied equitable tolling because the plaintiff was unaware of the cause of their injury until after the deadline had passed.
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Frequently Asked Questions

What are the requirements for equitable tolling?

To successfully claim equitable tolling, a plaintiff must generally show: (1) they were unaware of their legal claim and (2) they acted with reasonable diligence once they discovered the claim.

Can equitable tolling be applied in any case?

Equitable tolling is a discretionary remedy applied on a case-by-case basis. Courts consider the specific circumstances of each case.

How is equitable tolling different from equitable estoppel?

Equitable estoppel prevents a party from asserting a defense due to their own misleading words or actions. Equitable tolling focuses on extending a deadline due to circumstances beyond the plaintiff's control.

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