Zilleruelo v. Commodity Transporters, 506 P.3d 509

Dec. 7, 2013: truck driven by Steven DeConto collided with John Zilleruelo’s car; Zilleruelo allegedly suffered a severe brain injury.
July 19, 2018: Zilleruelo sued DeConto and Commodity Transporters more than four years after the accident; defendants moved for summary judgment as time‑barred by the four‑year statute of limitations.
Zilleruelo asserted he was mentally incompetent for at least one year after the crash and that Utah Code § 78B‑2‑108 tolled the limitations period during his incompetency.
Defendants relied on a 2002 durable power of attorney (POA) in favor of Zilleruelo’s mother, arguing it either created a legal guardianship (so tolling didn’t apply) or otherwise negated incompetency as a matter of law.
The district court granted summary judgment, concluding the POA made the mother a “legal guardian” and therefore the tolling provision did not apply; it also found a genuine factual dispute on medical incompetency.
Utah Supreme Court reversed: it held § 78B‑2‑108(2) tolls limitations during a person’s mental incompetency regardless of the existence of a legal guardian or a preexisting POA, and remanded for further proceedings on the unresolved competency fact issues.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether § 78B‑2‑108(2) tolls the statute of limitations when a person is mentally incompetent but has a legal guardian or POA	Tolling occurs during the period of mental incompetency regardless of whether a legal guardian or POA exists	Tolling applies only where the person is mentally incompetent and without a legal guardian; the 2002 POA functionally prevented tolling	Held: Tolling is triggered solely by mental incompetency; existence of a legal guardian or POA does not prevent tolling. Reversed and remanded.
Whether the 2002 POA renders Zilleruelo competent as a matter of law	POA does not convert mental incompetency into legal competency or substitute for court determination	POA ensures management of affairs and thus negates incompetency as a matter of law	Held: Court will not treat POA as rendering Zilleruelo competent as a matter of law; genuine dispute of material fact about incompetency remains for district court.

Ellis v. Estate of Ellis, 169 P.3d 441 (Utah 2007) (prior interpretation that tolling did not apply if person had a legal guardian)
Bagley v. Bagley, 387 P.3d 1000 (Utah 2016) (use plain statutory language and narrow use of absurdity doctrine)
Marion Energy, Inc. v. KFJ Ranch P’ship, 267 P.3d 863 (Utah 2011) (statutory interpretation: ascertain Legislature’s intent starting with text)
O’Neal v. Div. of Fam. Servs., 821 P.2d 1139 (Utah 1991) (tolling statutes protect those unable to protect legal rights due to disability)
Johnson v. State, 945 P.2d 673 (Utah 1997) (tolling prevents loss of opportunity to bring claims where circumstances precluded pursuit)
McBroom v. Child, 392 P.3d 835 (Utah 2016) (statute tolled during minority until age of majority)