Michigan Supreme Court reverses Court of Appeals' holding that contract immunity does not apply to protect defendant from its own negligence.
In June, the Court of Appeals ruled that a contractor was not immune from negligence simply because it signed a contract with the City of Royal Oak that imposed certain safety requirements. The two concurring Court of Appeals judges determined that the injured party, Frederick Price, had pleaded a duty owed by the contractor to him that was "separate and distinct" from the contractual duties it assumed to the City.
The Supreme Court subsequently decided the Loweke case which clarified the "contractual immunity" first suggested by the Engler Majority in the Fultz v. Commercial Union case. The Supreme Court then reversed the Court of Appeals' decision in Price's case, holding that even though two of the judges had accurately anticipated the Loweke decision in deciding Price, they should reconsider the facts of the Price case with the Loweke holding in mind.