Draper v. Village of Springwells

209 N.W. 150, 235 Mich. 168, 1926 Mich. LEXIS 670
CourtMichigan Supreme Court
DecidedJune 7, 1926
DocketDocket No. 7.
StatusPublished
Cited by7 cases

This text of 209 N.W. 150 (Draper v. Village of Springwells) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Michigan Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Draper v. Village of Springwells, 209 N.W. 150, 235 Mich. 168, 1926 Mich. LEXIS 670 (Mich. 1926).

Opinion

Fellows, J.

The plaintiff produced testimony tending to show that she fell and received injury by reason of a defective sidewalk of defendant village on January 29, 1923. The injury as stated by plaintiff’s attending physician consisted of

* * * “a fracture, comminuted, of the head of the radius with a piece of bone separated from the shaft of the bone and head and lying close to the elbow joint. The head of the radius was fractured and the line of fracture ran into the articular surface of the joint.”

There was medical testimony that the injury caused plaintiff much pain and suffering and was a permanent one. On February 12th, plaintiff’s husband gave *170 notice to the village of plaintiff’s claim. It was not itemized or verified. Later plaintiff’s physician furnished the village a more detailed statement as to plaintiff’s injury. After plaintiff was able to get out she was asked by the president of the village and one of the councilmen to attend a meeting of the council at the municipal building “to talk over the accident.” Accompanied by her husband she went to such meeting. There was parol testimony that the president and all the members of the council and the village attorney were present; that she was fully examined as to the accident and her injuries; that, after the matter had been fully gone over, the president, members of the council and village attorney retired to another room and after a time returned and informed her that her claim was rejected on the ground of her contributory negligence. The date of this meeting was not definitely fixed, but the jury would be justified in finding that it occurred within 60 days after the accident. The official record of the village did not show this meeting but no testimony was introduced contradicting plaintiff’s testimony on the subject. In fact no testimony was offered by defendant save that given by the clerk, who was called for cross-examination under the statute.

The village charter contains the usual provisions for notice of the accident and for itemization and verification of claims against the village. No doubt the rules of pleading require plaintiff to allege in her declaration compliance with such provisions or'their waiver. Moulthrop v. City of Detroit, 218 Mich. 464, and authorities there cited. But the declaration was amendable and in cases too numerous to cite we have held that under the broad power of the statute of amendments we will permit the amendment in this court to prevent a mistrial and so sustain the judgment. We, therefore, pass to the controlling ques *171 tions in the case. The notice of the accident was sufficient under the authorities. It did not contain an itemized statement of plaintiff’s claim and it was not sworn to nor was an itemized account of plaintiff’s claim duly verified filed before suit. So that we have two questions before us for solution:

(1) Was the filing of such verified itemized statement waived by the denial of liability on other grounds, and
(2) Was parol testimony admissible to show such denial of liability?

Plaintiff’s testimony, if believed, established a denial of liability by defendant’s council on the sole grounds that she was guilty of contributory negligence. In the recent case of Nevala v. City of Ironwood, 232 Mich. 316, it was said by Mr. Justice Wiest, speaking for the court:

“The council disallowed plaintiff’s claim. Had dis-allowance been made without any formal notice such, action would have waived notice and the same result: follows the action disallowing the claim even though the notice upon which final official action was planted was technically defective. The defendant is in no position to assert want of legal notice, for it assumed the right to and did disallow plaintiff’s claim upon the notice given.” ' ,

See, also, Germaine v. City of Muskegon, 105 Mich. 213; Warner v. City of Wyandotte, 175 Mich. 695; Haney v. Village of Pinckney, 155 Mich. 656; Hunter v. Village of Durand, 137 Mich. 53; Foster v. Village of Bellaire, 127 Mich. 13; Griswold v. City of Ludington, 116 Mich. 401. The authorities in this State, and we need not discuss those from other States, establish, we think, that the absolute denial of liability by defendant’s council on the sole ground that plaintiff was guilty of contributory negligence made within the time when plaintiff could have filed a technically perfect claim amounts to a waiver of the filing of a *172 technically perfect claim in all regards complying with the charter provisions. The trial judge submitted the question of waiver to the jury, carefully protecting defendant’s rights and the jury found a waiver. Defendant was not entitled to a peremptory instruction if the parol testimony was admissible, a question to which we shall now address ourselves.

Plaintiff was asked by the president of the village and one of the members of the council to meet with the council to consider her claim against the village; they appointed the time; the place was the municipal building. When she arrived there all the members of the council, the president, and the village attorney were assembled. It is true the record does not show whether the meeting was on the regular meeting night of the council or was a special meeting or, if a special meeting, that proper notice of it was given. But all the members were present and every one having anything to do with plaintiff’s claim was there. All had met for one purpose, i. e., the consideration of plaintiff’s claim. It is difficult to perceive what additional facts plaintiff could be called upon to produce in the absence of a record to establish a meeting of the council. The failure of the clerk to officially record the proceedings was not chargeable to plaintiff. The parol testimony was in conflict with no record of the councih The language of Mr. Justice Grant in Wheat v. Van Tine, 149 Mich. 314, is particularly applicable. He there said

“The main complaint is that parol testimony of the action of the common council was allowed. Parol evidence is not admissible to contradict the record of the proceedings of the common council. It is admissible, however, to show facts omitted therefrom. The failure of a clerk to properly enter such proceedings cannot affect the rights of individuals who have acted upon the faith of the action of the council, in fact duly taken, but not recorded. Township of Taymouth v. Koehler, 35 Mich. 22.”

*173 In. the case cited by Mr. Justice Grant, it was said:

“It did not appear of record that the board of highway commissioners had authorized Cuthbertson, one of their number, to make the contract under which the iron was furnished, or to superintend the building of the bridge.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Ogletree v. City of Winter Garden
128 So. 2d 437 (District Court of Appeal of Florida, 1961)
City of Ecorse v. Peoples Community Hospital Authority
58 N.W.2d 159 (Michigan Supreme Court, 1953)
Johnson v. City of Chisholm
24 N.W.2d 232 (Supreme Court of Minnesota, 1946)
Hall v. City of Los Angeles
120 P.2d 13 (California Supreme Court, 1941)
Whalen v. Board of Education
220 N.W. 763 (Michigan Supreme Court, 1928)
Bockoff v. Curtis
217 N.W. 750 (Michigan Supreme Court, 1928)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
209 N.W. 150, 235 Mich. 168, 1926 Mich. LEXIS 670, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/draper-v-village-of-springwells-mich-1926.