Tolling Agreement
(Statute of Limitations) (NY)

Summary

This tolling agreement template can be used to toll a statute of limitations applicable to existing claims in a New York civil action. This template includes practical guidance, drafting notes, and an alternate clause. The purpose of a tolling agreement is to suspend the period of time in which parties must legally bring a lawsuit. A tolling agreement extends the filing deadline and allows parties to negotiate and possibly resolve their dispute without litigation. N.Y. Gen. Oblig. Law § 17-103. Statutes of limitations are laws that say how long, after certain events, you can start a case based on those events. If the statute of limitations has run out, the case cannot be started in court. The amount of time by when a person or agency can start a case differs based on the claim (e.g., cases about real property have a long time period, while slander and libel have short time periods). Except for when a government agency is sued, there is almost always at least one year from the date of an event to start a case no matter what type of claim it is. In other words, don't worry if you file your case within this one-year period. In civil cases, statutes of limitations usually range between one and ten years. The time period is calculated in two ways: • From the date of the event itself (e.g., the date of a personal injury). • From the date of the discovery of a condition that harms your client (e.g., the date of discovery of a defect in a manufactured good) Consult the New York courts' Statutes of Limitations timetable to find the time period for your civil case. For related content, see Computing and Extending Time in Litigation (NY), Commencing a Civil Action Resource Kit (NY), and Civil Litigation Fundamentals Resource Kit (NY).