The court held that the trial court did not abuse its discretion by admitting parol evidence relevant to the meaning of the parties' contract. Thus, it affirmed the jury verdict and the judgment entered for plaintiffs. Plaintiffs-Alvaro and...
The court held that the trial court did not err by awarding part of the defendant's annuity to the plaintiff, by ordering defendant to repay her for paying his student loan, or by dismissing two motions to show cause. The parties divorced in 2014,...
The court held that the trial court did not err by awarding sole legal and physical custody of the parties' son to the defendant-father. After the parties' divorce, custody issues continued. Defendant filed a petition to change custody, and the...
Holding that none of the arguments raised by plaintiff (Wilkes) demonstrated that the circuit court abused its discretion by granting the petition for superintending control, the court affirmed the circuit court order denying his motion for a stay...
The court held that the trial court did not err by granting summary disposition for the defendant (Hrpka) on all of the plaintiff's (Davenport) claims seeking compensation for household services and financial support, except for his unjust...
The court held that the trial court erroneously applied the jurisdictional provisions of the UCCJEA when it failed to consider whether it could exercise jurisdiction under MCL 722.1201(1)(b) and (1)(d). Because there were factual disputes as to the...
In Docket No. 320382, defendants (the Association and several lot owners) failed to show that the trial court erred in holding that the Association lacked authority to limit lot owners to a single camping-related vehicle per lot. In Docket No....
Holding that the defendant-mother's husband (F) was a necessary party to the plaintiff-alleged father's action under the RPA, the court affirmed the trial court's denial of defendant's summary disposition motion and remanded for the addition of F...
While the trial court correctly ruled that defendant-DRC held fee simple title to land encompassed within the boundaries of plaintiff-Parkkonen's parcel description, it erred "in setting DRC's boundary at 1,355 feet above sea level rather than at...
The court affirmed the trial court's property division. The defendant-ex-husband argued that the trial court erred when it treated his pre-marital equity in the marital home as marital property, rather than as his separate property. The parties...
Holding that the separate maintenance judgment was enforceable after the decedent-husband's (Jeff) death, and it converted the parties' properties into tenancies in common, the court affirmed the trial court's grant of summary disposition under MCR...
The court held that the trial court lacked jurisdiction to consider placing title between the three parties, none of whom claimed to currently possess title to the real property at issue. Further, the trial court could have dismissed this case on...
Holding that the the intervening plaintiff-Staffney's claims were barred by laches, the court affirmed the trial court's order granting a directed verdict to the plaintiffs-Lipps, intervening plaintiff-Mulder, and the defendant-city. Staffney, the...
The court held that the trial court did not err by granting summary disposition for the third-party defendant-real estate broker (Sunbay) on defendant-Cottrill's claims alleging negligence and breach of contract. Cottrill hired Sunbay to sell...
The court held that the trial court's decision to award alimony was not an abuse of discretion. However, to "the extent the trial court intended that spousal support would come to a definitive end after six years and could not be revisited," the...
The court held that the trial court did not err by rejecting the plaintiffs' action seeking to enforce an easement against the defendants. Plaintiffs sold defendants a 40-acre plot of land that included an easement for a drainage system (tile line)...
The court held that the integration clause in the lease did not make it patently unreasonable for the plaintiff to rely on the alleged pre-contractual representations, and it reversed the trial court's ruling that plaintiff failed to state a claim...
The plaintiff-wife was not entitled to relief from her final divorce judgment to revisit the disposition of certain real property because she filed her motion more than one year after the judgment was entered. Also, the court upheld the trial...
The trial court did not err by denying plaintiff-husband's motion to vacate the parties' binding mediation award and by incorporating it into the parties' divorce judgment. He argued that the award should be vacated because "he was not afforded due...
The court reversed the probate court's orders granting the petitioner's request for the payment of trustee and attorney fees and costs where, on remand, it failed to make the required findings of fact, and committed clear legal error by stating...
In these consolidated appeals, the court concluded in Docket No. 319145 that while the appellant-law firm was not entitled to some of the requested attorney fees, further proceedings were needed as to a portion of the fees. In Docket Nos. 319723...
The court held that res judicata did not apply to the plaintiff-township's claims, and that a 1995 agreement, 2000 quitclaim deed, and 2006 amended CJ were binding on the defendants-property owners as the successors in interest to the prior owners....
Holding that the plaintiff failed to show irreparable harm or harm without legal remedy, the court affirmed the trial court's order denying his motion for a preliminary injunction in this fraud action related to a foreclosure. He claimed that his...
Holding that the trial court should have awarded the plaintiff-nonprofit corporation attorney fees that it incurred to recover unpaid dues and assessments, the court reversed the trial court's denial of attorney fees and remanded for further...
Noting that whether appellee-Blackburn had standing was not an issue given that it was the defendant-father who initiated this case by seeking judicial intervention after the plaintiff-mother died, the court held that the trial court properly...
The court held that the trial court abused its discretion in ordering defendant-Sam Anthony Tocco (Grandson) to pay $7,500 a month to defendant-Sam Tocco (Grandfather) during the pendency of the litigation. The order was vacated. However, the...
The trial court properly terminated the respondent-mother's parental rights to the child where the statutory grounds for termination were established by clear and convincing evidence and termination was in the child's best interests. The court held...
Holding that the subordination clause at issue did not render defendant-Satori's mortgage interest in the property secondary, the court affirmed the trial court's ruling that Satori's mortgage had priority and was superior to any other party's...
Holding that the trial court did not clearly err in finding the defendant-ex-wife's objections to the referee's recommendation frivolous, the court upheld the trial court's decision to order sanctions. However, it concluded that further proceedings...
Holding that the reasonable inferences from two pieces of evidence were sufficient to support the trial court's conclusion that the plaintiffs' use of the driveway was permissive and thus, that no prescriptive easement existed, the court affirmed...
Concluding that the trial court considered the relevant factors in determining the amount and duration of rehabilitative spousal support for the defendant-husband, the court affirmed the trial court's spousal support award. It also rejected his...
The court held that the trial court did not err by denying the petitioner-foster parent's petition to adopt the child (JSF) or by denying her motion to determine that the MCI Superintendent's denial of consent to the adoption was arbitrary and...
The trial court erred by summarily dismissing the plaintiff-subcontractor's claims against the defendant-general contractor for $347,786 in "delay damages" because the plaintiff presented sufficient evidence of an exception to the subcontract's "no...
Holding that the plaintiffs-former tenants did not have a meritorious claim because they were not improperly ejected from the property, the court affirmed the trial court's judgment for the defendants-Griffins after a bench trial and its grant of...
Consistent with case law, the court held that the sharecrop agreement with a nonparty farmer (S) "severed the crops from the realty and required that they be treated as goods or personal property," not as part of the realty. "It is not important...
The court held that while the trial court erred when it did not make specific findings as to the relevant Sparks factors, the error was harmless. In light of the totality of the circumstances, the court was not left with a firm conviction that the...
Holding that the trial court's decision to award the plaintiff-wife spousal support did not fall outside the range of principled outcomes and thus, was not an abuse of discretion, the court affirmed the judgment of divorce. The court noted that the...
The court concluded that the trial court did not make threshold findings as to the children's ECE and the impact of the new parenting-time schedule, and while it stated grounds warranting modification, it "failed to connect those findings to a...
The court held that the trial court did not err by granting summary disposition for the defendants-developers in the plaintiff-trustee's action for breach of a land contract. Plaintiff sued defendants claiming they breached the parties' land...
The court affirmed the trial court's judgment denying defendants-Beatrice, Kevin and Shannon's motion for summary disposition and granting summary disposition and quieting title to real property in favor of the plaintiffs-Usiondeks. It also...
