LER Project: Statute of Limitations

Question:  Should the Statute of Limitations be allowed to run when a litigant knows of a crime but is prohibited from reporting it?

Discussion:  One motivation for obstructionism in pre-trial maneuvering can sometimes be a desire for a person who has committed an act which might result in prosecution to see the statute of limitations run out before the civil trial is finished.

If it is good public policy that a litigant not use criminal prosecution or the threat of criminal prosecution to bring the litigation to a favorable conclusion, it would seem to be equally good policy that the statute of limitations be suspended while the litigation continues.