Michigan Supreme Court Poised to Decide Whether Strict or Substantial Compliance is Sufficient Under Highway Exception to Governmental Immunity

Oral arguments on applications to the Michigan Supreme Court have been scheduled to determine whether the notice provisions of the Governmental Tort Liability Act’s (GTLA) “highway exception” to immunity are to be “strictly” or only “substantially” complied with. The order springs from two Court of Appeals cases, Wigfall v Detroit, and West v Detroit. Both cases [...]

Notice of Intent to Sue Government Sent to Third Party Claims Administrator Insufficient to Invoke Exception to Governmental Immunity – Court of Appeals Publishes Decision Holds Notice to Third-Party Claims Administrator Insufficient to Give Government Notice of Claim of Defective Sidewalk

On August 1, 2013, the Court of Appeals released a decision for publication in the case of McLean v. City of Dearborn, clarifying the strict requirements that notice of a claim for defective sidewalks under the highway exception to governmental immunity must be served on the individuals authorized by the governmental immunity statute, not the third-party [...]