Yesterday, I filed an amicus curiae brief on behalf of the Michigan Townships Association, Oakland County, Macomb County, and Wayne County to challenge the Court of Appeals' decision in Hannay v. Michigan Department of Transportation. There the Court of Appeals ruled that "bodily injury" damages available against the government for injuries arising from the negligent operation of a [...]
Category: Comparative Law
Supreme Court Asked to Consider Court of Appeals’ Decision to Keep Anonymous Bloggers Identities Secret in Defamation Suit
In Ghanam v. John Does et al. the Michigan Court of Appeals reversed a trial court's decision to allow the deposition of a fact witness in a defamation suit filed against ostensibly anonymous commentators on an internet-based public forum. Last week, I filed an application for leave to appeal in the Michigan Supreme Court in this case [...]
Supreme Court Reverses Court of Appeals’ Ruling Property Owner Maintained Nuisance In Fact and Negligent Nuisance
In an earlier post, I mentioned that the Michigan Supreme Court issued an order in this premises liability case against a commercial property owner directing the Court of Appeals to adopt the dissenting opinion of Judge Murray and reversing the damages award of $223,000 against the property owner. Â However, I wrote the Court's reversal constituted [...]
Court of Appeals Holds All Three Criteria in MCL 418.161(1)(n) Must Be Met Before a Person Can Be Considered an “Independent Contractor” as “Opposed to an Employee” Under Workers’ Compensation Insurance Policy
In  a published decision released yesterday, Auto Owners Ins Co v. All Star Lawn, et al Auto Owners Ins Co v. All Star Lawn, et al, the Court of Appeals concludes that all three criteria in MCL 418.161(1)(n) of the Workers Disability Compensation Act (WDCA) must be met before a person can be considered an “independent [...]
No “Prejudice Requirement” or Other Judicial Constructs Can Nullify Strict Compliance with Statutory Notice Provisions to Perfect Claims Against the Government
On November 7, 2013, in Vega v. Gillette, et al., the Court of Appeals ruled a plaintiff who failed to file a notice of an intent to sue the state under MCL 600.6431(3) was barred from suing the government under the motor vehicle exception, MCL 691.1404 of the Governmental Tort Liability Act (GTLA).  The plaintiff was [...]