Michigan Lawyers Weekly articles from June 2003

Michigan Lawyers Weekly archives from June 2003

Firm Celebrates 20 Years In West Michigan.
June 2, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff The law firm of Miller, Canfield, Paddock and Stone, P.L.C. is celebrating 20 years of legal practice in Western Michigan. Miller Canfield, which marked its 150th anniversary last year, opened an office...

Michigan Attorney General Opinion Case Summaries: June 2, 2008.
June 2, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Municipal Law Road Commissions - Agreements With Indian Tribes A county road commission has the authority to enter into an agreement with an Indian Tribe under the Urban Cooperation Act of 1967...

Kent County Circuit Court Rules Worker Fired For Drug Use Entitled To Comp Benefits.
June 2, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff An employee who was fired after testing positive for cocaine may still collect unemployment benefits, the Kent County Circuit Court has ruled. The employer argued that the employee should not be...

53rd District Court Rules Drunk Driver Caused 'Serious Impairment Of Body Function'.
June 2, 2003... Byline: Sonny N. Sheth A drunk driver who caused an accident could be bound over on charges of OUIL causing serious injury where the occupants of the other vehicle suffered injuries including a broken left thumb, head laceration and broken...

Michigan Supreme Court Orders Case Summaries: June 2, 2008.
June 2, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Reversals And Remands Anderson v. Indian Village Manor Assocs., et al. SC: 122044; COA: 228358; Wayne CC: 98-841301-CH; SC: 122045; COA: 228360; Wayne CC: 98-841301-CH. On order of the Court, the...

U.S. Supreme Court Case Summaries: June 2, 2008.
June 2, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Criminal Law Bindover - OUIL Causing Serious Injury Where the evidence suggests that defendant was drinking when his Jeep crossed the centerline and crashed into the victims' vehicle, causing...

U.S. Court of Appeals 6th Circuit Case Summaries: June 2, 2008.
June 2, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Administrative Law Isle Royale National Park - General Management Plan Where the National Park Service issued a General Management Plan for Isle Royale National Park that include removal of...

International Society of Primerus Law Firms Names Scholarship Winners.
June 2, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Jack Buchanan, a partner with the Grand Rapids law firm of Buchanan & Beckering, presented scholarship awards to the three top local winners of the "Liberty in Law" competition on May 20, at Forest...

Michigan Court of Appeals Rules Affidavit Of Merit Did Not Meet Requirements.
June 2, 2003... Byline: Lynn Patrick Ingram Even though a med-mal plaintiff filed his affidavit of merit within the statute of limitations, his claim was time-barred because the affidavit was "grossly nonconforming" and therefore not an affidavit as...

Shopper Wins Product Liability Suit In Michigan Court of Appeals, But Damages Are Capped.
June 2, 2003... Byline: Karen M. Poole A shopper who was injured by a store's automatic sliding doors can recover for her injuries under a breach of implied warranty theory, but her award is subject to the cap on noneconomic damages imposed by MCL...

Michigan Court of Appeals Case Summaries: June 2, 2008.
June 2, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Affirmed Convictions Murder, Second Degree; Felony Firearm; Carrying A Concealed Weapon. Judicial Ex Parte Communication. The trial court's ex parte communication with the jury was not about a...

Michigan Supreme Court Rule Plaintiff's Claim For Fraud Is Time Barred.
June 9, 2003... Byline: Lynn Patrick Ingram The owner of a car dealership could not sue a car manufacturer for fraud because her action accrued at the time the alleged fraud was committed and was thus barred by the six-year statute of limitations, the...

Michigan Lawyers in the News: June 9. 2003.
June 9, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff NewsMakers Appointments Robert E.L. Wright has been appointed to the Kent County Circuit Court ADR Oversight Committee. Wright is senior counsel with the Grand Rapids office of Miller,...

Michigan Supreme Court Orders Case Summaries: June 9, 2008.
June 9, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Attorney Discipline Matters Porter v. Attorney Grievance Comm'n. SC: 122920, 122921; AGC: 2990/02, 2991/02. On order of the Court, the complaint for mandamus is considered, and it is DISMISSED,...

Verdicts & Settlements June 9, 2003: No Cause Verdict For Bar Patron Who Fell Down Unlit Stairway.
June 9, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff The plaintiff claimed he entered an unmarked door and fell down an unlit stairway. The defendant claimed it had two signs -- "Private" and "Employees Only" -- on the door and that the plaintiff...

Verdicts & Settlements June 9, 2003: $843K Awarded For Reflex Sympathetic Dsytrophy.
June 9, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff The plaintiff suffered severe, permanent damage to her right arm and shoulder while undergoing mammography. Plaintiff's counsel argued that the standard of care was breached by the radiology...

Michigan Court of Appeals Case Summaries: June 16, 2008.
June 9, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Affirmed Convictions Assault; Home Invasion. Confession Transcripts In Jury Room. "While it appears that the trial court erred by inadvertently allowing the transcripts into the jury room,...

Michigan Supreme Court Case Summaries: June 9, 2008.
June 9, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Civil Procedure Fraud - Accrual Of Claim Where plaintiff alleged fraud in her business dealings with defendant, the claim accrued when the alleged wrong was done, and not from the date that...

Verdicts & Settlements June 9, 2003: Delayed Delivery Results In Cerebral Palsy.
June 9, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff This case involves the delay in the delivery of plaintiff minor Jane Doe. Plaintiff mother presented to defendant hospital on Dec. 2 for the induction of labor at 41 3/7 weeks gestation. No examination...

Verdicts & Settlements June 9, 2003: No-Fault Matter Settles Post Verdict For $601K.
June 9, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff This case evaluated in March 2002 for $165,000. The plaintiff reluctantly accepted, but the defendants did not. The first "reasonable" offer of settlement -- $105,000 -- came four weeks before...

Michigan Court of Appeals Rules Worker Can Get Damages For ERKA Violation.
June 9, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Where an employer gave information from an employee's file to a local newspaper without first obtaining the employee's written consent, the employee could recover damages in his action to compel...

Michigan Court of Appeals Rules Grandpa Can't Petition For Guardianship Of Grandchild.
June 9, 2003... Byline: Sonny N. Sheth Even though a child's mother had allowed the child to reside with her grandparents for certain periods of time, this did not satisfy the "permit" requirement of the guardianship statute and the grandparents lacked...

6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Case Summaries: June 9, 2008.
June 9, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Civil Procedure Jurisdiction - Black Lung Benefits Review Where the Director of the Office of Workers' Compensation Programs (OWCP) seeks reimbursement from defendant-coal company for...

U.S. District Court Eastern District Case Summaries: June 9, 2008.
June 9, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Civil Rights Suspension Of Hospital Staff Privileges - No Discrimination Where plaintiff claimed that defendant-hospital's suspension of his staff privileges was motivated by illegal...

Michigan Supreme Court Rules Driver Injured Changing Flat Tire Cannot Get PIP Benefits.
June 9, 2003... Byline: Karen M. Poole A driver who was hit by another vehicle while changing a flat tire cannot recover personal injury protection (PIP) benefits because he was not "occupying" the vehicle at the time of the accident, the Michigan Supreme...

Michigan Court of Appeals Rules Disabled Worker Not Entitled To Quad Runner.
June 16, 2003... Byline: Lynn Patrick Ingram An employer was not required to provide a "quad runner" to an employee whose legs were amputated after a work-related accident, the Michigan Court of Appeals has ruled in an unpublished decision. The...

U.S. District Court Eastern District Case Summaries: June 16, 2008.
June 16, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Civil Rights Suspension - No Due Process Violation Where plaintiff-police officer was denied a job transfer and received a disciplinary suspension without pay, this did not constitute a...

Verdicts & Settlements June 16, 2003: $450K Settlement For Amputation Below Knee.
June 16, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff The plaintiff sustained a fractured ankle and subsequently developed osteo-myelitis. The osteomyelitis went untreated, resulting in the amputation of the plaintiff's leg below the knee. The...

Michigan Lawyers in the News: June 16, 2003.
June 16, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff NewsMakers Elections Bryan J. Waldman has been elected president of the Michigan Trial Lawyers Association. Waldman, an attorney with Sinas, Dramis, Brake, Boughton & McIntyre, P.C. in...

Michigan Court of Appeals Case Summaries: June 16, 2003.
June 16, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Administrative Law Pipeline Approval - Consent Of Local Government Where the Michigan Public Service Commission approved construction and operation of a liquid petroleum pipeline along an...

Michigan Court of Appeals Unpublished Criminal Case Summaries: June 16, 2003.
June 16, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Affirmed Convictions Murder, First Degree; Conspiracy To Commit Murder. Evidence. Trapani argues that certain co-conspirator statements were inadmissible. "We conclude that the first statement by...

Michigan Court of Appeals Orders Case Summaries: June 16, 2003.
June 16, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Court Rule Amendments 1999-50 2000-27 Amendment of Rules 7.205, 7.210, 7.215, 7.302, and 7.316 of the Michigan Court Rules On order of the Court, notice of the proposed changes and an...

Commentary: Enforceability Of Liens For Attorney Fees.
June 16, 2003... Byline: Marcia L. Proctor There are three aspects in the enforceability of a lien for attorney fees. * In order to honor a lien, the appropriate party must have notice. The notice requirement is satisfied by actual notice, the...

Kent County Circuit Court Rules Landlord Liable For Rape Of Tenant.
June 16, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff A tenant who opened her door because she could not see through the peephole may sue the landlord for the injuries she suffered when the man at the door forced his way in and raped her, the Kent County...

Verdicts & Settlements June 16, 2003: Uninsured Motorist Claim Settles For $20K Policy Limits.
June 16, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff The uninsured motor vehicle swerved off the roadway and struck a light pole, severely injuring other passengers and killing the decedent. The plaintiff claimed the decedent was a passenger, but the...

Verdicts & Settlements June 16, 2003: Student Faces $715K Bill For Burning High School.
June 16, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff A 16-year-old boy is facing a $715,000 bill for setting fire to his high school. The former Howell High School freshman pleaded guilty last year to juvenile charges related to the fires that...

New Lawyers Can Learn From Those Who Have Been There.
June 16, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Perhaps the best practice tip new lawyers could ever receive is to watch and learn from their predecessors. Law school does not teach young lawyers everything they need to know about surviving...

Michigan Court of Appeals Rules Victim Suffered A Serious Impairment Of Body Function.
June 16, 2003... Byline: Karen M. Poole An auto accident victim whose injuries prevented him from doing his job at the same level for the same amount of hours per day indeed suffered a serious impairment of bodily function, the Michigan Court of Appeals...

6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Case Summaries: June 16, 2003.
June 16, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Arbitration Scope Of Award - Payment To Third Party Where the federal district court vacated an arbitration award because the award ordered payments to a nonparty, we affirm because the award...

Verdicts & Settlements June 16, 2003: Girl 'Attacked' By Dog On Public Property.
June 16, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff On or about Aug. 29, 2002, plaintiffs were participating in a cross-country race on public property commonly known as Myles Kimmerly Park in Leelanau County. At the park were Charles Gann and Nancy...

Family Lawyers Concerned With Paternity Testing Bill Pending In Michigan.
June 23, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Family law practitioners are questioning the rationale behind a bill currently pending in the Michigan Legislature that would allow courts to terminate a man's child support payments and dismiss any...

Michigan Court of Appeals Rules Drivers Can Sue Under Highway Exception.
June 23, 2003... Byline: Sonny N. Sheth Two drivers who suffered injuries allegedly caused by the negligent operation of county-owned vehicles can get their respective claims to the jury under the highway exception to governmental immunity, the Michigan...

Michigan Lawyers in the News: June 23, 2003.
June 23, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff NewsMakers Elections Dennis J. Clark has been elected president of the Federal Bar Association Eastern District of Michigan Chapter. Clark, a shareholder with Plunkett & Cooney, P.C.,...

6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Case Summaries: June 23, 2003.
June 23, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Antitrust Allocation Agreement - Illegal Where defendant-drug manufacturer agreed to pay defendant-generic drug manufacturer $40 million per year not to enter the United States market for...

U.S. District Court Western District Case Summaries: June 23, 2008.
June 23, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Chapter 7 Conversion To 13 - Bad Faith Where the debtor seeks to convert his Chapter 7 bankruptcy case to a Chapter 13 case under 11 USC Sect. 706(a), the motion is denied based on the...

Michigan Court of Appeals Case Summaries: June 23, 2003.
June 23, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Affirmed Convictions OUIL, Third Offense. Evidence. The trial court properly refused to suppress evidence obtained from the investigatory stop of defendant's vehicle. "There was conflicting...

Michigan Court of Appeals Unpublished Criminal Case Summaries: June 23, 2003.
June 23, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Affirmed Convictions Possession With Intent To Deliver Less Than 50 Grams Of Cocaine. Search Incident To Arrest. Where defendant was arrested inside a home pursuant to a valid arrest warrant, the...

Michigan Supreme Court Case Summaries: June 23, 2003.
June 23, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Criminal Law Witness - Evidence Of Polygraph Test Where defense counsel suggested during trial that a key prosecution witness had taken and failed a polygraph test, the prosecutor improperly...

Michigan Court of Appeals Orders Case Summaries: June 23, 2003.
June 23, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Court Rule Amendments ADM File No. 2001-48 Amendment of Rule 7.217 of the Michigan Court Rules On order of the Court, notice of the proposed changes and an opportunity for comment in...

Michigan Supreme Court Rules $600 Per Hour Fee Deemed Reasonable.
June 23, 2003... Byline: Lynn Patrick Ingram Case evaluation sanctions compensating a plaintiff's lead trial attorney at a rate of $600 per hour and two co-counsel at $250 per hour were not unreasonable, the Michigan Court of Appeals has ruled in an...

Verdicts & Settlements June 23, 2003: Motorcyclist Struck By Driver Making Left Turn.
June 23, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff The plaintiff's motorcycle was struck by the defendant driver who turned left in front of him. The defendant claimed the plaintiff turned from his lane of travel and struck her car waiting to make...

Verdicts & Settlements June 23, 2003: Dental Malpractice Matter Nets $1.27M Verdict.
June 23, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Plaintiff was a 40-year-old woman who was a self-employed public speaker. She had significant bone loss in her upper jaw and dentures. She wanted dental implants to replace her conventional dentures,...

Michigan Supreme Court Rules Gender-Based Comments Not Sexual Harassment.
June 23, 2003... Byline: Karen M. Poole A decedent's estate failed to allege a prima facie case of sexual harassment under the Civil Rights Act where the offensive comments to which the decedent was allegedly exposed were gender based and not sexual in...

U.S.District Court Michigan Eastern Case Summaries: June 16, 2003.
June 23, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Chapter 13 Confirmation - Attorney Fees Where the debtor filed a Chapter 13 bankruptcy plan, which proposed to pay a creditor the full amount of its secured claim and provides that the...

Verdicts & Settlements June 23, 2003: $900K Settlement Reached In Auto Neg Matter.
June 23, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff The plaintiff was driving westbound on Michigan Avenue and the defendant's van, which was parked on the right-hand side of the roadway, made a left turn directly into the plaintiff's path. The...

Michigan Supreme Court Preserves Affirmative Action In Narrow Ruling.
June 30, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff In its most significant statement about race in a generation, a divided Supreme Court allowed the nation's colleges and universities to select students based in part on race, ruling that diverse...

Michigan Supreme Court Rules Investment Banker May Be Entitled To A 'Success Fee'.
June 30, 2003... Byline: Karen M. Poole An investment banker may collect a "success fee" for helping a corporate client acquire the assets of another business so long as the transaction did not fall under the Real Estate Brokers Act (REBA), the Michigan...

Michigan Supreme Court Rules Bank May Charge A 'Document Prep' Fee.
June 30, 2003... Byline: Lynn Patrick Ingram A bank was entitled to charge a "document preparation" fee for drafting a client's mortgage documents, the Michigan Supreme Court has decided. The client argued that the bank engaged in the unauthorized...

Michigan Supreme Court Case Summaries: June 30, 2003.
June 30, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Banks And Banking Preparation Of Mortgage Documents No Practice Of Law Where a bank prepared standard mortgage documents and charged a $400 document preparation fee, this did not constitute...

6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Case Summaries: June 30, 2003.
June 30, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Arbitration Contract Clause Enforceable Stay Where defendant moved to compel arbitration of plaintiff's contract action and to stay the suit pending arbitration, the federal district court...

Michigan Court of Appeals Case Summaries: June 30, 2003.
June 30, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Affirmed Convictions Assault With Intent To Murder; Felony Firearm. Due Diligence. "[T]he evidence demonstrated that exhaustive efforts were made to locate the witness. The police checked the...

Michigan Lawyers in the News: June 30, 2003.
June 30, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff NewsMakers Elections Margaret A. Costello has been elected president of the Detroit Metropolitan Bar Association. Costello is a member of Dykema Gossett PLLC's litigation and dispute...

Interview with Judge Edward Sosnick: Oakland County Circuit Court.
June 30, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Fresh out of college, Judge Edward Sosnick didn't know which career path to choose. After examining his talents and interests, he headed toward the law, never knowing at the time that he would end up...

Michigan Attorney Discipline Board Case Summaries: June 30, 2003.
June 30, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Misconduct Level Of Discipline - Uninvited Touching Where respondent-attorney "grasped" opposing counsel's tie at a deposition, this uninvited touching was "not acceptable" and was "prohibited...

U.S. District Court Eastern District Case Summaries: June 30, 2003.
June 30, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Evidence Expert Testimony Admissible Where both parties challenge the admissibility of the other's expert witness in this negligence case, the court finds that both witnesses' testimony is...

Verdicts & Settlements July 14, 2003: Man Seriously Injured Trying To Rescue Electrocution Victim.
June 30, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Plaintiff Billy Ray Dorsey hired defendant Dean Langenderfer to deliver and spread crushed gravel on the parking lot of the plaintiff's business. On March 22, 2000, defendant Langenderfer brought a...

Verdicts & Settlements June 30, 2003: Salvation Army Hit With $146K Verdict In Bias Matter.
June 30, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff The plaintiff, a 46-year-old African American man, was employed at the Ann Arbor Salvation Army as a janitor and cook since May 2000. During the course of his employment, the plaintiff was subjected to...

6th Circuit Rules Indigents May Have Counsel Appointed On First Appeal.
June 30, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Three indigent defendants who entered guilty pleas in criminal proceedings were entitled to appointed appellate counsel for review of their convictions, the 6th Circuit has ruled in an en banc opinion....

Michigan Supreme Court Rules Contract Must Be Resolved With Extrinsic Evidence.
June 30, 2003... Byline: Sonny N. Sheth Where an employment agreement between an insurance company and an agent was ambiguous regarding renewal commissions upon retirement, the jury should resolve the ambiguity by examining all relevant extrinsic evidence,...

Michigan Court of Appeals Orders Case Summaries: June 30, 2003.
June 30, 2003... Byline: Michigan Lawyers Weekly Staff Attorney Discipline Matters Moran v. Attorney Grievance Comm'n. SC: 122784; AGC: 2794/99. On order of the Court, the complaint for mandamus is considered, and it is DISMISSED because the Court is...