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Keywords

plaintiffdefendantdiscoverynegligencestatutestatute of limitations

plaintiffdefendantdiscoverynegligence

Related Cases

Diamond v. New Jersey Bell Tel. Co., 51 N.J. 594, 242 A.2d 622

Facts

In 1957, Bell Telephone Company installed an underground conduit on the plaintiffs' property, allegedly in a negligent manner that broke the clean-outs on their sewer line. This negligence led to sediment accumulation, resulting in a sewer back-up and flooding of the plaintiffs' property on February 1, 1966. Prior to this incident, the plaintiffs were unaware of any damage to their sewer line. They filed a negligence action in July 1966, five months after the back-up, but the defendants claimed the action was barred by the statute of limitations.

In 1957, defendant Bell Telephone Company installed an underground conduit on plaintiffs' property in Morristown. The conduit was installed over plaintiffs' sewer line and, allegedly, the work was performed in such a negligent manner as to break the ‘clean-outs' on the sewer line. As a result, sediment gradually accumulated in the line until, on February 1, 1966, a back-up occurred and plaintiffs' property was flooded.

Issue

Did the plaintiffs' cause of action accrue at the time of the defendant's negligent installation of the conduit in 1957, or did it accrue later when the harm became reasonably apparent?

Rule

A cause of action accrues only when the plaintiff knows or should reasonably know of his injury, as established by the discovery rule.

Under that doctrine, a cause of action accrues only when the plaintiff knows or should reasonably know of his injury.

Analysis

The court applied the discovery rule, determining that the plaintiffs could not have reasonably known of their injury until the sewer back-up occurred in 1966. The court emphasized that the hidden nature of the harm, caused by the underground conduit, justified the application of the discovery rule, which allows for the statute of limitations to begin only when the injury is ascertainable. The court noted that requiring plaintiffs to assert a claim before they could reasonably know of the injury would be unjust.

The court applied the discovery rule, determining that the plaintiffs could not have reasonably known of their injury until the sewer back-up occurred in 1966.

Conclusion

The Supreme Court reversed the Appellate Division's decision and remanded the case, holding that the statute of limitations did not bar the plaintiffs' action because their cause of action did not accrue until the harm was reasonably apparent.

Reversed and remanded.

Who won?

The plaintiffs prevailed because the court recognized that the discovery rule applied, allowing them to pursue their negligence claim despite the time elapsed since the defendant's initial conduct.

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