Thank you, Mr. Chairman. The purpose of the Act to Amend the Limitation of Actions Act is to address a shortcoming in the legislation with respect to limitation periods imposed on actions arising out of sexual assaults. The Limitation of Actions Act sets out the time period in which civil suits must be commenced. Law suits for assault, including sexual assault, must be brought within two years of the incident. Sexual assaults are unlike other wrongs for which a civil suit may be undertaken. In the case of sexual assaults, it has been shown that victims are often so traumatized that they are unable or unwilling to consider bringing a law suit for damages against an assailant for years after the events, if ever. Victims often cope with a sexual assault by disassociating themselves psychologically and emotionally from the event. When the victim has finally overcome this impediment, the two-year limitation period acts to prevent legal action. In this manner, a sexual offender is more likely to avoid civil consequences for the assault where the victim is most severely traumatized. It is not in the public interest to extend immunity from liability to sexual offenders.

Mr. Chairman, these amendments address this problem by proposing that the running of the limitation period be delayed until the victim was capable of commencing the proceedings. A presumption would be set out in the amendment that the victim was incapable of commencing proceedings earlier than the time they were commenced.

In cases where the perpetrator of the assault was in a position of trust or authority in relation to the victim, or where the victim was dependent on the assaulter, sexual assaults are likely to be even more traumatic than otherwise. The assault almost always causes various psychological and emotional harms to the victim, the damage, for the most part, being hidden and often debilitating. When the damage begins to become apparent, the connection between the assault and the present psychological injuries is often unknown to the victim. For these cases, the amendment would propose that the limitation period be removed altogether. A determination of whether a victim was in a relationship of dependence or trust would be made by the court.

Mr. Chairman, the proposed amendments are consistent with the recommendation of the special advisor on gender equality in her report The Justice House, May 1991, and are part of the government's ongoing commitment to address issues of violence in our society.

Mr. Chairman, I am now ready to proceed with the review of this bill.