Michigan Court of Appeals; Docket Nos. 140039 and 140450; Unpublished
Judges Griffin, Reilly, and Fitzgerald; Unanimous; Per Curiam
Official Michigan Reporter Citation: Not Applicable; Link to Opinion 
STATUTORY INDEXING:
Serious Impairment of Body Function Definition (DiFranco Era – 1987-1995) [§3135(1)]
Objective Manifestation Element of Serious Impairment (DiFranco Era – 1987-1995) [§3135(1)]
Determining Serious Impairment of Body Function As a Matter of Law (DiFranco Era – 1987-1995) [§3135(1)]
Closed Head Injury Question of Fact [§3135 – Pre-1996]
TOPICAL INDEXING:
Not Applicable
CASE SUMMARY:
In this unanimous per curiam Opinion in a third-party liability case, the Court of Appeals reversed summary disposition granted to defendant on the claims of two plaintiffs that their injuries constituted serious impairment of body function and permanent serious disfigurement, and affirmed summary disposition of the threshold issue with regard to a third plaintiff.
Plaintiff Claudia Eberhard suffered a mild concussion, cervical strain and numerous fractured ribs. The court held that the circuit court erred when directing a verdict in favor of defendants against Claudia Eberhard. The court stated, "Viewing the evidence in a light most favorable to plaintiffs, reasonable minds could conclude that Claudia's bodily injuries, particularly her rib fractures, resulted in a serious impairment of body function in the form of restricted motion."
Plaintiff Aaron Eberhard, 10 years old at the time of the accident, suffered a mild injury to his jaw and a four-centimeter laceration on his chin resulting in a permanent scar. The court ruled that the trial court erred in granting summary disposition to defendants with regard to Aaron Eberhard’s claims. With regard to Aaron's injuries, the court noted that the trauma to his jaw caused Aaron to be unable to consume solid foods for a week and for a period of four weeks thereafter was restricted to consuming only soft foods. The court stated that, “The temporary limitations on Aaron's ability to use his mouth for eating, plainly constitute an impairment of body function. The question thus becomes whether this impairment can be classified as serious. Although the record does not contain medical evidence establishing any residual impairment, we cannot say that all persons would conclude that Aaron's impairment was not serious." With regard to Aaron's chin laceration that measured approximately four centimeters in length and two millimeters in depth, the court concluded, after reviewing photographs, that "reasonable minds could differ regarding whether Aaron suffered a permanent serious disfigurement."
Plaintiff Nathan Eberhard, 4 years old at the time of the accident, suffered a mild closed head injury that was described as resulting in momentary lapses in and out of consciousness for several hours after the accident. The testimony with regard to the extent of the loss of consciousness and the duration indicated that Nathan was "drifting" off but the duration, frequency and extent of these alleged periods of "unconsciousness" was not clearly established. Furthermore, the hospital records only indicated that Nathan was sleepy. With regard to these claims, the court concluded, "Plaintiffs's evidence that Nathan suffered periods of temporary unconsciousness does not alone create a jury question on the issue of serious impairment of body function." Therefore, summary disposition in favor of defendant was proper.
Therefore, the directed verdicts with regard to Claudia Eberhard and Aaron Eberhard were reversed and the directed verdict against Nathan Eberhard was affirmed.
