Michigan Court of Appeals; Docket No. 60868; Published
Judges Bronson, Brennan, and Gillis; Uninamous
Official Michigan Reporter Citation: 124 Mich App 602; Link to Opinion 
STATUTORY INDEXING:
No Lien as to Non Motorist Tort Recoveries [§3116]
TOPICAL INDEXING:
Not Applicable
CASE SUMMARY:
This unanimous Opinion by Judge Brennan is a significant ruling regarding the original no-fault lien provisions of §3116 prior to the 1978 amendment to that section.
In this decision, the Court held that where there was no evidence that plaintiff’s products liability tort recovery against Ford Motor Company included damages for which the defendant no-fault company paid PIP benefits, the defendant enjoyed no lien rights under the original version of §3116. In so holding, the Court stated that the settlement agreement with Ford was silent as to whether or not it compensated for economic or noneconomic loss and where such a settlement is silent, the Court will presume that the settlement does not compensate the plaintiff for economic losses. This significant holding was expressed in the following language:
"An insurance carrier is not entitled to reimbursement out of a third party tort recovery where the tort recovery does not include damages for losses for which personal protection insurance benefits were paid. Here, the settlement agreement between plaintiff and Ford was silent as to whether the award was compensation for economic or noneconomic damages. In denying reimbursement to the defendant, the trial court found that there was no evidence that the settlement in the products liability action was for economic losses. We find no error on the part of the trial court. In cases where the settlement is silent, we presume that the settlement did not compensate the injured art for economic losses” (Emphasis Added)
The Court also noted that had this case been governed by the 1978 amendment to §3116, the defendant would clearly have no lien rights because the plaintiff’s tort claim did not arise from an out of state accident, an uninsured driver, or an intentional act.
