Tattan v. City of Detroit

• Decision Date: 12 November 1901
• Citation: 87 N.W. 894,128 Mich. 650
• Court: Michigan Supreme Court
• Parties: TATTAN v. CITY OF DETROIT.

87 N.W. 894

128 Mich. 650

TATTAN v. CITY OF DETROIT.

Supreme Court of Michigan

November 12, 1901

Error to circuit court, Wayne county; Joseph W. Donovan, Judge.

Action by Catherine Tattan against the city of Detroit. Judgment for defendant, and plaintiff brings error. Affirmed.

Warner & Codd, for appellant.

P. J M. Hally (Timothy E. Tarseny, of counsel), for appellee.

MONTGOMERY C.J.

This is an action for personal injuries. The sole question presented in the case is whether the plaintiff served a notice upon the corporation counsel such as is required by the amendment to the charter of the city of Detroit, being section 46 of chapter 11 of the charter, as amended. This section reads as follows: 'No action shall be brought against said city nor any of its boards, commissions or officers, for any negligent injury, unless it be commenced within one year from the time when the injury was received, nor unless notice shall be given in writing, within three months from the time of such injury, to the head of the law department, or to his chief assistant, of the time, place and cause of such injury, and of the nature thereof. The provisions of this section shall not be a bar to a suit however, for any injury for which there is now a lawful cause of action, but for every such injury suit shall be commenced within six months from the time when this act shall take effect.' Loc. Acts 1895, No. 463. The injury to the plaintiff occurred on the 5th of July, 1897, and on the 17th of August, 1897, the following notice was served on the head of the law department: 'Detroit, Aug. 17, 1897. Hon Charles Flowers, Corporation Counsel, Detroit, Mich.--Sir: You are hereby notified that on the seventeenth day of August, 1897, I filed a claim against the city of Detroit for the sum of five thousand dollars ($5,000), and petitioned the common council of the said city to pay me the said sum, as a just compensation for damages sustained by me by reason of personal injuries received on July 5, 1897, by my falling on a defective sidewalk in the said city. Said defective sidewalk was on July 5, 1897, situated on the south side of Cherry street, between Sixth and Seventh streets, and extending from Seventh street to the first alley east of Seventh street. Yours, etc., Mrs. Michael Tattan, 15 Johnson Street, Detroit, Mich.' There can be no doubt that this notice sufficiently described the time, place, and cause of the injury, but the learned circuit judge was of the opinion that the nature of the...