Matthew and others v Sedman and others [2019] EWCA Civ 475 (20 March 2019)
The appeal concerned the calculation of the limitation period for a negligence claim against trustees under a scheme of arrangement. The scheme allowed claims to be submitted before the ‘bar date’. Claims could be made up until midnight on the ‘bar date’.
The Court of Appeal decided the cause of action accrues at midnight, not after.
Irwin LJ noted, and Underhill LJ agreed, midnight deadline cases differed from others because a midnight deadline provides a categorical indication of when the cause of action accrues (ie midnight). There were no questions of fractions of a day which, there may have been if the deadline stipulated, say 9am or 3pm.
The Court of Appeal’s decision is a must read for anyone dealing with litigation issued at or near the expiry of the limitation period.