Michigan Court of Appeals; Docket #250122; Unpublished
Judges Hoekstra, Cavanagh and Borrello; unanimous; per curiam
Official Michigan Reporter Citation: Not applicable, Link to Opinion 
STATUTORY INDEXING:
Serious Impairment of Body Function Definition (Kreiner Era - 1996-2010) [3135(7)]
Objective Manifestation Element of Serious Impairment [3135(7)]
General Ability / Normal Life Element of Serious Impairment [3135(7)]
Evidentiary Issues [3135]
TOPICAL INDEXING:
Not applicable
CASE SUMMARY:
In this unanimous unpublished per curiam opinion decided without oral argument after the Supreme Court’s decision in Kreiner v Fischer [RB #2428] interpreting the statutory definition of serious body function, the Court of Appeals affirmed the trial court’s order granting summary disposition in favor of defendants on plaintiff’s claim for non-economic losses. The plaintiff in this case sustained an ankle injury which was corroborated by a CT scan. The court determined that although the injury was objectively manifested, her temporary limitations did not satisfy the serious impairment threshold. In so holding, the court stated:
“Plaintiff returned to her part-time job in a school kitchen approximately 5½ weeks after the accident, and thereafter successfully obtained full-time employment with a new employer in February 2002. Although plaintiff claimed that she needed the assistance of family members when her ankle was first placed in an air cast, looking at the totality of the circumstances, plaintiff’s post-impairment life was not so different that her ‘general ability’ to conduct the course of her normal life was affected.”
Plaintiff also argued that her unspecified spinal injury was a serious impairment of body function. The court disagreed, finding that even if she could causally link the injury to the motor vehicle accident, she failed to allege evidence that the impairment affected her general ability to lead her normal life. In so finding, it stated:
“The fact that some activities might have been affected is insufficient to satisfy the statutory standard.”
