Lee R. Schroeder is an Ohio licensed attorney with Schroeder Law LLC in Ottawa. He limits his practice to business, real estate, estate planning and agriculture issues in northwest Ohio. He can be reached at lee@leeschroeder.com or at (419) 523-5523. This article is not intended to serve as legal advice, and specific advice should be sought from the licensed attorney of your choice based upon the specific facts and circumstances that you face.
Statutes of limitation define the length of time after an issue arises that the person who has been damaged can try to recover money or other relief from the person who initially caused the damage. Unless a specific federal law is involved, Ohio law will define the appropriate statute of limitation. Typically the statute of limitations begins when the harm, damage, action or inaction took place. So for example, since the statute of limitations for civil trespass on real estate is four years, someone could sue the alleged trespasser within four years after the trespass took place.
Statutes of limitation are the laws that determine the length of time after an issue arises, during which time the person who has been damaged can try to recover money or other relief from the person who caused the damage. Usually, unless suing for violation of a specific federal law, Ohio law defines the appropriate statute of limitation.
Statutes of limitation are designed to ensure that disputes between people are brought while the facts at issue can still be identified, while witnesses are alive and relevant documents are less likely to be lost. Further, these laws allow society to have some certainty knowing that old arguments will not be brought up forever into the future.
Read more about the statute of limitations in the state of Ohio in Lee’s article in the Lima News here: Legal-Ease: Statutes of limitation
Source: LimaOhio.com, “Legal-Ease: Statutes of limitation,” by Lee R. Schroeder, July 30, 2016