Michigan Court of Appeals; Docket #238211; Unpublished
Judges Kelly, White and Hoekstra; (2-1 Judge Kelly dissenting); per curiam
Official Michigan Reporter Citation: Not Applicable, Link to Opinion 
STATUTORY INDEXING:
Noneconomic Loss Liability for Serious Impairment of Body Function Threshold (Definition) [3135(1)]
General Ability / Normal Life Element of Serious Impairment [3135(7)]
TOPICAL INDEXING:
Not applicable
CASE SUMMARY:
In this 2-1 unpublished per curiam opinion decided without oral argument, the Court of Appeals reversed summary disposition in favor of defendant on plaintiff's claim of serious impairment of body function. The plaintiff in this case was a sixteen (16) year old boy who suffered multiple injuries in a head-on collision including a punctured lung, a lacerated spleen, fractured right wrist, and fractured nose. The injuries required an eight (8) day hospitalization, chest tube insertion, and casting of the right arm for six (6) weeks with subsequent physical therapy and arm splinting for an additional six (6) weeks. Plaintiff missed a month of school. Plaintiff continued to experience right wrist pain with weakness in right hand gripping, which symptoms persisted one and a half years (1½) years after the accident. Plaintiff was also subsequently diagnosed with a torn wrist ligament and a range of motion deficit in the right wrist. Plaintiff also was subsequently diagnosed with right knee chondromalacia. The court concluded that “plaintiff suffered extensive residual impairment as a result of his injuries and that his prognosis for recovery was guarded. Defendant's own expert noted that 1½ years post accident plaintiff continued to suffer persistent symptoms and that surgery was indicated. 'An injury need not be permanent to be serious'. . . . Under these circumstances, we conclude that the circuit court erred in concluding that plaintiff's general ability to lead his normal life was not affected.” Judge Kirsten Kelly dissented on the basis that “plaintiff's ability to lead a normal life was not significantly altered by his injuries. . . . The record is clear that his lifestyle, both pre- and post-accident were virtually identical.”
