Thomas' Estate v. Consumers Power Co.
| Decision Date | 23 July 1975 |
| Docket Number | Nos. 56722,56723,s. 56722 |
| Citation | 231 N.W.2d 653,394 Mich. 459 |
| Parties | The ESTATE of Gary M. THOMAS, Deceased, by Aldonna F. Thomas, Administratrix, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. CONSUMERS POWER COMPANY, a Michigan Corporation, and Saginaw County Agricultural Society, a Michigan Corporation, jointly and severally, Defendants-Appellees, and Bombardier, Ltd., a Foreign Corporation, Defendant. The ESTATE of James J. THOMAS, Deceased, by Helen H. Thomas, Administratrix, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. CONSUMERS POWER COMPANY, a Michigan Corporation, and Saginaw County Agricultural Society, a Michigan Corporation, jointly and severally, Defendants-Appellees, and Bombardier, Ltd., a Foreign Corporation, Defendant. |
| Court | Michigan Supreme Court |
Cicinelli, Mossner, Majoros, Alexander & Harrington, P.C., Saginaw, for plaintiffs-appellants.
Smith & Brooker, P.C. (by Webster Cook, Saginaw, W. E. Wisner, Jackson, of counsel), for Consumers Power Co.
William C. Hoffmann, Saginaw, for Saginaw County Agricultural Socity.
Defendants obtained summary judgments as to both counts of plaintiffs' complaint. Plaintiffs had sought to recover for the deaths of their decedents in a snowmobile accident. Their deaths occurred on land owned by Saginaw County Agricultural Society when their snowmobile came in contact with a Consumers Power guy wire thereon. The Court of Appeals affirmed. 58 Mich.App. 486, 228 N.W.2d 786 (1975). This Court, in lieu of leave to appeal, pursuant to GCR 1963, 853.2(4), affirms the decision of the Court of Appeals as to Count I, but reverses and remands for trial as to Count II.
Count I was based on ordinary negligence. Defendants successfully interposed M.C.L.A. § 300.201; M.S.A. § 13.1485. We accept the Court of Appeals' construction of this statute.
Count II was based on gross negligence. We find that the allegations of the complaints sufficiently state facts giving rise to a cause of action based on gross negligence so as to withstand summary judgment. Plaintiffs clearly alleged that the defendants knew of Consumer Power's unmarked guy wires and the threat therefrom to snowmobilers permissively using the Saginaw County Agricultural Society's land, that unmarked guy wires in areas 'exposed to traffic' were a violation of an industry safety code, that the defendants could have avoided the resulting harm in several ways, and that they failed to do so. See, E.g., Taylor v. Mathews, 40 Mich.App. 74, 198 N.W.2d 843 (1972); Restatement of...
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