Michigan Court of Appeals; Docket No. 185572; Published
Judges Hoekstra, Sawyer, and Pickard; 2-1 (with Judge Sawyer Dissenting); Opinion by Judge Hoekstra
Official Michigan Reporter Citation: 223 Mich App 446; Link to Opinion 
STATUTORY INDEXING:
Penalty Attorney Fees on Appeal [§3148]
TOPICAL INDEXING:
Not Applicable
CASE SUMMARY:
In this 2-1 published per curiam Opinion by Judge Hoekstra, the Court of Appeals, relying upon the earlier decision in Bloemsma v Auto Club Insurance Association (After Remand) [Item No. 1501], held that defendant was responsible for payment of attorney fees on appeal under §3148 where the trial court had properly found that the denial of benefits at the trial court level was unreasonable. This conclusion is not affected by the fact that defendant insurance company paid the principal benefits prior to appeal and appealed only the issue of attorney fees. The court held that it makes no difference whether the principal benefits were still in dispute on appeal. The court said,
"The fact that the benefits were paid following a judgment but before appeal does not change the fact that defendant's initial unreasonable denial forced plaintiff to file the suit to collect the benefits from which the appeal stemmed.... Absent plaintiff's filing a circuit court complaint seeking payment for the unreasonably denied benefits, there would have been no trial, no appeal, and hence no attorney fees would have been generated. Accordingly, we believe that the underlying action and any ensuing appeals are part of 'an action for personal or property protection insurance benefits.'" In reaching its conclusion, the court noted that the "no-fault insurance act is intended to be remedial in nature and must be liberally construed in favor of the persons intended to benefit from it."
Judge Sawyer dissented on the basis that once the no-fault insurance company pays the overdue benefits, there is no continuing liability under §3148 for payment of attorney fees on appeal.
