Here’s Some Advice: Your Cause of Action Accrues Now….
April 9, 2014In this negligent misrepresentation case, Guarantee Company of North America sued Weaver and Tidwell LLP for issuing negligent audit reports on which Guarantee relied when issuing performance bonds. The central issue on appeal was whether the two-year statute of limitations for negligent misrepresentation actions barred Guarantee’s claim. The Court held that “a person suffers legal injury from faulty professional advice when the advice is taken.” Thus, the claim in this suit accrued as soon as Weaver’s alleged misrepresentation induced Guarantee to act; that is, when Guarantee issued its first bond in reliance on the faulty audit, which was more than two years before it filed suit. While Guarantee argued that the discovery rule applied to toll the statute of limitations, the Court refused to apply the discovery rule here because Guarantee did not obtain findings on when it knew or should have known of the facts that gave rise to its cause of action.
