Karrar v. Barry County Road Commission

339 N.W.2d 653, 127 Mich. App. 821
CourtMichigan Court of Appeals
DecidedAugust 2, 1983
DocketDocket 66736
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 339 N.W.2d 653 (Karrar v. Barry County Road Commission) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Michigan Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Karrar v. Barry County Road Commission, 339 N.W.2d 653, 127 Mich. App. 821 (Mich. Ct. App. 1983).

Opinions

Per Curiam.

Plaintiffs appeal from the trial court’s order granting Williams Brothers’s motion for summary judgment, GCR 1963, 117.2(3).

In the early morning of November 19, 1977, Pamala Karrar, an 18-year-old high school senior, left her parent’s home for work at the Tick-Tock Restaurant in Hastings. On her way, she drove down a portion of Usborne Road between Vedder Road and Brown Road. At some time, the wheels on the passenger side of her vehicle left the pavement and dropped onto the shoulder. At that point [825]*825in the road, the pavement was three inches above the gravel shoulder. She continued 176 feet with her passenger side tires on the shoulder and then attempted to turn the wheels back onto the pavement where the pavement dropped 5-1/2" to the shoulder. After she returned all of the tires to the pavement, Ms. Karrar’s vehicle left the opposite side of the road, slid and rolled down the embankment and crashed into a tree. As a result, Ms. Karrar suffered serious injuries.

The portion of the highway on which the accident occurred had recently been repaved by Williams Brothers Asphalt and Paving Company, Inc., defendant herein. Williams Brothers had entered into a contract with the Michigan Department of State Highways to repave that portion of Usborne Road. The contract did not require Williams Brothers to grade the shoulders after completion of the project. Under the contract, the Barry County Road Commission was to replace the gravel shoulders and to warn motorists of the low shoulder condition. Williams Brothers commenced its repaving project sometime in October, 1977, and completed its work and left the site on October 26, 1977. The job was inspected and approved by the area engineer for the Federal Highway Administration on November 17, 1977.

. Between the completion of the repaving project and the time of the accident 24 days later the road commission had not replaced the shoulders. Nor had the road commission posted warnings of the low shoulders.

On November 16, 1979, plaintiffs instituted this action against the county board of road commissioners and Williams Brothers. Plaintiffs alleged that Williams Brothers had been negligent because it neither replaced the shoulders nor warned motorists of the dangerous condition. On March 5, [826]*8261982, Williams Brothers moved for summary judgment pursuant to GCR 1963, 117.2, subds (1) and (3). On July 3, 1982, plaintiffs moved to amend their complaint to add counts of gross negligence, wilful and wanton misconduct, and intentional nuisance against Williams Brothers.

On July 9, 1982, oral arguments were heard on Williams Brothers’s motion for summary judgment. At the conclusion of the hearing, the trial court granted summary judgment pursuant to sub-rule 117.2(3) as to all counts, indicating that at the same time it was granting plaintiffs’ motion to amend.

Plaintiffs contend that the trial court erred in granting summary judgment because Williams Brothers’s affidavit was insufficient. A motion brought under GCR 1963, 117.2(3) must be supported by an affidavit. Those affidavits are governed by GCR 1963, 116.4, 116.5, and 116.6. GCR 1963, 116.4 states in pertinent part:

"Supporting and opposing affidavits shall be made on personal knowledge and shall set forth with particularity such facts as would be admissible as evidence to establish or deny the grounds stated in the pleading or motion. Such affidavits shall show affirmatively that the affiant, if sworn as a witness, can testify competently to the facts contained therein.”

Plaintiffs argue that Williams Brothers’s affidavit failed to satisfy the subrule’s "personal knowledge” requirement.

The affidavit was sworn out by Williams Brothers’s attorney. In it, he stated that he had attended the deposition of Jack Kineman, the project engineer on the repaving project, had reviewed the transcript of that deposition, and, as a result, could competently testify as to the contents of the [827]*827deposition. The affidavit then listed various facts drawn from the deposition.

It is well settled that attorney affidavits submitted upon information and belief are not sufficient to support a motion under subrule 117.2(3). See, e.g., Jones v Shek, 48 Mich App 530; 210 NW2d 808 (1973); Allstate Ins Co v Beauregard, 119 Mich App 103; 326 NW2d 439 (1982). Such affidavits are insufficient because they do not show that the affiant, if sworn as a witness, could testify competently as to the facts set forth in the affidavit. Jones v Shek, supra, p 532. In the present case, defense counsel did not submit his affidavit upon information and belief. But his affidavit has the same defect. He stated merely that he could testify as to the contents of Kineman’s deposition. Defense counsel had no personal knowledge of the facts related by Kineman. Were he sworn as a witness, defense counsel could offer only inadmissible hearsay. Thus, the affidavit was insufficient to support a motion under subrule 117.2(3).

Under some circumstances, however, the party moving for summary judgment may be excused from filing an affidavit that complies with subrule 116.4. See GCR 1963, 116.6; Brooks v Reed, 93 Mich App 166; 286 NW2d 81 (1979). Subrule 116.6 states:

"When Affidavits Are Unavailable. Either party may state in his affidavit that he cannot present the material facts essential to justify his position because such facts are known only to persons whose affidavits he cannot procure.
"The affidavit shall name such persons and state why their testimony cannot be procured, together with a belief and reasons therefor as to the nature of their probable testimony. Thereupon the court may make such order as may be just, either denying the motion or ordering a continuance to permit the affidavit to be [828]*828supported by further affidavits to be obtained, or depositions to be taken, or answers to interrogatories to be furnished, or discovery to be had.”

Williams Brothers argues that its attorney swore out the affidavit because Kineman was unavailable to do so. Even so, defense counsel’s affidavit does not fulfill the requirements set out under subrule 116.6. Thus, Williams Brothers’s failure to submit an adequate affidavit under subrule 116.4 cannot be excused. Allstate Ins Co v Beauregard, supra, p 108. Reversal of summary judgment pursuant to subrule 117.2(3) is required. Allstate Ins Co v Beauregard, supra, p 107.

Williams Brothers argues, however, that an affidavit was not necessary to support its motion for summary judgment pursuant to subrule 117.2(1). A motion brought under that subrule does not require a supporting affidavit. Williams Brothers contends further that the trial court could have granted its motion pursuant to subrule 117.2(1). A motion for summary judgment on the ground that "the opposing party has failed to state a claim upon which relief can be granted” tests the legal sufficiency of a pleaded claim. 1 Honigman & Hawkins, Michigan Court Rules Annotated (2d ed), 1982 Supp, p 142. The inquiry is whether the claim made is so clearly unenforceable as a matter of law that no factual development thereunder could possibly justify a right to recovery. Fuhrmann v Hattaway, 109 Mich App 429; 311 NW2d 379 (1981), lv den 414 Mich 858 (1982). Williams Brothers maintains that the plaintiffs’ negligence claim is legally insufficient for want of a duty between itself and Pamala Karrar.

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Karrar v. Barry County Road Commission
339 N.W.2d 653 (Michigan Court of Appeals, 1983)

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339 N.W.2d 653, 127 Mich. App. 821, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/karrar-v-barry-county-road-commission-michctapp-1983.