The Michigan Supreme Court, in an Order, dated March 21, 2012, in the case of Morgan vs. General Motors, LLC (Supreme Court Docket No. 143949), reversed the judgment of the Court of Appeals and reinstated the decision of the Workers’ Compensation Appellate Commission (WCAC). The court held that, contrary to the determination of the Court of Appeals, the WCAC did not err as a matter of law in finding that the plaintiff could not recover benefits on the basis of an injury date that he did not allege in his application. The plaintiff alleged only one injury date, in 2005. The WCAC found as fact, and the records supported, that the defendant could not have possibly have known it was being called upon to defend a 1999 injury date that was not alleged.

The Supreme Court’s Order should be distinguished from other cases where the defendant had knowledge of and defended a potential injury date that had not been formally alleged.

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04/02/12