The defendant insurer brought a motion for summary judgment to dismiss the plaintiff's action for long-term disability benefits on the basis that it was commenced outside the two-year limitation period.
The defendant also moved to dismiss the action for late service of the statement of claim, while the plaintiff cross-moved to validate service.
The court validated the late service of the statement of claim, finding the delay was due to solicitor inadvertence during the COVID-19 pandemic and caused no prejudice.
The court also allowed the summary judgment motion to proceed despite the defendant not having filed a statement of defence, finding the plaintiff's prior counsel had implicitly consented to the procedure.
On the limitation period issue, the court held that the plaintiff's claim was discovered when she received the initial denial letter, which clearly stated the denial was final and explicitly warned of the limitation period.
The internal appeal process did not pause the limitation period.
The action was dismissed as statute-barred.
