- Reviews key appellate decisions on limitation handed down in 2026, covering court fees, substitution, latent damage, fiduciary claims and the implications of delay where no statutory limitation period applies
Limitation can look deceptively tidy: identify the cause of action, calculate when the limitation period ends and issue in time. Job done. However, commercial disputes are rarely so orderly. Clients discover facts in stages, the correct defendant may not be obvious, corporate structures change, and claims evolve, sometimes over many years.
For litigators advising on long-running, complex disputes, this means limitation risks may emerge in ways that were not apparent when first instructed. If missed or mismanaged, the consequences can be severe.
In the first half of 2026, the appellate courts addressed a diverse range of limitation issues. Viewed together, these decisions reveal no overarching claimant- or defendant-friendly direction of travel, but they offer practical guidance and point to a common lesson for litigators: limitation should be treated not
