KIMBERLY KARDASZ OBTAINS SUMMARY DISPOSITION IN MICHIGAN NO-FAULT CASE BASED ON MISREPRESENTATIONS IN THE APPLICATION

Buchanan v Hachem, et al, Wayne County Circuit Court (2020). Plaintiff filed a claim for Michigan No Fault benefits, including for a lumbar surgery, following a motor vehicle accident. Our client, however, had rescinded the plaintiff’s insurance policy after a post-accident investigation uncovered that she had misrepresented her residence and who was living with her when she applied for her insurance policy. We established these misrepresentations during the course of discovery and filed a motion for summary disposition. The other potential no fault insurer involved in the case argued that Bazzi v Sentinel Ins Co would not allow the rescission. We argued, however, that unlike in Bazzi the plaintiff in our case was the individual who made the misrepresentations and that any equitable balancing would nevertheless favor our client. The Court agreed with our position, granted our motion, and dismissed our client from the lawsuit.