In basic term, statutory limitation refers to the maximum period of time within which claim could be validly initiated in Court of Law. The law discourages stale demand which might become difficult or impossible to prove or rebut.
“…it is therefore not in the interest of any community for litigation to be ageless, timeless and perpetual. There has to be an end to litigation. To ensure this, limitation laws have been enacted to limit the period during which litigation could be commenced for various classes of actions. Therefore, once an action is caught up by the limitation law, the plaintiff will lack the legal right to enforce his cause of action. In other words, legal proceedings cannot be instituted validly, once the action is statute – barred”
S & Y (NIG) LTD & ORS v. AMCON
(2020) LPELR-50336(CA)
Statute of limitation is applicable to recovery of debt; recovery of debt unlike crime does not have an infinite lifespan. The action for debt recovery must commence within the specified time frame (which depends on the nature of transaction among others) once the cause of action accrues.
When does cause of action accrues?
“It seems fairly well settled in law that in an action for the recovery of debt, the cause of action would accrue upon a demand for payment of the debt by the Creditor and its refusal or decline by the Debtor”
ZEROCK CONSTRUCTION (NIG) LTD v. FAPLIN (NIG) LTD (2022) LPELR-57504 (CA)
“There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens”
Ecclesiastes 3:1
