Jarfar v Al-Hanoka

Guy Silvasi recently obtained a dismissal with prejudice of a third party no-fault lawsuit filed in the Macomb County Circuit Court. The plaintiffs in the case, a husband and wife, claimed that they were both injured when their minivan collided with another motor vehicle operated by our client, the defendant. However, our client insisted that the husband was not in the minivan at the time of the collision, and that, in fact, the husband arrived at the accident scene several minutes later in a different motor vehicle.

Extensive discovery uncovered a mountain of evidence that rebutted the plaintiffs’ assertion that they were both in the minivan at the time of the accident. Dashcam footage from the investigating officer’s squad car showed three motor vehicles parked next to each other: the minivan, our client’s motor vehicle, and a motor vehicle matching the description of the husband’s motor vehicle. Furthermore, both plaintiffs lived less than one mile from the accident scene. Cellular phone records demonstrated that the wife placed several calls to her husband around the time of the accident. The phone records also revealed that the husband placed a call to our client shortly thereafter. Although the plaintiffs attempted to claim that the husband left his cell phone at home, this claim was rebutted by the dashcam footage that clearly showed the husband reaching into his pocket for his cell phone and placing a call to our client from the accident scene.

This matter was extensively briefed and argued before Judge Michael Servitto, who examined the evidence, and determined that the plaintiffs’ behavior amounted to fraud. Judge Servitto voided the plaintiffs’ policy of insurance, thereby barring the plaintiffs’ third party no-fault claims as a matter of law.