Legislation that would have shortened Missouri’s statute of limitations from five years to three years was blocked this week in the Senate.
Senate Bill 631 is currently on hold due to two Republican senators who sided with trial attorneys in preventing progress.
The bill was approved in committee and was scheduled for a vote on the Senate floor, but Sen. Bill Eigel (R-Weldon Spring) and Sen. Mike Moon (R-Ash Grove) filibustered it, according to bill supporter, the Missouri Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
“By blocking this bill, Sens. Eigel and Moon are simply working to keep Missouri courts tilted in favor of their trial attorney donors — at the expense of our economy,” said Daniel P. Mehan, president and CEO of the Missouri Chamber.
Eigel and Moon have taken tens of thousands of dollars in campaign contributions from trial attorney groups which have opposed reforming Missouri’s statute of limitations, according to the Chamber.
Neither Eigel nor Moon responded to requests for comment.
“Missouri can’t afford to let two senators stop our progress,” Mehan said. “We need work to build a fair court system that supports economic growth.”
The state currently has a two-year statute of limitations on medical malpractice claims as do COVID-19 claims under the Coronavirus Liability Reform Act, approved last year.
“Allowing years to go by before filing means records can be lost or discarded, witnesses may pass away or cannot be located, and memories fade — all factors that work against justice and can slant Missouri’s system against defendants, which are often businesses,” Mehan said.
Last year’s version of the bill, Senate Bill 3, was introduced by Sen. Dan Hegeman (R-Cosby), and HB 922, by Rep. Dan Houx (R-District 54), but was never voted on.
“Missouri’s outdated statute of limitations is creating costly delays in our state’s legal system,” Mehan added. “Currently, plaintiffs are allowed to delay filing personal injury lawsuits for up to five years — that’s double or more the amount of time provided by many other states. “