Order Michigan Supreme Court
Lansing, Michigan
May 1, 2013 Robert P. Young, Jr.,
Chief Justice
144722 Michael F. Cavanagh
Stephen J. Markman
Mary Beth Kelly
Brian K. Zahra
Bridget M. McCormack
MARK LANGTON, David F. Viviano,
Plaintiff-Appellant, Justices
v SC: 144722
COA: 300639
Court of Claims: 08-000085-MH
STATE OF MICHIGAN,
Defendant-Appellee.
_________________________________________/
On order of the Court, the application for leave to appeal the December 20, 2011
judgment of the Court of Appeals is considered and, pursuant to MCR 7.302(H)(1), in
lieu of granting leave to appeal, we REVERSE the judgment of the Court of Appeals and
REINSTATE the September 29, 2010 order of the Court of Claims denying in part the
defendant’s motion for summary disposition. The Court of Appeals clearly erred in
applying principles of direct liability to grant summary disposition to the defendant on
the plaintiff’s vicarious liability claim. “Vicarious liability is based on a relationship
between the parties, irrespective of participation, either by act or omission, of the one
vicariously liable, under which it has been determined as a matter of policy that one
person should be liable for the act of the other.” Theophelis v Lansing General Hospital,
430 Mich 473, 483 (1988) (internal quotation and citation omitted). Because the theory
of vicarious liability is not concerned with the acts or omissions of the principal, the
Court of Appeals erred in holding that the defendant was entitled to summary disposition
because it did not have a duty to intervene.
I, Corbin R. Davis, Clerk of the Michigan Supreme Court, certify that the
foregoing is a true and complete copy of the order entered at the direction of the Court.
May 1, 2013 _________________________________________
h0424 Clerk