Hong Kong Ordinances

LIMITATION ORDINANCE - SECT 27

Time limit for personal injuries

Special provisions applicable to certain actions in respect of
personal injuries

(1) This section applies to any action for damages for negligence, nuisance or
breach of duty (whether the duty exists by virtue of a contract or of
provision made by or under an Ordinance or imperial enactment or independently
of any contract or any such provision) where the damages claimed by the
plaintiff for the negligence, nuisance or breach of duty consist of or include
damages in respect of personal  injuries to the plaintiff or any other person.

(2) Section 4 shall not apply to an action to which this section applies.

(3) Subject to section 30, an action to which this section applies shall not
be brought after the expiration of the period specified in subsections (4) and
(5).

(4) Except where subsection (5) applies, the said period is 3 years from-

   (a)  the date on which the cause of action accrued; or

   (b)  the date (if later) of the plaintiff's knowledge.

(5) If the person injured dies before the expiration of the period in
subsection (4), the period as respects the cause of action surviving for the
benefit of the estate of the deceased by virtue of section 20 of the
Law Amendment and Reform (Consolidation) Ordinance ( Cap 23) shall be 3 years
from-

   (a)  the date of death; or

   (b)  the date of the personal representative's knowledge, whichever is the
        later.

(6) In this section, and in section 28, references to a person's date of
knowledge are references to the date on which he first had knowledge of the
following facts-

   (a)  that the injury in question was significant; and

   (b)  that that injury was attributable in whole or in part to the act or
        omission which is alleged to constitute negligence, nuisance or breach
        of duty; and

   (c)  the identity of the defendant; and

   (d)  if it is alleged that the act or omission was that of a person other
        than the defendant, the identity of that person and the additional
        facts supporting the bringing of an action against the defendant, and
        knowledge that any acts or omissions did or did not, as a matter of
        law, involve negligence, nuisance or breach of duty is irrelevant.

(7) For the purposes of this section an injury is significant if the plaintiff
would reasonably have considered it sufficiently serious to justify his
instituting proceedings for damages against a defendant who did not dispute
liability and was able to satisfy a judgment.

(8) For the purposes of this section and section 28 a person's knowledge
includes knowledge which he might reasonably have been expected to acquire-

   (a)  from facts observable or ascertainable by him; or

   (b)  from facts ascertainable by him with the help of medical or other
        appropriate expert advice which it is reasonable for him to seek, but
        a person shall not be fixed under this subsection with knowledge of a
        fact ascertainable only with the help of expert advice so long as he
        has taken all reasonable steps to obtain (and, where appropriate, to
        act on) that advice.

(9) For the purposes of this section "personal representative" (遺產代理
人) includes any person who is or has been a personal representative of the
deceased, including an executor who has not proved the will (whether or not he
has renounced probate); and regard shall be had to any knowledge acquired by
any such person while a personal representative or previously.

(10) If there is more than one personal representative, and their dates of
knowledge are different, subsection (5)(b) shall be read as referring to the
earliest of those dates. (Replaced 67 of 1976 s. 5) [cf. 1975 c. 54 s. 1 U.K.]

"personal representative" (遺產代理人)