Order Michigan Supreme Court
Lansing, Michigan
April 23, 2008 Clifford W. Taylor,
Chief Justice
135689 Michael F. Cavanagh
Elizabeth A. Weaver
Marilyn Kelly
Maura D. Corrigan
BONNIE PATTERSON, Robert P. Young, Jr.
Plaintiff-Appellee, Stephen J. Markman,
Justices
v SC: 135689
COA: 278823
WCAC: 06-000093
DELPHI CORPORATION,
Defendant-Appellant.
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On order of the Court, the application for leave to appeal the January 7, 2008 order
of the Court of Appeals is considered and, pursuant to MCR 7.302(G)(1), in lieu of
granting leave to appeal, we REMAND this case to the Court of Appeals for
consideration as on leave granted. On remand, the Court of Appeals shall consider
whether the Worker’s Compensation Appellate Commission (WCAC) majority
committed legal error by applying the wrong standard of proof, and if so, whether this
error was nonetheless harmless. MCL 418.851 provides that “[a] claimant shall prove his
or her entitlement to compensation and benefits under this act by a preponderance of the
evidence.” The Court of Appeals shall determine whether the WCAC evaluated the
evidence from the perspective that, once a magistrate has determined that a claimant is
suffering from a work-related disability for any period, the claimant remains entitled to
worker’s compensation benefits absent direct proof of recovery from that disability; if so,
this would not describe the correct standard of proof. Simply because a claimant meets
the burden of proof for one period does not mean that he or she necessarily meets that
burden for all periods until proven otherwise. Rather, the claimant has the burden at all
times of proving his or her entitlement to benefits by a preponderance of the evidence.
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.
April 23, 2008 _________________________________________
t0416 Clerk