David B. Roth and Michael J. Guss Obtain Summary Disposition Arguing There Was No “Threshold Injury” in an Automobile Negligence Case in Wayne County Circuit Court

Dwayne Harris vs. Therese December, et al, Wayne County Circuit Court Case No. 23-000221-NF (March 21, 2024). In this automobile negligence action, Plaintiff was involved in a motor vehicle accident on January 29, 2022, and sued the defendant driver, who our office represented. Plaintiff claimed the existence of pain in his neck, back, left knee, and headaches following the accident.  Our office filed a motion for summary disposition, arguing Plaintiff had not sustained a “threshold injury” as required by MCL 500.3135. First, we aggressively argued Plaintiff could not show an objectively manifested impairment. At the hearing on summary disposition, David Roth argued that diagnostic imaging from after the accident showed only degenerative changes in Plaintiff’s neck and back, and a CT scan of Plaintiff’s head was entirely normal, lacking any acute traumatic findings. As to Plaintiff’s knee, he had sought no treatment whatsoever and testified during his deposition that his knee was without pain shortly after the accident. The above findings were consistent with Plaintiff’s longstanding history of chronic pain that existed before the accident. Additionally, our office argued Plaintiff could not show that the motor vehicle accident affected his general ability to lead his normal life, where he was already on SSDI before the accident, and his life was not measurably different when compared to his life before the accident. The Court agreed with our arguments and dismissed Plaintiff’s claims in their entirety with prejudice.