The BUSKLAW Newsletter

In contracts, words are weapons. A lawyer who effectively drafts contracts will make careful word choices because the client's fate often depends on it. And every word in a contract has meaning: two recent cases support that truth.  First, we have Heimer v. Companion Life Insurance Co. , a 6th Circuit Court of Appeals decision issued just a few days ago. One Beau Heimer got drunk with his friends, but they all decided to take their motorbikes off-road for even more fun. Unfortunately, Beau collided with one of his pals and suffered major injuries; the medical expenses to put Beau back into some semblance of order exceeded $200,000.00. Beau filed a claim with Companion Insurance, but they declined to pay. Why? Because the vehicle insurance policy that they issued to Beau contained an exclusion for the illegal use of alcohol .  Beau's attorney was crafty. He argued that Beau didn't illegally use alcohol. Beau was not a minor and didn't drink in defiance of a court ...

If you work with contracts, it's just a matter of time before a contract with an "unreasonable" provision is sitting on your desk. Perhaps this happened because your company didn't have enough bargaining leverage to get the other party to change the unreasonable provision, but your senior management directed you to proceed anyway. Or maybe the unreasonable provision snuck in during the heat of contract negotiation and wasn't noticed until months later. In any event, you're thinking about going to court and arguing that the unreasonable provision should be disregarded (or even invalidate the contract). What are your chances?  In Michigan, you'll have an uphill battle, as the plaintiffs found out in the case of Rory v Continental Insurance Company CNA that was decided by the Michigan Supreme Court in 2005 and, to my knowledge, is still good law.  The contract at issue was an auto insurance policy issued by Continental to Rory. (Yes, an insurance polic...