Rhoades McKee Files Amicus Brief Seeking to Protect Michigan Auto Accident Victims

Rhoades McKee attorney Stephen Hulst recently filed an amicus brief with the Michigan Supreme Court in the case of Andary v USAA.

The Andary case involves challenges to certain provisions of Michigan’s no-fault reform law that was passed in June 2019. As part of the reform, the Michigan Legislature imposed new fee caps and limitations on the number of hours family members can provide care. The plaintiffs in Andary argued that these provisions could not retroactively apply to auto accident victims injured before June 2019 and that the new provisions were unconstitutional. The trial court in Andary disagreed with the plaintiffs, but the Michigan Court of Appeals reversed, issuing a published and binding decision on August 25, 2022, ruling that the new fee caps and limitations could not retroactively apply and are unconstitutional, in violation of the Contracts Clause.

Since no-fault reform was passed, Rhoades McKee has represented numerous auto accident victims who, because of reform, were at risk of losing the care they need to survive. Attorney Hulst has sought and obtained injunctions from courts across the state, with judges ruling that auto insurance companies must continue to pay reasonable rates such that those auto accident victims can maintain their life-sustaining care while these issues work their way through the legal system.

With the Andary case headed to the Michigan Supreme Court, Attorney Hulst filed an amicus brief on behalf of ten Michigan citizens who were catastrophically injured in auto accidents and were forced to file lawsuits to obtain injunctive relief to protect their safety, health, and lives. The brief provides further perspective to the Supreme Court on the real-life consequences no-fault reform has had on some of the most vulnerable citizens in our state and encourages the Court to affirm the Court of Appeals’ decision.  The oral argument in Andary is set for March 2, 2023.