Yes, it can be; the reason could be as a result of an equitable defense known as laches. Laches refers to having waited too long before filing your suit or before asking the court to give you some other relief. Sometimes when you’ve waited so long, the other party might’ve relied upon your inaction and taken some steps, whatever those steps might be, when you hadn’t filed your lawsuit sooner or if you hadn’t otherwise taken any position in court. When this scenario occurs and the other side has detrimentally relied upon you to not take an action; this qualifies as “laches” which can prevent you from obtaining relief.
A classic reason for laches could also be related to the passage of time which causes the evidence to become stale, results in witnesses forgetting or dying, or results in the destruction of documents. When you’ve taken too long to assert your position; the other side is prejudiced because they aren’t as likely to have the evidence they need to defend their claim simply because of the passage of time. Although your claim may not be disqualified by an applicable statute of limitations, you may still not be able to get to court because of the Doctrine of Laches.
If you’re concerned that your claim is time barred, please do pick up the phone and call me at phone number 410-484-9000. I would love to hear from you.
