Limitation Act 1981

This Act may be cited as the Limitation Act 1981.

This Act shall come into operation on a date to be fixed by the

Administrator by notice in the Gazette.

The Imperial Acts listed in Part I of the Schedule, to the extent therein indicated, cease to apply to the Northern Territory.

The Acts of the State of South Australia listed in Part II of the Schedule cease to apply as laws of the Territory.

Each Act of the State of South Australia listed in Part III of the Schedule is, to the extent therein indicated, amended in its application to the Territory.

Each Act of the Territory listed in Part IV of the Schedule is, to the extent therein indicated, amended.

Subject to section 9, whether or not an enactment or part of an enactment applying in the Territory (whether an Imperial Act or an

Act of the State of South Australia) is repealed by virtue of this section, this Act shall:

apply in respect of all those actions to which it is expressed to apply including the giving of notice of a proposal to institute an action, as a codification of the law relating to the limitation of actions; and

operate to the exclusion of all Imperial Acts and Acts of South

Australia applying in the Territory which contain provisions relating to the limitation of actions, including provisions relating to the giving of notice of a proposal to institute an action.

The Regulations may amend the Schedule by:

adding to the list of Imperial Acts in Part I thereof and indicating the extent to which the Acts so added cease to apply to the Territory;

varying Part I thereof by further limiting the extent to which the Imperial Acts listed therein apply to the Territory;

adding to the list of Acts of the State of South Australia in

Part II thereof;

adding to the list of Acts of the State of South Australia in

Part III thereof and indicating the extent to which the Acts so added are amended in their application to the Territory; and

varying Part III thereof by further limiting the extent to which the Acts of the State of South Australia listed therein apply as laws of the Territory.

In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears:

action includes any proceeding in a court of competent jurisdiction.

Crown includes not only the Crown in the right of the

Territory, but also, so far as the legislative power of the

Legislative Assembly permits, the Crown in the right of the

Commonwealth and each State and Territory of the Commonwealth.

deed includes:

an instrument which is executed under seal by all parties to the instrument and which is expressed to be a deed;

an instrument within the meaning of the Land Title Act 2000, whether or not registered under that Act;

an instrument which is expressed to be a deed and to be sealed but is not so sealed, and which is signed by each party in the presence of a witness; and

in the case of an instrument executed pursuant to the law of:

the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland;

the Commonwealth;

a State of the Commonwealth;

a Territory of the Commonwealth; or

New Zealand,

an instrument having the effect of a deed under the law pursuant to which it is executed.

disabled person means a person who, by reason of age, disease, illness or mental or physical infirmity, is incapable of managing his affairs in respect of legal proceedings.

income includes interest on a judgment and other interest, rent, annuities and dividends, but does not include arrears of interest secured by a mortgage and lawfully treated as principal.

judgment includes a judgment of a court of the

Commonwealth or a State or another Territory of the Commonwealth, or any country or part of a country.

land includes corporeal hereditaments, rent charges and a legal or equitable estate or interest in land whether held under freehold or leasehold tenure, including an interest in the proceeds of the sale of land held upon trust for sale but, except as provided in this definition, does not include incorporeal hereditaments.

mortgage includes a charge or lien on property for securing money or money's worth, but does not include a possessory lien on goods nor a binding effect on property arising by operation of law or under a writ of execution against the property.

mortgagee includes a person claiming through an original mortgagee.

mortgagor includes a person claiming property subject to a mortgage through an original mortgagor.

person under a disability means an infant or a disabled person, or a convicted person who, after conviction, is undergoing a sentence of imprisonment.

personal estate and personal property do not include chattels real.

personal injuries includes a disease and an impairment of a person's physical or mental condition.

personal representative means an executor to whom probate has been granted and includes an administrator to whom a grant of letters of administration has been made under the

Administration and Probate Act 1969.

plaintiff means a person bringing an action.

principal money, in relation to a mortgage, means money secured by the mortgage, including arrears of interest lawfully treated as principal, but does not include other interest.

putative defendant means a person who has reason to believe that another person:

is a person under a disability; and

would, but for that disability, be entitled to bring an action against him.

rent includes a rent charge and a rent service.

rent charge means an annuity or periodical sum of money charged upon or payable out of land, other than a rent service or interest on a mortgage of land.

successor, in relation to a person liable on a cause of action, means a person on whom the liability of the first-mentioned person devolves, whether as personal representative or otherwise on death or on bankruptcy, disposition of property or determination of a limited estate or interest or otherwise.

trust includes express, implied and constructive trusts, whether or not the trustee has a beneficial interest in the trust property, and whether or not the trust arises only by reason of a transaction impeached, and includes the duties incident to the office of personal representative but does not include the duties incident to the estate or interest of a mortgagee in mortgaged property.

trust for sale means, in relation to land, an immediate binding trust for sale whether or not exercisable at the request or with the consent of any person and with or without a power at discretion to postpone the sale.

tutor means, in relation to a person under a disability, another person appointed by a court to institute or defend legal proceedings on his behalf.

A person shall be taken to claim through another person if he became entitled by, through or under the act of that other person to the right claimed but a person becoming entitled to an estate or interest by virtue of a special power of appointment shall not be taken to claim through the appointor.

This Act does not apply to any action for which a period of limitation is prescribed by any other enactment other than an enactment referred to in section 3.

This section applies in relation to an action for damages for personal injury to a person arising from child abuse of the person.

Despite any other provision of this Act, an action mentioned in subsection (1) may be brought at any time and is not subject to any limitation period under this Act.

This section applies whether the claim for damages is brought in tort, in contract, under statute or otherwise.

This section extends to the following causes of action:

a cause of action that arises under the Compensation (Fatal

Injuries) Act 1974;

a cause of action that survives on the death of a person for the benefit of the person’s estate under the Law Reform (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1956.

This section does not limit:

any inherent jurisdiction, implied jurisdiction or statutory jurisdiction of a court; or

any other powers of a court arising or derived from the common law or under any other Act (including any Commonwealth Act), rule of court, practice note or practice direction.

Note for subsection (5)

For example, this section does not limit a court’s power to summarily dismiss or permanently stay proceedings where the lapse of time has a burdensome effect on the defendant that is so serious that a fair trial is not possible.

In this section:

child abuse means any of the following perpetrated against a person when the person is (or was) under 18 years of age:

sexual abuse;

serious physical abuse;

psychological abuse that arises from abuse mentioned in paragraph (a) or (b).

Subject to subsections (3) and (4), this Act binds the Crown and the Crown has the benefit of this Act.

For the purposes of this Act, an action by or against the Crown includes an action by or against an officer of the Crown as such or a person acting on behalf of the Crown.

This Act does not apply to:

an action by the Crown:

for the recovery of a fee, tax, duty or other sum of money or interest on a fee, tax, duty or other sum of money; or

in respect of the forfeiture of a ship; or

a prosecution for an offence whether it be an offence at common law or created by statute.

Notwithstanding any law or enactment now or formerly in force in the Territory, the right, title or interest of the Crown to or in land shall not be and shall be deemed not to have been in any way affected by reason of the possession of such land adverse to the

Crown for any period.

Nothing in this Act affects the rules of equity concerning the refusal of relief on the grounds of acquiescence or otherwise.

For the purposes of this Act, a claim by way of set-off or counter-claim shall be deemed to be a separate action and to have commenced on the same date as the action in which the set-off or counter-claim is pleaded.

Except as provided in sections 5A and 24 and in Division 2 of

Part III, nothing in this Act:

enables a person to bring an action that was barred before the commencement of this Act by an enactment repealed or amended by this

Act, except so far as the cause or right of action may be revived by confirmation in accordance with this Act; or

affects an action or arbitration commenced before the commencement of this Act or the title to property that is the subject of that action.

The time for bringing proceedings in respect of a cause of action that arose before the commencement of this Act shall, if it has not then expired, expire at the time it would have expired:

had this Act not come into operation; or

had this Act at all material times been in operation,

whichever is the later.

Except as provided in this section, nothing in this Act affects an action if the cause of action upon which that action is founded arose before the commencement of this Act.

Part II Periods of limitation

Division 1 Preliminary

Except as provided in section 20(6) or section 35D, the provisions of this Part have effect subject to the provisions of Part III.

Where, under each of 2 or more provisions of this Part, an action is not maintainable if brought after a specified time, the action is not maintainable if brought after the earlier or earliest of those times.

Division 2 General