Michigan Lawyers Weekly articles from January 2003

Michigan Lawyers Weekly archives from January 2003

Largest Michigan jury verdicts of 2002: #4-10.
January 13, 2003... Byline: Edward F. Cohn The largest verdict reported to Michigan Lawyers Weekly in 2002 was $22 million, and it appears that Michigan juries were quite generous in several other matters as well. The fourth through tenth largest...

Oral agreement reducing commission is enforceable, rules Michigan Court of Appeals.
January 13, 2003... Byline: Karen M. Poole Even though a sales commission agreement fell within the statute of frauds and provided that any modifications had to be in writing, an oral agreement reducing the commission rate was enforceable, the Michigan Court...

Dad's child support was properly abated, rules Michigan Court of Appeals.
January 13, 2003... Byline: Lynn Patrick Ingram A non-custodial father was not required to pay additional child support based on his Social Security Disability benefits because the child already received disability benefits based on the earnings of the...

'Simple surgery' ends with $22.5M verdict: impeachment of defense experts was key.(Michigan)
January 13, 2003... Byline: Karen M. Poole What started as a "simple surgery" to alleviate expectant mother Evelyn Blazo's wrist pain resulted in the premature delivery of her twins -- and a $22.5 million verdict awarded 15 years later. Detroit attorney...

Estate of passenger killed in drag race gets $12M: car dealership held liable for teen's death.(Michigan)
January 13, 2003... Byline: Melissa A. Penrice When 18-year-old Ronny Hashem left his family home on July 22, 1999, he was looking forward to a typical "night on the town" with his buddies. After a night of dancing and drinking at a local club, Hashem...

Largest Michigan jury verdicts of 2002: #3.
January 13, 2003... Byline: Kelly A. McCauley $12 million WAYNE OAKLAND CONTRACTING, INC. V. CITY OF GARDEN CITY, ET AL. Wayne County Circuit Court #00-024745-CZ Date of verdict: Nov. 11, 2002 Start with a complex construction matter, combine...

Woman who fell on ice at gas station wins $400K.(Michigan)
January 13, 2003... Byline: Edward F. Cohn Even though a patch of ice outside a gas station was "open and obvious," a woman who slipped and fell on the ice was able to recover $400,000 from the gas station owner. The key to victory, according to the...

Worker quit part-time job, can still get unemployment, rules Allegan County Circuit Ct. judge.
January 20, 2003... Byline: Karen M. Poole An employee was entitled to unemployment benefits where she quit a part-time job because it conflicted with her full-time job but was then laid off from the full-time job, an Allegan County Circuit Court judge has...

Michigan State Bar may increase annual lawyer dues to more than $300.
January 20, 2003... Byline: Karen M. Poole A proposal to increase attorney dues and fees by $55 -- pushing the total amount due to more than $300 per year -- does not come as a surprise to most practitioners, but has some wondering whether they are getting...

Insurance company liable for insured's attorney fees, rules Michigan Court of Appeals.
January 20, 2003... Byline: Lynn Patrick Ingram An insurance company that refused to pay necessary home modification benefits to an insured was liable for attorney fees accrued by the insured in seeking those benefits, the Michigan Court of Appeals has ruled....

Former cop needn't make prima facie age bias case, rules Mich. Court of Appeals.
January 20, 2003... Byline: Edward F. Cohn A former police officer who was asked to complete a recertification program before being reinstated was not required to establish a prima facie case of age discrimination where he already presented direct evidence,...

Michigan Court of Appeals Case Summaries: January 27, 2003.
January 27, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Criminal Law Counterfeit Cigarette Tax Stamps - Intent Element Where the trial court's jury instructions about illegal use or possession of counterfeit cigarette tax stamps did not include an...

Verdicts & Settlements January 27, 2003: Confidential Med-Mal Case Settles For $3.25M.
January 27, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff This case involved the ill-advised attempt at a vaginal delivery after three prior cesarian sections which resulted in a ruptured uterus causing a deprivation of oxygen to the plaintiff minor causing...

Verdicts & Settlements January 27, 2003: $4.5M Awarded For Death Of 6-Year-Old In Car Accident.
January 27, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff The decedent and her brother were passengers in a neighbor's minivan, traveling eastbound on the Jeffries Expressway at 10 p.m. on June 5, 1999. A street sweeper -- not sweeping -- stopped to...

Michigan Lawyers In The News: January 27, 2003.
January 27, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff NewsMakers Elections Karl A. Weber has been elected vice chair of the Northern Michigan University Board of Trustees. Weber, the managing shareholder Plunkett & Cooney's Marquette...

Michigan Attorney General Opinion Summaries: January 27, 2003.
January 27, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Employment County Employees - Pensions Consistent with MCL 46.12a(28), a county may adopt a deferred retirement option plan (DROP) and may, with approval of the affected employee, pay the...

Michigan Court of Appeals Unpublished Criminal Case Summaries: January 27, 2003.
January 27, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Affirmed Convictions Aggravated Stalking. Determination Of Financial Status. Counsel is not required at a hearing to determine whether a defendant's financial status warrants the appointment of...

Verdicts & Settlements January 27, 2003: Defendants Failed To Timely Perform C-Section.
January 27, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff This case involved the failure to timely deliver plaintiff minor Jane Doe after presentation at defendant hospital. The pregnancy had been conceived by in vitro fertilization and monitored closely with...

Secrecy Clause In Severance Agreement Unenforceable. Rules Michigan Court Of Appeals.
January 27, 2003... Byline: Karen M. Poole A school superintendent who quit after he was accused of various forms of misconduct cannot enforce a confidentiality clause contained in his severance agreement because the clause violates MCL 380.1230b(6), the...

Hospital Not Liable For Physician's Malpractice, Rules Mich. Court Of Appeals.
January 27, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Even though a hospital's referral line indicated to a patient that a doctor was a member of the hospital's staff, the hospital could not be held liable for the doctor's malpractice, the Michigan Court...

Worker May Proceed With Bias Case In Federal Court, Rules Eastern District Court.
January 27, 2003... Byline: Karen M. Poole An employee who sued her former employer under state and federal law for pregnancy discrimination can go forward on her federal claims even though she signed an employment agreement which contained a six-month...

U.S. Bankruptcy Court Case Summaries: January 27, 2003.
January 27, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Chapter 13 Home Financing Disclosures - Remedies Where the debtors in this adversarial proceeding claim a lender violated federal consumer protection laws by failing to provide required...

U.S. Magistrate Judges Case Summaries: January 27, 2003.
January 27, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Social Security Disability Claim - Evidence Of Substantial Gainful Activity Where plaintiff sought a closed period of Social Security disability benefits, an administrative determination that...

U.S. Court of Appeals 6th Circuit Case Summaries: January 27, 2003.
January 27, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Bankruptcy Mobile Home - Perfection Of Security Interest Where the bankruptcy court ruled that a bank's lien on the debtors' mobile home was invalid because the bank had not followed the...

U.S. District Court Eastern District of Mich. Case Summaries: January 27, 2003.
January 27, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Constitutional Law Establishment Clause - Holiday Display On CourtHouse Lawn Where plaintiffs, self-proclaimed witches, argue that a holiday display on the lawn of a county courthouse, which...

U.S. District Court Western District Case Summaries: January 27, 2003.
January 27, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Prisons And Prisoners Prisoner Litigation Reform Act - Attorney Fees Where the Judicial Conference has authorized an increase in the fees to be paid to court-appointed counsel but the increase...

Michigan Attorney Pioneers Condo Law Subspecialty.
January 27, 2003... Byline: Kelly A. McCauley When referring to an expert in a given field, it can sometimes be said, colloquially, that, "He wrote the book on it." In Robert M. Meisner's case, however, this adage rings true. The Bingham Farms attorney...

Michigan Court of Appeals Unpublished Civil Case Summaries: January 27, 2003.
January 27, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Administrative Law Feeding And Baiting Regulation - Enforcement Where plaintiffs challenge a state regulation that prohibits the feeding and baiting of deer and elk to control the spread of...

Mich. Supreme Court Orders: January 27, 2003.
January 27, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Leave Granted People v. Goldston. SC: 122364; COA: 241605; Wayne CC: 01-011229. On order of the Court, the application for leave to appeal from the August 29, 2002, decision of the Court of Appeals...

Verdicts & Settlements January 27, 2003: Parties Equally Responsible; Plaintiff Gets $500.
January 27, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Defendant Elie Khattar, while towing another vehicle, impacted the plaintiff's Suburban on the left (driver's side) as the plaintiff and the defendant entered an unmarked intersection. The plaintiff's...

Verdicts & Settlements January 27, 2003: Auto Neg Matter Settles For $500K.
January 27, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff The plaintiff and the defendant were driving eastbound on US-23, at the M-14 interchange. The defendant entered into the plaintiff's lane, causing him to swerve off the roadway to avoid a collision,...