Steven M. Gursten’s Answers

I'm very sorry to hear this. I hate to say it, but if your attorney never took the deposition of the eyewitness, and it is indeed a he said-she said situation with each driver blaming the other and no other proof to show other drive ran the red light, then your girlfriend does indeed have a very serious problem. The seminal case is Miller v. Hensley in Michigan, and as the police officer who wrote the UD-10 police report will not be able to testify as to fault, unless the other driver made...

Not at all (and I don't mean to sound self-serving here, either). The reason is simple - you have one year to file an application for benefits with your no fault insurance company in Michigan to secure your future no fault insurance benefits. May you be fortunate and your back pain completely clear in the next few weeks or months, which it likely will if it is only connective tissue. But what happens if it starts to get progressively worse, and you end up needing very serious spine surgery...

I am sorry to hear of your friend's death and your loss. All 3 previous answers are correct. But here are a couple additional suggestions: if the case is going to be settled pre-lawsuit communicating with the insurance company who insured the defendant, you must make sure you are getting the insurance company of BOTH the driver and the owner of the vehicle, if they are different individuals, and you should demand a certified copy of the declaration page of the insurance policies, as many...

I'm sorry to hear of your uncle's death. To answer your question, the other side MUST release insurance policy limits once a lawsuit is filed (but this does not include a defendant's personal assets - most experienced personal injury lawyers have investigators that can perform at least a rough asset investigation of defendants). I've tried a number of cases in Macomb County, including last December. How long it takes really depends more on the judge you've drawn than anything else. As far...

Sadly, if you are the owner and the operator of the vehicle, then the answer to your question is you are barred from any injury lawsuit and barred from collecting PIP no fault benefits and barred from collecting a mini tort for the first $1,000 of your vehicle damage. Michigan has a terribly unfair law in this regard. Here is a blog that gives you a more comprehensive explanation: http://www.michiganautolaw.com/auto-lawyers-blog/2012/11/16/top-9-risks-of-driving-uninsured-in-michigan/

The answer is yes, but sadly it may prove difficult -- and I am very sorry to read about your loss and offer you my condolences. In answer to your question, the cause of action is known as a Dramshop (or Michigan Liquor Control) case. However, the law is very difficult for proving liability under Michigan's dramshop laws, it was recently made harder by our supreme court, and successful dramshop cases are far harder here than in most states. The viability of a dramshop action will depend on...

Well the good news is that Michigan has a 3 year statute, not 5 years. If the car accident occurred over 3 year years, you don't have to worry about a direct lawsuit being filed against her. But, here's the rub: she's not yet entirely off the hook. There are some UM (uninsured motorist policies) in Michigan have longer times to file - some are up to 6 years. When this happens, whatever the other driver's insurance company pays her to settle the pain and suffering case they will come back and...

I agree with John. You asked a very similar question last week. I am sorry for your loss. John accurately lists the steps that take place once a lawsuit is filed. As to how many days the trial will be, it really depends on the issues involved. Is there economic loss? Was there pain and suffering where you need a pathologist to quantify how long your spouse may have suffered? If it is a wrongful death claim, the jury will need to understand the losses, so lay witnesses, family and others...

I have been fortunate enough to receive several excess verdicts over policy limits, and have lectured to the Michigan Association for Justice on bad-faith litigation. The easiest and best thing to do is for the defendant to assign his bad-faith cause of action to the plaintiff in exchange for the plaintiff agreeing to forgo pursuit of the defendants personal assets. The seminal case on bad-faith in Michigan that you will want to look at - whether you are the plaintiff or the defendant in this...

Can you clarify: when you write the insurance company of the person your son was involved in the accident with, I am assuming you mean the other driver's insurance company, and not the insurance company from 3 years ago that you do not have anymore? In a nutshell, if it is the other driver's insurance company, there is case law in Michigan that they are not entitled to asset information like bank accounts, retirement accounts, properties, etc until after a judgment when such information might...