Miles v. State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company

Michigan Court of Appeals ruling says settling plaintiff’s No-Fault claim doesn’t bar UM claim

Case impact: State Farm settled plaintiff’s No-Fault lawsuit and then claimed the settlement barred his subsequent lawsuit for unpaid “uninsured motorist” benefits because it should’ve been raised in the first lawsuit. But the Michigan Court of Appeals ruled that settling the No-Fault claim didn’t bar plaintiff’s “uninsured motorist” claim on res judicata grounds (i.e., “multiple suits litigating the same cause of action”).

Important: Despite the Michigan  Court of Appeals in Miles shutting down State Farm’s attempt to avoid its obligation to pay uninsured motorist benefits, the auto insurer stubbornly continued (albeit unsuccessfully) with its tactic. Click here to read about the other cases where the Court of Appeals rejected State Farm’s claims handling practice.

For more information, take a look at our blog on Miles v. State Farm.

Here’s the official Michigan Court of Appeals opinion on the case.