The Mississippi Supreme Court affirmed the dismissal of a 10 year old case. In Knight v. Knight, two nephews sued their uncle less than one month after an alleged assault and battery in 1999.  The case languished for years until the lower court clerk filed a motion to dismiss for lack of prosecution in 2009.  The Plaintiffs did not respond, and the lower court dismissed the case.  The Plaintiffs retained new counsel and refiled the lawsuit.  The nephews claimed claimed because the original filing of the complaint tolled the one year statute of limitations for assault and battery, they were still within the time to file their claim.

The Supreme Court disagreed.  Clarifying what had been inconsistent language in its decisions going back decades, the Court held that when a case is dismissed for lack of prosecution, there is no tolling of the statute of limitations by the filing of the 2009 Complaint.  Because, the limitations period on the Plaintiffs' claims against their uncle expired in 2000, their refiling of the Complaint in 2010 was time-barred.

The decision is available by clicking here. James Colmer reprsented the defendant-uncle on appeal.