Status of Lawsuits 
Against the State of Michigan 
FY 1994-95 Update

by 
Bill Bowerman, 
Chief Analyst and Legal Counsel

Senate Fiscal Agency 
August 1996


- - ACKNOWLEDGMENTS - -

This report was prepared by Bill Bowerman, Chief Analyst of the Senate Fiscal Agency General Government Unit. Pat Stinton-Harper typed the report and prepared the graphs. The Senate Fiscal Agency would like to thank all State departments and agencies for their responses to the survey.

 

Any questions regarding this report, or requests for additional copies,

should be emailed to: Bill Bowerman at bbowerman@senate.michigan.gov

TABLE OF CONTENTS
OVERVIEW
FIGURE 1 - FUNDING SOURCES FOR PAYMENTS
TABLE 1 - TOTAL PAYMENTS BY DEPARTMENTS FY 1985-86 THROUGH FY 1994-95
TABLE 2 - JUDGMENTS PAID BY DEPARTMENTS FY 1985-86 THROUGH FY 1994-95
TABLE 3 - SETTLEMENTS PAID BY DEPARTMENTS FY 1985-86 THROUGH FY 1994-95
TABLE 4 - NUMBER OF CASES AND PAYMENTS BY DEPARTMENT
TABLE 5 - HIGHWAY NEGLIGENCE CASES - JUDGMENTS COMPARED WITH SETTLEMENTS
TABLE 6 - HIGHWAY NEGLIGENCE PAYMENTS - JUDGMENTS COMPARED WITH SETTLEMENTS
SUMMARY OF CASES RESULTING IN PAYMENTS DURING FY 1994-95: 


OVERVIEW

The information contained in this document is based on reports filed by State departments and agencies pursuant to Section 396(4) of Public Act 431 of 1984 (The Management and Budget Act). Based on the amounts reported, the State of Michigan paid $29,607,246 for lawsuit judgments and settlements in fiscal year (FY) 1994-95. This represents a decrease of $3,192,743 (9.7%) from the $32,799,989 paid in FY 1993-94. Of the 210 cases that resulted in payments, 67 were judgments totaling $12,103,943, and 143 were settlements totaling $17,503,303.

Figure 1

return to table of contents

Table 1 lists total payments by department from FY 1985-86 through FY 1994-95. Table 2 lists judgment amounts, and Table 3 lists settlement amounts. Payments ranged from $13.80 for a Department of Corrections' case to $5,333,941.78 for continuing payments in the Berry v Benton Harbor Area School District desegregation case. Causes of action originated in 47 of Michigan's 83 counties.
 

Table 1 
MICHIGAN LAWSUIT INFORMATION SURVEY TOTAL COURT JUDGMENTS AND SETTLEMENTS PAID BY THE STATE (EXCLUDING WORKER'S COMPENSATION AND UNEMPLOYMENT CASES) (ACTUAL DOLLARS) 
DEPARTMENT  1985-86  1986-87  1987-88  1988-89  1989-90  1990-91  1991-92  1992-93  1993-94  1994-95 
Agriculture  $0  $1,898,800  $1,122,915  $0  $800  $0  $0  $30,895  $75,800  $34,000 
Attorney General  0  0  0  0  0  0  0  0  0  0 
Civil Rights  8,750  3,000  0  0  0  0  0  0  0  757 
Civil Service  16,700  0  13,250  221,978  0  0  130,775  0  0  0 
Commerce  0  49,496  0  4,473  14,000  0  14,000  0  7,000  231,467 
Corrections  695,146  1,761,396  1,389,491  1,444,860  1,149,955  3,184,181  1,145,294  1,859,508  3,554,111  4,969,224 
Education  8,338,765  8,041,725  8,021,657  3,196,188  3,834,816  4,092,833  4,711,540  4,718,571  5,629,103  5,333,941 
Executive  0  0  0  0  0  0  0  0  0  0 
Judiciary  0  0  0  0  0  424,000  0  0  248,332  268,250 
Labor  3,500  688,794  658,594  212,625  80,000  1,204,071  12,347  16,300  306,700  0 
Library of Michigan  0  0  0  0  0  0  0  0  1,109,312  0 
Licensing & Regulation  4,750  3,951  13,250  0  0  0  0  0  0  0 
Lottery  0  0  0  4,012  0  0  0  0  55,721  4,000 
Management & Budget  892,663  115,589  785,168  4,591,412  46,446  494,777  38,500  21,000  113,863  85,000 
Mental Health  628,816  1,387,304  1,123,585  332,078  3,621,074  380,095  389,468  2,140,651  379,850  515,500 
Michigan Jobs Commission  ---  ---  ---  ---  ---  ---  ---  ---  ---  1,951,024 
Military Affairs  0  12,000  0  250,000  0  0  0  0  0  0 
Natural Resources  5,869,115  1,593,182  121,463  256,268  322,623  304,035  108,642  310,338  6,951,821  2,005,360 
Public Health  1,200  69,722  625,490  25,000  0  0  81,586  687,240  38,365  318,959 
Social Services  194,734  57,992  159,065  158,291  345,726  3,670,848  4,010,689  1,095,341  274,776  2,727,681 
State  31,252  750  37,760  16,182  0  81,818  0  0  77,500  3,400 
State Police  878,952  163,630  840,400  56,090  389,750  101,169  91,310  5,698,133  137,850  1,268,771 
Transportation  17,323,039  28,659,135  16,454,263  16,626,950  20,709,143  22,784,855  12,861,671  20,922,840  12,871,557  9,882,412 
Treasury  421,545  996,324  33,620  2,609  630,000  0  122,000  0  968,328  7,500 
TOTAL:  $35,308,927  $45,502,790  $31,399,971  $27,399,016  $31,144,333  $36,722,682  $23,717,822  $37,500,817  $32,799,989  $29,607,246 
return to table of contents

Table 2 
MICHIGAN LAWSUIT INFORMATION SURVEY COURT JUDGMENTS PAID BY THE STATE (EXCLUDING WORKER'S COMPENSATION AND UNEMPLOYMENT CASES) (ACTUAL DOLLARS) 
DEPARTMENT  1985-86  1986-87  1987-88  1988-89  1989-90  1990-91  1991-92  1992-93  1993-94  1994-95 
Agriculture  $0  $1,708,800  $1,122,915  $0  $800  $0  $0  $30,895  $0  0 
Attorney General  0  0  0  0  0  0  0  0  0  0 
Civil Rights  0  0  0  0  0  0  0  0  0  757 
Civil Service  5,000  0  0  221,978  0  0  50,000  0  0  0 
Commerce  0  19,405  0  4,473  14,000  0  0  0  0  0 
Corrections  287,465  391,719  996,839  1,040,684  502,516  2,325,847  815,634  1,224,624  2,589,407  3,784,529 
Education  8,332,765  8,041,725  8,016,657  3,123,831  3,818,166  4,071,961  4,650,249  4,718,571  5,629,103  5,333,941 
Executive  0  0  0  0  0  0  0  0  0  0 
Judiciary  0  0  0  0  0  0  0  0  0  0 
Labor  0  679,044  652,994  0  0  1,737  0  0  251,700  0 
Library of Michigan  0  0  0  0  0  0  0  0  1,109,312  0 
Licensing & Regulation  0  0  0  0  0  ---  ---  ---  ---  --- 
Lottery  0  0  0  4,012  0  0  0  0  0  0 
Management & Budget  844,663  113,589  167,168  4,563,672  0  1,500  0  0  113,863  45,000 
Mental Health  208,196  226,529  9,781  16,055  1,663,846  244,570  22,500  87,500  0  0 
Michigan Jobs Commission  ---  ---  ---  ---  ---  ---  ---  ---  ---  0 
Military Affairs  0  12,000  0  0  0  0  0  0  0  0 
Natural Resources  5,355,115  0  88,760  145,628  10,178  276,335  82,526  0  192,870  242,834 
Public Health  1,200  69,722  625,490  0  0  0  80,336  0  38,365  60,289 
Social Services  173,534  45  93,459  4,845  0  2,767,641  2,900,000  29,223  1,520  2,137 
State  26,252  750  260  16,182  0  63,818  0  0  2,500  0 
State Police  117,900  74,380  675,000  15,090  0  3,728  71,810  5,125,633  9,650  762,500 
Transportation  3,302,422  22,894,279  5,195,040  2,996,707  11,160,062  12,036,801  6,018,686  11,290,468  5,107,256  1,871,956 
Treasury  421,545  996,324  0  2,609  630,000  0  122,000  0  8,328  0 
TOTAL:  $19,076,057  $35,228,311  $17,644,363  $12,155,766  $17,799,568  $21,793,938  $14,813,741  $22,506,914  $15,053,874  $12,103,943 
return to table of contents

Table 3 
MICHIGAN LAWSUIT INFORMATION SURVEY SETTLEMENTS PAID BY THE STATE (EXCLUDING WORKER'S COMPENSATION AND UNEMPLOYMENT CASES) (ACTUAL DOLLARS) 
DEPARTMENT  1985-86  1986-87  1987-88  1988-89  1989-90  1990-91  1991-92  1992-93  1993-94  1994-95 
Agriculture  $0  $190,000  $0  $0  $0  $0  $0  $0  $75,800  $34,000 
Attorney General  0  0  0  0  0  0  0  0  0  0 
Civil Rights  8,750  3,000  0  0  0  0  0  0  0  0 
Civil Service  11,700  0  13,250  0  0  0  80,775  0  0  0 
Commerce  0  30,091  0  0  0  0  14,000  0  7,000  231,467 
Corrections  407,681  1,369,677  392,652  404,176  647,439  858,334  329,660  634,884  964,704  1,184,695 
Education  6,000  0  5,000  72,357  16,650  20,872  61,291  0  0  0 
Executive  0  0  0  0  0  0  0  0  0  0 
Judiciary  0  0  0  0  0  424,000  0  0  248,332  268,250 
Labor  3,500  9,750  5,600  212,625  80,000  1,202,334  12,347  16,300  55,000  0 
Library of Michigan  0  0  0  0  0  0  0  0  0  0 
Licensing & Regulation  4,750  3,951  13,250  0  0  ---  ---  ---  ---  --- 
Lottery  0  0  0  0  0  0  0  0  55,721  4,000 
Management & Budget  48,000  2,000  618,000  27,740  46,446  493,277  38,500  21,000  0  40,000 
Mental Health  420,620  1,160,775  1,113,804  316,023  1,957,228  135,525  366,968  2,053,151  379,850  515,500 
Michigan Jobs Commission  ---  ---  ---  ---  ---  ---  ---  ---  ---  1,951,024 
Military Affairs  0  0  0  250,000  0  0  0  0  0  0 
Natural Resources  514,000  1,593,182  32,703  110,640  312,445  27,700  26,116  310,338  6,758,951  1,762,526 
Public Health  0  0  0  25,000  0  0  1,250  687,240  0  258,670 
Social Services  21,200  57,947  65,606 153,446  345,726  903,207  1,110,689  1,066,118  273,256  2,725,544 
State  5,000  0  37,500  0  0  18,000  0  0  75,000  3,400 
State Police  761,052  89,250  165,400  41,000  389,750  97,441  19,500  572,500  128,200  506,271 
Transportation  14,020,617  5,764,856  11,259,223  13,630,243  9,549,081  10,748,054  6,842,985  9,632,372  7,764,301  8,010,456 
Treasury  0  0  33,620  0  0  0  0  0  960,000  7,500 
TOTAL:  $16,232,870  $10,274,479  $13,755,608  $15,243,250  $13,344,765  $14,928,744  $8,904,081  $14,993,903  $17,746,115  $17,503,303 
return to table of contents

Payments by Departments

Seven departments made payments in 186 cases totaling $28,138,413, which represents 95% of all payments made in FY 1994-95. Table 4 lists departments with payments over $1.0 million.
 

Table 4 
FY 1994-95 PAYMENTS BY DEPARTMENT 
DEPARTMENT  NUMBER OF CASES  PERCENT OF TOTAL  STATE PAYMENTS  PERCENT OF TOTAL 
CORRECTIONS  88  41.9  $4,969,224  16.8 
EDUCATION  1  0.5  5,333,941  18.0 
MICHIGAN JOBS COMMISSION  2  1.0  1,951,024  6.6 
NATURAL RESOURCES  14  6.7  2,005,360  6.8 
SOCIAL SERVICES  19  9.0  2,727,681  9.2 
STATE POLICE  15  7.1  1,268,771  4.3 
TRANSPORTATION  47  22.4  9,882,412  33.4 
OTHER DEPARTMENTS  24  11.4  1,468,833  5.0 
TOTAL:  210  100.0  $29,607,246  100.0 
return to table of contents

DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS

The Department of Corrections made payments in 88 cases totaling $4,969,224, an increase of 39.8% over the $3,554,111 paid in FY 1993-94 for 69 cases. The largest payment was $980,000 for Murra v Abramajtys in a case in which an employee was sexually assaulted by a prisoner. The lowest payment was $13.80 in White v Cook for a harassment case that the State won; payments, however, were ordered by the court for documents the prisoner requested during discovery. There were 49 cases with payments of less than $10,000. Eleven cases with payments over $100,000 accounted for $3,722,863 (74.9%) of the total amount paid by the Department of Corrections.
 
 

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

The $5,333,941 paid in FY 1994-95 represents continuing payments in the Berry v Benton Harbor Area School District desegregation case. The defendants in that case included the Benton Harbor Area School District, the Coloma School District, the Eau Claire School District, the Berrien County Intermediate School District, the State Board of Education, and the Superintendent of the Michigan Department of Education. The United States District Court for the Western District of Michigan, Southern Division, directed the State of Michigan to pay certain expenses related to the court's desegregation remedy plan detailed in the court's order dated May 1, 1981. Most of the payments relate to maintenance funding to school districts for students who elected to transfer to another school district and transportation costs. State payments for this case have totaled $47.3 million from FY 1980-81 through FY 1994-95.

MICHIGAN JOBS COMMISSION

The Michigan Jobs Commission was created by Executive Order 1993-2 and officially became a State department in February of 1995. The FY 1994-95 payments made in two cases were originally filed against other departments. One case with a payment of $1,801,024 involved the reallocation of 148 vocational rehabilitation counselor positions in the Department of Education.
 
 

DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES

Payments by the Department of Natural Resources totaled $2,005,360 for 14 cases. The largest payment was $991,429 for a case involving the Michigan Underground Storage Tank Financial Assurance Fund. The total payment in this case was actually $6,915,766; however, $5,924,337 of that amount was reported in FY 1993-94.
 
 

DEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL SERVICES

Payments in 19 cases totaled $2,727,681. Payments ranged from $75 for a Freedom of Information Act claim to $670,803.36 for a case involving reclassification of day care workers. Three cases with payments of $600,000 or more accounted for 68.6% of all payments made by the department.
 
 

DEPARTMENT OF STATE POLICE

Payments totaled $1,268,771 for 15 cases. Payments ranged from a $100 settlement for a forced entry claim to $750,000 for a judgment in an assault case.
 
 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

The Department of Transportation made payments in 47 cases totaling $9,882,412. This represents a decrease in payments of $2,989,145 (23.2%) from the $12,871,557 paid in FY 1993-94 for 87 cases. Payments for highway negligence cases ranged from a $1,500 settlement for damages caused by a manhole depression and lack of warning, to $3,000,000 for a case alleging improper super elevation, inadequate pavement surface, excessive speed limits, and lack of warning signs. Five cases with payments over $500,000 accounted for $7,207,500 (72.9%) of highway negligence payments. Table 5 and Table 6 provide statistics on State highway negligence payments over the last 10 years. From FY 1985-86 through FY 1994-95 the State paid $158.4 million for 762 cases. Annual payments ranged from $7.5 million in FY 1985-96 to $26.7 million in FY 1986-87.

return to table of contents

Table 5 
HIGHWAY NEGLIGENCE STATISTICS NUMBER OF CASES 
JUDGMENTS  PERCENT OF TOTAL  SETTLEMENTS  PERCENT OF TOTAL  TOTAL CASES 
FY 1985-86  15  23.4  49  76.6  64 
FY 1986-87  26  37.7  43  62.3  69 
FY 1987-88  10  12.3  71  87.7  81 
FY 1988-89  10  11.1  80  88.9  90 
FY 1989-90  15  17.4  71  82.6  86 
FY 1990-91  3  3.6  80  96.4  83 
FY 1991-92  11  11.8  82  88.2  93 
FY 1992-93  6  8.6  64  91.4  70 
FY 1993-94  3  3.8  76  96.2  79 
FY 1994-95  3  6.4  44  93.6  47 
TOTAL:  102  13.4  660  86.6  762 
return to table of contents

Table 6 
HIGHWAY NEGLIGENCE STATISTICS PAYMENTS (in millions) 
JUDGMENTS  PERCENT OF TOTAL  SETTLEMENTS  PERCENT OF TOTAL  TOTAL PAYMENTS 
FY 1985-86  3.2  42.7  4.3  57.3  7.5 
FY 1986-87  22.6  84.6  4.1  15.4  26.7 
FY 1987-88  5.2  32.3  10.9  67.7  16.1 
FY 1988-89  2.9  19.3  12.1  80.7  15.0 
FY 1989-90  8.9  51.1  8.5  48.9  17.4 
FY 1990-91  10.0  49.3  10.3  50.7  20.3 
FY 1991-92  6.0  47.6  6.6  52.4  12.6 
FY 1992-93  11.3  55.7  9.0  44.3  20.3 
FY 1993-94  5.1  40.5  7.5  59.5  12.6 
FY 1994-95  1.9  19.2  8.0  80.8  9.9 
TOTAL:  77.1  48.7  81.3  51.3  158.4 
return to table of contents