Hong Kong · civil procedure
What period applies to action for account lookback?
Matters arising more than 6 years before commencement. Identify matters outside the ordinary six-year account lookback. The boundary does not determine whether a matter is recoverable on its merits.
- Period
- Matters arising more than 6 years before commencement
- Trigger
- Actual commencement date of the action and dates of relevant matters
- Rule
- Limitation Ordinance (Cap. 347), section 4(2)
Official verified English consolidated chapter 347, version July 9,2020. Acquired October 9, 2026, with the official current register and immutable verified PDF. Current verified official English consolidated chapter PDFs acquired October 9, 2026. Version dates retained per chapter register. No claim that a calendar proves future gale, black-rainstorm or emergency office closures.
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What period applies to action for account lookback?
Matters arising more than 6 years before commencement. Identify matters outside the ordinary six-year account lookback. The boundary does not determine whether a matter is recoverable on its merits.
Responsible actor. Claimant seeking an account.
Actual commencement date of the action and dates of relevant matters
Matters arising more than 6 years before commencement
Claimant seeking an account. Actual commencement retained; Individual matter dates established; Applicable trust and other limitation provisions checked. Section 4(2) limits matters within an account, rather than defining one new accrual date for the whole account.
Limitation Ordinance (Cap. 347), section 4(2)How does this provision count time?
- Identify matters outside the ordinary six-year account lookback
- Claimant seeking an account uses the established actual commencement date of the action and dates of relevant matters. Matters arising more than 6 years before commencement. Use calendar months or calendar years, not a fixed number of thirty-day blocks. The retained ordinary examples use corresponding dates. A missing anniversary date needs a separately supported rule. Work backward from actual commencement. A matter exactly six years earlier is not a matter arising more than six years earlier.
- Identify matters outside the ordinary six-year account lookback. An office calendar does not automatically change this service, deemed-event, minimum-interval or status boundary. The source and the actual completion route control. The boundary does not determine whether a matter is recoverable on its merits.
- The boundary does not determine whether a matter is recoverable on its merits.
Claimant seeking an account uses the established actual commencement date of the action and dates of relevant matters. Matters arising more than 6 years before commencement. Use calendar months or calendar years, not a fixed number of thirty-day blocks. The retained ordinary examples use corresponding dates. A missing anniversary date needs a separately supported rule. Work backward from actual commencement. A matter exactly six years earlier is not a matter arising more than six years earlier.
Identify matters outside the ordinary six-year account lookback. An office calendar does not automatically change this service, deemed-event, minimum-interval or status boundary. The source and the actual completion route control. The boundary does not determine whether a matter is recoverable on its merits.
Limitation Ordinance (Cap. 347), section 4(2)What do independently checked examples show?
Fictitious example
Claimant seeking an account. Actual commencement date of the action and dates of relevant matters occurs on Friday, October 9, 2026. The retained eligibility and ordinary procedural conditions apply.
| Step | What is counted | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Example 1. Ordinary established facts | Claimant seeking an account. Actual commencement date of the action and dates of relevant matters occurs on Friday, October 9, 2026. The retained eligibility and ordinary procedural conditions apply. Matters arising more than 6 years before commencement. The boundary does not determine whether a matter is recoverable on its merits. | Friday, October 9, 2020 |
| Example 2. Closed-day boundary | Claimant seeking an account. Actual commencement date of the action and dates of relevant matters occurs on Monday, October 19, 2026. The retained eligibility and ordinary procedural conditions apply. Matters arising more than 6 years before commencement. The boundary does not determine whether a matter is recoverable on its merits. | Monday, October 19, 2020 |
| Example 3. Material procedural branch | Claimant seeking an account. Actual commencement date of the action and dates of relevant matters occurs on Friday, October 9, 2026. The complete eligibility and procedural facts are not established. This actual branch must be established independently before any ordinary endpoint can be used. Actual commencement retained | Section 4(2) limits matters within an account, rather than defining one new accrual date for the whole account. |
Fictitious established facts. These examples do not establish eligibility, effective service, relief or a direction.
Try these dates in the calculatorWhich conditions and exceptions apply?
- Actual commencement retained
- Actual commencement retained
- Individual matter dates established
- Individual matter dates established
- Applicable trust and other limitation provisions checked
- Applicable trust and other limitation provisions checked
- Correct source counting and completion route
- Claimant seeking an account uses the established actual commencement date of the action and dates of relevant matters. Matters arising more than 6 years before commencement. Use calendar months or calendar years, not a fixed number of thirty-day blocks. The retained ordinary examples use corresponding dates. A missing anniversary date needs a separately supported rule. Work backward from actual commencement. A matter exactly six years earlier is not a matter arising more than six years earlier. Identify matters outside the ordinary six-year account lookback. An office calendar does not automatically change this service, deemed-event, minimum-interval or status boundary. The source and the actual completion route control. The boundary does not determine whether a matter is recoverable on its merits.
- Claimant seeking an account. Actual commencement retained; Individual matter dates established; Applicable trust and other limitation provisions checked. Section 4(2) limits matters within an account, rather than defining one new accrual date for the whole account.
- Section 4(2) limits matters within an account, rather than defining one new accrual date for the whole account.
What must the responsible actor complete?
Questions about this procedure
What period applies to action for account lookback?
Is section 4(2) simply six years after a contract date?
No. It limits an account concerning matters arising more than six years before commencement.
Limitation Ordinance (Cap. 347), section 4(2)Which event anchors the lookback?
The actual commencement of the action.
Limitation Ordinance (Cap. 347), section 4(2)Can one date describe every account entry?
No. Retain when each relevant matter arose and compare it with the account lookback.
Limitation Ordinance (Cap. 347), section 4(2)Does the six-year boundary erase trust exceptions?
No. Section 20 separately addresses trust claims and its no-limitation categories.
Limitation Ordinance (Cap.347), section20Is a matter exactly six years old automatically excluded?
The statutory wording is more than six years before commencement. Preserve that boundary distinction.
Limitation Ordinance (Cap. 347), section 4(2)Does a projected commencement date prove a filed action?
No. A planning boundary and actual commencement must remain separately identified.
Limitation Ordinance (Cap. 347), section 4(2)Official sources and review
Provisions used (5)
| Provision | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Limitation Ordinance (Cap. 347), section 4(2) | Check the identified procedure, event, counting rule or qualification |
| Interpretation and General Clauses Ordinance (Cap.1), section71(1)–(2) | Check the identified procedure, event, counting rule or qualification |
| General Holidays Ordinance (Cap.149), section3 and Schedule | Check the identified procedure, event, counting rule or qualification |
| Limitation Ordinance (Cap.347), applicable sections20,22–26,30,31–32 and40 | Check the identified procedure, event, counting rule or qualification |
| Limitation Ordinance (Cap.347), section20 | Check the identified procedure, event, counting rule or qualification |