Opinion ID: 407632
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Mental Incompetence

Text: 6 Plaintiff first contends that his mental incompetence should toll the statute of limitations on his FELA claims. The district court did not reach the issue whether tolling was possible, because it held that Atkins had not raised an issue of fact as to his incompetence. The railroad argues that mental incompetence can never toll the statute of limitations in a FELA case. 7 We conclude that Atkins has not raised a triable issue of fact as to his competence. The only evidence of incompetence he produced was two medical reports from the period of Atkins' hospitalization for psychiatric problems shortly before the eye accident. The reports conclude that he is a man of low intelligence and little education, with a possibility of brain disfunction or psychosis. This is not enough to raise an issue as to whether he was incompetent after the accident. 8 Because we find no issue of fact, we need not decide whether the plaintiff's incompetence will ever toll the FELA statute of limitations. But see Brooks v. Southern Pacific Co., 105 Ariz. 442, 445, 466 P.2d 736, 739 (1970) (holding that FELA statute of limitations is tolled by incompetence).