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Amendment to add defendant refused where plaintiff failed to show due diligence before limitation expiry.
The plaintiff moved to amend a statement of claim arising from a motor vehicle collision by removing the existing defendants and adding a new defendant alleged to be the correct tortfeasor.
The motion was brought after the expiry of the two‑year limitation period, with the plaintiff arguing the claim was only discovered upon reviewing disclosure materials indicating another driver caused the collision.
The court applied the discoverability principles governing motions to add parties and held that the plaintiff failed to provide evidence of reasonable diligence in identifying the proper defendant within the limitation period.
The evidentiary record did not explain the delay in retaining counsel or the steps taken to determine the identity of the responsible driver.
The motion to add the proposed defendant was therefore dismissed, although the existing defendants were removed from the action.
