Posts by Geoffrey A. Leskie: Litigation Blog

Geoffrey A. Leskie gleskie@smsm.com

248.994.8550

Geoffrey A. Leskie is a senior associate attorney in the firm's Detroit office focusing his practice on commercial litigation, the defense of professional negligence …

Showing 2 posts by Geoffrey A. Leskie.

PROFESSIONAL LIABILITY CLIENT ALERT: The Development of Michigan's Attorney Judgment Rule

July 19, 2019 by Alan J. Taylor, Geoffrey A. Leskie

The Michigan Court of Appeals, in a recent unpublished decision, Ali, et. al. v. Trivax, et. al., unpub op, Docket No. 343140 (March 21, 2019), clarified the scope of Michigan’s “Attorney Judgment Rule,” which can bar a client from suing his/her attorney in a legal malpractice lawsuit. The Ali Court held that the Attorney Judgment Rule did not protect an attorney-defendant’s error in judgment when that tactical decision was not “well founded in law” adding that the question of whether the attorney-defendant qualifies for protection under the Attorney Judgment Rule is a question of fact for the jury and not the trial court (which significantly complicates relying on the Attorney Judgment Rule as a basis for summary disposition). Ali, unpub op, at 6. More »

TAGS: Professional Liability

REAL ESTATE CLIENT ALERT: Michigan Court of Appeals Held That Non-Tenants May Not Sue Landlords Under Common Theories of Liability

November 12, 2018 by Alan J. Taylor, Geoffrey A. Leskie

On September 20, 2018, the Michigan Court of Appeals in an unpublished decision, Morrish v. Sun Communities, Inc., highlighted an important argument available to landlords defending lawsuits brought by a non-tenant occupant of a rental unit who never signed the lease. The Court in Morrish held that non-tenants, even if identified on the lease as authorized occupants of a rental unit, may not sue landlords under several different common theories of liability. More »