Laiuppa v. Moritz

Summary

The court held that an action is commenced under the accidental failure of suit statute when the defendant receives the summons and complaint within the legally permitted period, even if service was defective. Because neither the defendant nor her agent was shown to have received those documents before the deadline, the plaintiff failed to establish that the original action was timely commenced for purposes of the statute, and summary judgment was proper. Justice Ecker, joined by Justice D’Auria, dissented, concluding that the defendant’s attorneys’ timely appearance established effective notice attributable to the defendant.