Adam Gordon and Samantha Boyd obtained a dismissal of Plaintiff’s negligence claims against Defendant in the Jackson County Circuit Court. Plaintiff claimed that she was injured in a public restroom where the lid of the toilet paper dispenser fell open and struck her head and alleged that Defendant, a commercial janitorial service provider, was negligent as a result. The Motion for Summary Disposition sought to dismiss Plaintiff’s claims on the basis that Defendant’s employees had not been on site for approximately 15 hours prior to Plaintiff’s alleged injury and accordingly Defendant owed no duty to Plaintiff. Further, counsel used Plaintiff’s own deposition testimony to indicate that Plaintiff could not say how the condition was caused, how long it had been present, or who knew of the condition. Ultimately, Hon. Richard LaFlamme granted the Motion for Summary Disposition and dismissed Plaintiff’s claims against Defendant with prejudice.

Meghan Mair v Bristol West, et. al.

Adam Gordon and Ashley Slaght successfully obtained a summary disposition in Oakland County Circuit Court on a first-party No Fault benefits claim filed by Plaintiff. The Motion for Summary Disposition sought to dismiss Plaintiff’s claim for first-party No Fault benefits on the basis that Plaintiff, the sole owner of the subject motor vehicle, failed to maintain the requisite security as required by MCL 500.3101. As such, pursuant to MCL 500.3113(b), Plaintiff was precluded from recovering benefits.

During oral argument on the Motion for Summary Disposition, Ashley Slaght highlighted the Michigan Court of Appeal’s opinion in Barnes v Farmers Ins Exchange, 308 Mich App (2014), and successfully distinguished those unpublished opinions cited by Plaintiff. Ultimately, the Hon. Shalina Kumar granted the Motion for Summary Disposition and dismissed Plaintiff’s claims against Bristol West with prejudice.

Massachusetts Bay Insurance Company v Frankenmuth Insurance Co., et. al.

Roger Smith and Ashley Slaght successfully obtained a voluntary dismissal of a Property Protection Insurance (PPI) Benefits suit filed by Plaintiff. Plaintiff filed suit claiming entitlement to damages arising out of a motor vehicle accident involving a road grinder insured by Plaintiff. Ashley Slaght prepared the Motion for Summary Disposition, which sought to dismiss Plaintiff’s claims on the basis that the road grinder in question met the definition of a vehicle and benefits were properly excluded under MCL 500.3123(1)(a). Ultimately, upon reviewing the Motion for Summary Disposition, Plaintiff acquiesced and agreed to dismiss its claims against Defendant.

At the 84th Annual Oakland County Bar Association Meeting on June 4, 2018, attorney Deb Bricely received the Frances R. Avandenka Memorial Award for outstanding community service and volunteerism. In addition to being an attorney with our law firm, Deb is also a registered nurse. In 2017, as part of the National Disaster Medical Assistance Team, Deb spent two weeks providing medical assistance in field hospitals in Houston following Hurricane Harvey and several weeks in Puerto Rico working in a damaged hospital and MASH like field hospital providing medical care to those injured as a result of Hurricane Maria. We are extremely proud of the commitment to humanity demonstrated by one of our own. We congratulate her on an award well deserved.

Deborah Bricely Award

Morton v Theta Chis Fraternity

Tim Connaughton and Matt Chapin successfully defended a wrongful death case by obtaining a summary disposition from Judge Daniel J. Kelley in St. Clair County Circuit Court. We represented the President of the Zeta Tau Chapter of Theta Chi at the University of Michigan-Flint. The case arose out of a social outing at the Port Huron Float Down, in which some members and non-members of the fraternity attended. An attendee within the group, who was a minor, became intoxicated and unfortunately drowned. The Estate brought suit against our client, the national and local chapter of the fraternity, and another individual member. Plaintiff was seeking $7,000,000 in damages. Plaintiff alleged that as the President of Zeta Tau our client owed a duty of care to the decedent to not allow the furnishing of alcohol to a minor and had an obligation to uphold the fraternity’s policies and procedures regarding the furnishing of alcohol to minors.

Through discovery and extensive research we were able to establish that our client did not owe a duty of care because the Port Huron Float Down was not a sanctioned fraternity event, there was no evidence our client furnished alcohol to the decedent and there was no evidence that he allowed the furnishing of alcohol to the decedent. Furthermore, we were able to establish that our client had no involvement in the planning of the event. The judge agreed that our client did not owe a duty of care to the decedent and granted our Motion for Summary Disposition.

Deloney v Rishmawi

Peter O’Toole and Samantha Boyd obtained a no cause of action in a jury trial seeking automobile negligence damages. The trial was conducted at the Genesee County Circuit Court before Judge David J. Newblatt. This case arose out of a pedestrian versus motor vehicle accident that occurred on January 5, 2016, in Flint, Michigan. As a result of being struck by Defendant’s vehicle Plaintiff alleged to have sustained several injuries that were present since day of the accident. Plaintiff alleged that he sustained a permanent disfigurement to his lip and face due to cuts that resulted from being thrown to the ground. Additionally, Plaintiff claimed to have sustained in a closed head injury that resulted in memory loss and headaches in addition to injuries to his shoulder, knee, and lower back. During the course of the trial we were able to demonstrate that Plaintiff’s medical treatment and testimony from his own physicians failed to show that Plaintiff complained of the numerous injuries. During the cross-examination of the Plaintiff we were able to obtain testimony that showed Plaintiff had continued living his life as he was prior to the accident. A thorough examination of Plaintiff’s ability to continue in school and obtain several occupations following the accident demonstrated that Plaintiff was not entitled to damages. The trial lasted for three days and on May 23, 2018, the jury returned a verdict of no cause of action after a very short deliberation finding that Plaintiff did not sustain a serious impairment of an important body function or have a serious permanent disfigurement.

On Saturday, April 7, 2018, a group of Vandeveer Garzia employees and their family and friends volunteered for the afternoon at Gleaners Community Food Bank/Pontiac Distribution Center in Pontiac, Michigan. The group sorted 9,000 pounds of donated food and personal care items, including: canned goods, dry goods, beverages, snacks, pet care/food, clothing, and personal hygiene products. In addition to sorting the food and other items, each item had to be inspected to make sure the packaging was still sealed. The expiration date on each item was also checked to make sure that the product had not expired. These items will be distributed to various food pantries and will benefit over 7,200 individuals in the community.

SOTU

Metro Hospital v Premier Caulking, Inc.

Bill Kiriazis and Adam Gordon successfully defended a $10 million construction lawsuit by obtaining a summary disposition from Judge Christopher P. Yates in Kent County Circuit Court. Our client, Premier Caulking, Inc., completed certain construction work on the hospital construction project in 2008 which included interior and exterior window caulking. According to Plaintiff’s Complaint, subsequent to completion of the construction project, the windows began to leak causing substantial damage to the building itself as well as contents within the building. Suit was filed by Metro Hospital in March 2017 against Premier Caulking, Inc. and four other parties. Plaintiff alleged gross negligence, breach of implied warranty, fraudulent misrepresentation, breach of third party beneficiary, silent fraud and fraudulent concealment and civil conspiracy. On April 6, 2018, in a lengthy and well-reasoned Opinion and Order, Judge Yates granted summary disposition as to four of the five Defendants including Premier Caulking, Inc., on the basis that the claims were time-barred by the applicable statutes of limitation for each claim and the Statute of Repose, MCL 600.5839.

Muhammad v Moore.

Adam Gordon and Ashley Slaght obtained a summary disposition on a wrongful death claim in Kent County Circuit Court in a claim alleging an assault and battery by our client. In addition to a summary disposition, they were successful in obtaining sanctions against the Plaintiff’s estate and its counsel. The case arose out of a social outing between co-workers at Muskegon Lake. While boating, one of the co-workers drowned while attempting to swim back to the boat. Plaintiff’s decedent was a member of the Nation of Islam and his death was immediately investigated by representatives of the Nation. It was argued that representatives of the Nation of Islam tried to direct the official investigation in such a manner as to cast blame on decedent’s co-workers. Despite the fact that two independent forensic examiners determined that the decedent had died from an accidental drowning, the estate hired experts to opine that the injuries suffered by the decedent were caused by a blunt force impact by one, some, or all of the co-workers working in concert. Plaintiff’s estate then brought claims against the seven co-workers alleging assault and battery and wanton and willful misconduct. During more than a year of extensive discovery, more than 40 depositions were taken and more than 100 motions were filed by the various parties. Chris Hildebrandt assisted in writing the motion for summary disposition which was argued before Judge Joseph Rossi by Adam Gordon. Judge Rossi granted the motion dismissing all claims by plaintiff against all of the defendants. We also filed a motion for sanctions arguing that the Plaintiff estate had not filed the claim in good faith. Judge Rossi granted the motion and awarded sanctions against the Plaintiff estate and its attorneys in the amount of $379,693.

Fritz v Millennia Housing Management, Ltd.

William Kiriazis received a summary disposition from Judge James Maceroni in a case pending in the Macomb County Circuit Court. Bill and Jeff represented a landlord and management company who were sued by a resident after having been allegedly sexually assaulted by another resident in an elevator of the apartment building. In a written Opinion citing Bailey v Schaaf, 494 Mich 595 (2013), Judge Maceroni ruled that the defendant landlord and management company owed no duty to plaintiff to anticipate and prevent the criminal acts of a third party and that the defendants’ duty was limited to “reasonably expediting the involvement of the police.”