Law360 Canada (October 6, 2026, 4:49 PM EDT) -- Manitoba is looking to remove limitation periods for civil claims stemming from intimate partner violence involving “coercive control.”
According to an Oct. 5
news release, the province has introduced legislative amendments to its
Limitations Act that “would allow survivors to pursue civil action regardless of when the abuse occurred.”
“The Act already removes limitations periods for assault and sexual assault claims,” states the release. “The proposed amendments recognize that trauma, safety concerns, fear of retaliation and coercive control can delay a survivor’s ability to come forward.”
Coercive control, it states, can include emotional abuse, financial control, surveillance and isolation.
“The amendments would support a survivor-centred approach that recognizes the long-term impacts of intimate partner violence,” states the release, which notes that victims may take years to pursue legal action due to not feeling safe enough to do so.
“Intimate partner violence can have lifelong impacts on survivors and their families,” said Manitoba Justice Minister Matt Wiebe in a statement. “This legislation recognizes the realities many survivors face and ensures arbitrary legal deadlines do not stand in the way of seeking justice.”
This is not the first initiative the province has taken in its bid to eradicate intimate partner and domestic violence. In July 2023, Manitoba and Saskatchewan
became the first two Canadian jurisdictions to sign on to the federal government’s National Action Plan to End Gender-based Violence — a 10-year plan focusing on survivor support, prevention, justice system response, support for Indigenous-led approaches and establishing “social infrastructure” and an “enabling environment.”
Coercive control is a form of intimate partner violence that does not necessarily involve physical abuse and is usually “a repeated or continuous pattern of behaviour that occurs over a period of time,” according to a federal government
webpage describing coercive control in the criminal justice context. It goes on to refer to coercive control as behaviours that manipulate and intimidate victims.
Another
page describes coercive control as potentially involving threats of harm, isolation of a victim, verbal abuse, constant criticism and stalking or monitoring.
Earlier this year, the Supreme Court of Canada made a
decision that created a common law tort of intimate partner violence.
As part of the ruling, Justice Nicholas Kasirer described intimate partner violence as coercive and controlling conduct limiting a victim’s autonomy, dignity and equality in a relationship.
The case saw 17 groups, coalitions and other stakeholders participate as intervenors, including women’s groups and the attorneys general from Canada and B.C., with many arguing for improved access to justice for victims.
The high court found that existing torts did not fully address harms caused by coercive control. As part of its ruling, it set out three elements of the new tort: the wrongful conduct happened during an intimate relationship or after its end; the perpetrator intentionally engaged in abusive behaviour; and that the conduct amounted to coercive control when viewed in context.
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