Supreme Court of New Jersey February 16, 2000 (Martinez v. Cooper Hospital-University Medical Center)

The opinion of the Court was delivered by

LONG, J.

I

When the discovery rule was first announced in

Fernandi v. Strully,

35

N.J.

434, 173 A.2d 277 (1961), and later elucidated in

Lopez v. Swyer,

62

N.J.

267, 300 A.2d 563 (1973), it seemed rather straightforward.