Opinion ID: 1060258
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 5

Heading: cumberland

Text: We turn now to consider whether Cumberland's case falls within the statutory exception of Code § 8.01-1. We address directly the issue whether he has demonstrated a miscarriage of justice, because we conclude that it is dispositive of his appeal. Cumberland argues that the trial court abused its discretion under Code § 8.01-1 in failing to apply the law that was in effect on June 30, 1993. He emphasizes the fact that, when the 1993 enactments became effective, his claim was awaiting action by the designated review panel. Thus, Cumberland asserts, if the repeal provision applied to his cause of action, his right of action was completely foreclosed by lapse of time before the review panel rendered its opinion on September 10, 1993. In support of his argument, Cumberland states that the tolling provisions of former Code § 8.01-581.9 provided necessary statutory relief from the running of the statute of limitations. This relief was needed, he asserts, because former Code § 8.01-581.2 prohibited plaintiffs from filing a motion for judgment until 90 days after they had given notice of claim, and after the review panel process, if any, had been completed. Since he was subjected to these delays imposed by statute when he filed his notice of claim and refrained from filing suit, Cumberland argues that a miscarriage of justice will result if he is denied the benefit of the tolling provisions. In response, Boone asserts that Cumberland cannot claim that application of the repeal provision left him no opportunity to preserve his rights by filing suit. Boone argues that Cumberland could have filed his motion for judgment beginning July 1, 1993, within the unexpired time remaining on the statute of limitations, and that application of the repeal provision does not result in a miscarriage of justice. Citing Starnes v. Cayouette, 244 Va. 202, 211-12, 419 S.E.2d 669, 674-75 (1992), Boone contends that he, rather than Cumberland, would suffer a miscarriage of justice if Boone is denied his right to rely on the repeal provision and its effect on the running of the statute of limitations. We disagree with the conclusion urged by Boone. At the time Cumberland gave his notice of claim, former Code § 8.01-581.2 prohibited him from filing a motion for judgment until after the applicable statutory time period had expired. As we explained in Baker v. Zirkle , the potential adverse effects of this requirement on a plaintiff's right to bring suit were remedied by the tolling provisions of former Code § 8.01-581.9. 226 Va. at 13, 307 S.E.2d at 236-37. Thus, prior to July 1, 1993, no plaintiff who was subject to the requirements of former Code § 8.01-581.2 was denied the tolling benefits of former Code § 8.01-581.9. We believe that application of the repeal provision to Cumberland's case would disrupt this carefully balanced statutory scheme and subject Cumberland to the disadvantage of the former notice of claim requirement, while denying him the intended compensatory benefit of the former tolling provisions. We conclude that such a result would constitute a miscarriage of justice. As we stated in Baker, former Code § 8.01-581.9 was enacted by the General Assembly [i]n an obvious effort to compensate for [the] restrictions upon a claimant's usual free access to the courts and to provide relief from an otherwise harsh application of the statute of limitations. 226 Va. at 13, 307 S.E.2d at 236-37; see also Wertz v. Grubbs, 245 Va. 67, 71-72, 425 S.E.2d 500, 502 (1993). Our decision here employs that compensatory statute to prevent the imbalance in remedy that would otherwise result from application of the repeal provision. Although the General Assembly could have enacted a saving clause in its repeal of the tolling provisions, we do not believe that its failure to do so requires a different result. Code § 8.01-1 imposes a duty on the trial court to prevent a manifest injustice in the application of a new provision of law. This duty is not dependent on the presence of a saving clause in the new provision of law; in fact, the need to exercise this statutory duty is most plainly manifest in a case such as this, when no saving clause was enacted to preserve the original statutory balance. Therefore, we hold that a plaintiff who has given a notice of claim prior to July 1, 1993, pursuant to former Code § 8.01-581.2, is entitled to the compensatory benefit of the tolling provisions of former Code § 8.01-581.9. We also disagree with Boone's contention that Starnes v. Cayouette is contrary to our holding here. In Starnes, we held that the defendant had an enforceable right to rely on a statute of limitations which had expired before passage of legislation redefining the accrual date of a cause of action for sexual misconduct. 244 Va. at 204-05, 212, 419 S.E.2d at 670, 675. Unlike the defendant in Starnes, Boone did not acquire any such property right prior to the effective date of the repeal provision. Thus, application of former Code § 8.01-581.9 does not divest Boone of any property right already accrued before July 1, 1993. For these reasons, we will affirm the trial court's judgment in favor of DiMattina, and we will reverse the trial court's judgment in favor of Boone and remand that case for further proceedings consistent with this opinion. Record No. 941410  Affirmed. Record No. 941923  Reversed and remanded. LACY, J., dissents in part.