Michigan Court of Appeals; Docket No. 298014, Unpublished
Judges Servitto, Markey, and K.F. Kelly; Unanimous; Per Curiam
Official Michigan Reporter Citation: Not Applicable; Link to Opinion 
STATUTORY INDEXING:
Not Applicable
TOPICAL INDEXING:
Motor Vehicle Code (Civil Liability of Owner) (MCL 257.401)
CASE SUMMARY:
In this unanimous unpublished per curiam opinion, the Court of Appeals affirmed the trial court judgment of no cause of action following a bench trial on an issue concerning whether or not the defendant operator of the vehicle involved in the accident had the owner’s express or implied consent or knowledge to drive the vehicle at the time of the accident pursuant to MCL 257.401(1).
In this case, the vehicle was owned by the defendant Deborah Hayes. Deborah gave the vehicle to her daughter Jessica Hayes to drive. The defendant Kayla Leilani Kuikahi-Lalonde was Jessica’s friend and the driver of the vehicle at the time of the accident.
The trial court determined after a bench trial that the vehicle was not being operated with the express or implied consent of the owner. The court stated that the pertinent inquiry was whether Kuikahi-Lalonde was driving the vehicle with the permission of Jessica, who was Deborah’s permittee. The court stated that the trial court made the correct inquiry in this case by deciding first whether Kuikahi-Lalonde had Jessica’s permission to drive Deborah’s vehicle, and then applying that conclusion to the ultimate inquiry of whether the vehicle was being driven with Deborah’s permission pursuant to MCL 257.401.
Under the provisions of the Owner Liability Statute, case law has established that the operation of a motor vehicle by one who is not a member of the family of the owner gives rise to a rebuttable common-law presumption that the operator was driving the vehicle with the express or implied consent of the owner. This presumption can be overcome only with “positive, unequivocal, strong and credible evidence.”
In this case, Deborah gave the keys to Jessica for Jessica to drive without restriction. Both Jessica and Kuikahi-Lalonde testified that Jessica told Kuikahi-Lalonde not to drive the vehicle on the day of the accident. The Court of Appeals found this evidence to be positive, unequivocal, strong, and credible. Therefore, the court affirmed the trial court determination that the vehicle was not being operated with the consent of the owner.
