Lee v. Simon

Medical Malpractice – Statute
of Limitations

Lee v. Simon, No. 4D03-3292 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. Oct. 27, 2004)

A Florida
district court of appeal held that the statute of limitations in medical
malpractice cases begins to toll when the plaintiff has notice of the injury
and its possible cause by medical negligence. In this case, the plaintiff claimed
that the two-year statute of limitations did not begin to run until he discovered
which doctor to sue. The court found that an extension can be granted only
where fraud or intentional concealment prevents the discovery of the injury,
not when there is a failure to discover the negligent actor. Accordingly, it
affirmed the final judgment in favor of the doctor based on the bar of the
statute of limitations.