RONALD WARD V DR SHARON ROONEY-GANDY DO
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STATE OF MICHIGAN
COURT OF APPEALS
RONALD WARD,
FOR PUBLICATION
March 22, 2005
9:20 a.m.
Plaintiff-Appellant,
v
No. 250174
Jackson Circuit Court
LC No. 03-001492-NH
SHARON ROONEY-GANDY, D.O.,
Defendant-Appellee.
Official Reported Version
Before: Markey, P.J., and Murphy and O'Connell, JJ.
O'CONNELL, J. (dissenting).
I respectfully dissent. Plaintiff filed the wrong affidavit of merit with his complaint.
Therefore, the affidavit utterly failed to conform to the law. Because a grossly nonconforming
affidavit does not toll the period of limitations, and the limitations period elapsed before the
filing of a correct affidavit, plaintiff 's claim is time barred. Therefore, I am required to follow
Supreme Court precedent and must dissent from the majority's noble, but misguided, attempt to
salvage this case.1
The trial court in this case originally denied defendant's motion for summary disposition,
but after we issued Mouradian v Goldberg, 256 Mich App 566; 664 NW2d 805 (2003), the trial
court reconsidered its decision on its own motion and granted summary disposition. While
plaintiff argued that Mouradian did not apply, he did not raise any issue regarding estoppel,
waiver, or any other equitable doctrine that might conceivably excuse his failure to file the
appropriate affidavit of merit with his complaint. Neither did plaintiff mention the issue of
equitable tolling in his statement of appellate issues. The majority has researched, considered,
accepted, and applied this legal theory without any assistance from plaintiff and without
providing defendant with any opportunity to rebut it.
Putting aside these procedural irregularities, the current state of the law does not justify
application of the majority's equitable doctrine. In general, "a civil case is commenced and the
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It is clear from this record that the defendant's attorney waited (sandbagged) until the period of
limitations had run before he notified plaintiff that the wrong affidavit had been filed.
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period of limitation is tolled when a complaint is filed." Scarsella v Pollak, 461 Mich 547, 549;
607 NW2d 711 (2000). However, in actions alleging medical malpractice, a plaintiff must file
an affidavit of merit with the complaint for the complaint to initiate the lawsuit. Id.; MCL
600.2912d(1). Filing a complaint without an affidavit of merit is insufficient to commence the
lawsuit, so it will not toll the period of limitations. Scarsella, supra at 553; see also Burton v
Reed City Hosp Corp, 471 Mich 745, 752; 691 NW2d 424 (2005). In Scarsella, supra at 551553, our Supreme Court upheld the trial court's dismissal of a claim as time barred because the
plaintiff failed to commence the suit with an affidavit within the limitations period.
In Mouradian, supra at 574, we determined that an affidavit of merit that is "grossly
nonconforming" with MCL 600.2912d(1) does not toll the period of limitations any more than a
complaint that is unaccompanied by any affidavit. Additionally, in Geralds v Munson
Healthcare, 259 Mich App 225, 240; 673 NW2d 792 (2003), we held that an affidavit that did
not meet the statutory standards contained in MCL 600.2912d(1) was defective and did not toll
the period of limitations. In Young v Sellers, 254 Mich App 447, 451-453; 657 NW2d 555
(2002), we acknowledged that the rule in Scarsella was harsh and unforgiving, even when the
mistake was caused by nothing more than a clerical oversight, but we applied it as law.
Recently, our Supreme Court considered a similar situation that stemmed from an attorney's
oversight combined with sharp practice on a defendant's part. Burton, supra 748-749.
Nevertheless, it held that the proper remedy was dismissal without prejudice and without regard
to the fact that the limitations period had already expired. Id. at 753-754.
Having presented the current state of the law, I must add that I disagree with any rule of
law that encourages conniving, unethical practice on the part of attorneys. The public's disdain
for such behavior prompted the legislation under review. Neither the Legislature, nor our courts,
should try to equalize injustices, but should strive to erase them altogether. We will never obtain
fairness by allowing the disadvantaged and exploited to cheat. Therefore, while I would apply
the rule of law in this case, I would also note that the Michigan Court Rules could prevent this
type of gamesmanship if they required a defendant to raise with particularity any objections to
the validity of an affidavit of merit in the defendant's first responsive pleading. Failure to object
would result in the defendant waiving any later objection to the efficacy of the affidavit.
Objecting would put the plaintiff immediately on notice of the affidavit's infirmities and would
inject a much-needed dose of integrity into the current system. I would encourage the Supreme
Court to amend the Michigan Court Rules accordingly.
Rather than directly approach this difficult issue, the majority equitably excuses
plaintiff 's failure to file the affidavit on the basis of a doctrine it discovers in Bryant v Oakpointe
Villa Nursing Ctr, Inc, 471 Mich 411, 432; 684 NW2d 864 (2004). However, that case
specifically applied the doctrine of equitable tolling because "[p]laintiff's failure to comply with
the applicable statute of limitations is the product of an understandable confusion about the legal
nature of her claim, rather than a negligent failure to preserve her rights." Id. at 432 (emphasis
added). In the case at bar, plaintiff 's mistake was undoubtedly "the product" of a "negligent
failure" rather than an "understandable confusion," so equitable tolling does not apply.
The affidavit of merit filed by plaintiff in this case failed to meet the requirements of
MCL 600.2912d(1) because it was an affidavit regarding the wrong patient. The affidavit failed
to state that defendant breached the standard of care, failed to state what actions defendant
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should have taken to comply with the standard of care, and failed to state the way defendant's
breach of the standard of care caused plaintiff 's injuries. MCL 600.2912d(1). As such, it was
grossly nonconforming because it did not deal with any specifics about this plaintiff or this
defendant. Under Mouradian and Geralds, the filing of the defective affidavit did not toll the
period of limitations and the trial court did not err in granting summary disposition. Therefore,
lacking the suggested amendment to the Court Rules, I would affirm.
/s/ Peter D. O'Connell
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