Falcon v McCann

In the matter of Falcon v McCann, the plaintiff sought damages for the defendant's alleged negligent failure to diagnose the plaintiff's glaucoma. The dispute reached the Court of Appeal, where the primary issues revolved around the commencement of the action under the Limitation of Actions Act 1958. Specifically, the court needed to determine whether the plaintiff's knowledge of the glaucoma diagnosis was sufficient to trigger the limitation period or whether the limitation period only commenced upon the plaintiff's knowledge of the separate disease that followed the arrest of the glaucoma.

The court examined the statutory provisions, particularly section 5(1A) and section 23A of the Limitation of Actions Act 1958. It considered the established principles that the limitation period for personal injury claims commences upon the plaintiff's knowledge of the injury or the means by which the injury was caused. The court noted that the plaintiff first became aware of the glaucoma diagnosis in 2009. However, the plaintiff only became aware of the subsequent disease in 2014. The central issue was whether the 2009 diagnosis date or the 2014 disease date was the relevant date for calculating the limitation period.

The court concluded that the Limitation of Actions Act 1958 required the plaintiff to commence the action within three years of the date of first knowledge of the injury or the means by which the injury was caused. Since the glaucoma diagnosis in 2009 was sufficient knowledge of the injury, the limitation period began to run from that date. The court held that the plaintiff's knowledge of the subsequent disease in 2014 did not restart the limitation period. Therefore, the plaintiff's claim, filed in 2016, was outside the statutory limitation period, and the appeal was dismissed.