Opinion ID: 1822354
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: whether the circuit court erred in dismissing the claims against vaughan.

Text: ¶ 25. The Longs offered two reasons to the circuit court why they substituted Vaughan as a defendant almost three years after McKinney filed her original complaint: (1) the language within and the effect of this Court's order granting interlocutory appeal and (2) the tolling provided by Rule 9(h) and the relation back of the amended complaint to the filing of the original complaint under Rule 15(c). They now present these same arguments as grounds for finding the circuit court erred in dismissing Vaughan. Vaughan responds by arguing the amended complaint does not relate back to the filing of the original complaint, and this Court's orders did not operate to toll the statute of limitations against him, as this Court had no personal jurisdiction over him when they were entered. ¶ 26. The circuit court treated the amended complaint as a new cause of action, having dismissed the original complaint for lack of service of process on motion by Memorial Hospital. The court then found the statute of limitations barred the action against Vaughan because the statute of limitations on any claim of medical negligence is barred after the passage of two (2) years from the date of injury. The circuit court appears to have addressed the Longs's arguments concerning the effect of this Court's order only on interlocutory appeal. The issue of the effect of the circuit court's orders and our interlocutory appeal order is dispositive, therefore, we will examine only this argument. We find the circuit court's judgment dismissing Vaughan to be in error, and therefore reverse its judgment as to Vaughan and remand this matter for further proceedings. ¶ 27. A suit to recover for damages caused by medical malpractice must be filed within two (2) years from the date the alleged act, omission or neglect shall or with reasonable diligence might have been first known or discovered, in no event more than seven (7) years after the alleged act, omission or neglect occurred. . . . Miss.Code Ann. § 15-1-36 (Rev.2003). This two-year period begins to run when the patient can reasonably be held to have knowledge of the injury itself, the cause of the injury, and the causative relationship between the injury and the conduct of the medical practitioner. Powe, 892 So.2d at 227 (quoting Smith v. Sanders, 485 So.2d 1051, 1052 (Miss.1986)). Section 15-1-57 of the Mississippi Code provides: Where any person shall be prohibited by law, or restrained or enjoined by order, decree, or process of any court in this state from commencing or prosecuting any action or remedy, the time during which such person shall be so prohibited, enjoined or restrained, shall not be computed as any part of the period of time limited by this chapter from the commencement of such action. Miss.Code Ann. § 15-1-57 (Rev.2003). ¶ 28. Regardless of the validity of this Court's interlocutory appeal order which stayed the proceedings and tolled the statute of limitations, the Legislature provided a savings measure which removes the period of time a party is prohibited from prosecuting her claim from computation under the applicable statute of limitations. The Longs were restrained by orders of the circuit court from prosecuting their claims against the fictitious party defendants identified in their lawsuit when the circuit court dismissed those claims. They were similarly prohibited from prosecuting their claims under the McKinney complaint by the same circuit court orders. This Court's order granting interlocutory appeal stayed the proceedings in both lawsuits and provided that the statute of limitations would be tolled for the duration of the appeal. According to the savings measure provided by the statute, the time the Longs were prohibited from prosecuting their claims by the orders of this Court and the circuit court is not included in the computation of time allowed to file suit under the medical malpractice statute of limitations. ¶ 29. On remand after the interlocutory appeal, the Longs were no longer prohibited from prosecuting their claims, and the statute of limitations began to run once again. The record reflects the Longs named Vaughan as a defendant just over three months after remand and served process upon him within ten months after remand. The McKinney complaint was active for eleven months before the interlocutory appeal order was entered. The time allowed by the medical malpractice statute of limitations had not yet expired when Vaughan was served with the amended complaint. The circuit court erred in dismissing Vaughan as a defendant. Therefore, the judgment of the circuit court as to Vaughan is reversed, and this matter remanded for further proceedings. ¶ 30. We recognize that the courts of this state have no power to extend statutes of limitations beyond their terms. See Shewbrooks v. A.C. & S., Inc., 529 So.2d 557, 564 (Miss.1988). Nothing in this Court's opinion should be read to support a contrary conclusion. However, the order of this court did restrain the Longs's ability to prosecute their claims, and under those circumstances it is the Legislature and its statute, not this body, which exempts the time from calculation under the malpractice limitations statute. We do not anticipate that conflicts of this nature, between co-plaintiff parties in a wrongful death actionone of which has access to medical records and excludes the others, will occur in the future. III. WHETHER EQUITABLE PRINCIPLES SUCH AS EQUITABLE TOLLING APPLY TO PRESERVE THE LONGS'S CLAIMS AGAINST MEMORIAL HOSPITAL AND/OR DR. VAUGHAN IN LIGHT OF THE PROCEDURAL HISTORY AND THE REASONING OF LONG v. McKINNEY, 897 So.2d 160 (Miss. 2004). ¶ 31. The Longs finally argue that this court should hold the statute of limitations to be equitably tolled from the time their participation in the McKinney lawsuit was restricted by the circuit court until remand of this matter. Memorial Hospital and Vaughan respond by arguing that equitable tolling does not apply to either of them because they took no steps to prevent the filing of the lawsuit and are not responsible for the conflicts between McKinney and the Longs. ¶ 32. The circuit court dismissed Memorial Hospital without prejudice and without considering whether the statute of limitations now bars McKinney's claims against Memorial Hospital. This ruling on the issue disposed of the motion and granted the relief requested. Under the circumstances, we will not address this issue as it is not properly before us. ¶ 33. Since we are reversing the circuit court's order dismissing Vaughan and remanding for further proceedings, this issue is moot with respect to Vaughan.