SENATE BILL NO. 895

April 28, 2020, Introduced by Senator RUNESTAD and referred to the Committee on Judiciary and Public Safety.

"Revised judicature act of 1961,"

(MCL 600.101 to 600.9947) by adding section 1473.

the people of the state of michigan enact:

Sec. 1473. (1) The legislature finds both of the following:

(a) The right to trial by jury as preserved by the state constitution of 1963 is sacrosanct and the decisions of juries should not be lightly discarded.

(b) It is the public policy of this state that litigants be afforded the highest possible degree of certainty that jury verdicts will be respected and enforced.

(2) This section applies only to circumstances in which a party seeks relief from a circuit court judgment based on a jury verdict more than 21 days after entry of the judgment on the grounds of mistake, inadvertence, surprise, or excusable neglect; of newly discovered evidence; of fraud, misrepresentation, or other misconduct of an adverse party; or that the judgment is void; or for another reason that the party believes justifies relief from the operation of the judgment.

(3) To obtain relief from a judgment under this section, a person must do all of the following:

(a) Demonstrate by clear and convincing evidence that the person is entitled to relief.

(b) Support the request for relief by describing all grounds justifying the relief, with affidavits or documentary evidence supporting each ground, and demonstrating a prima facie case for relief.

(4) A request for relief under this section must be reviewed and adjudicated by a three-judge panel of the circuit court or, for a circuit in which there are fewer than 3 circuit judges, by as many judges as is practical. The reviewing panel shall deny the request for relief unless 2 or more of the judges find clear and convincing evidence justifying the relief.

(5) The party opposing a request for relief from judgment under this section has the right to an evidentiary hearing. The evidentiary hearing must be limited to the grounds set out in the request for relief. After the completion of the evidentiary hearing, the reviewing panel shall issue detailed findings of facts and conclusions of law supporting its decision.

(6) If the reviewing panel denies a request for relief under this section, the requesting party shall pay the costs and reasonable attorney fees incurred by the party opposing the request for relief.

(7) An order granting relief from judgment under this section is subject to an immediate appeal of right to the court of appeals. Action in the circuit court must be stayed while the matter is on appeal.

(8) If a reviewing panel enters an order granting relief from judgment under this section and orders a new trial, it is against the public policy of this state to enforce a contract provision that requires a party that prevailed in the original trial to pay the costs or attorney fees of a party that did not prevail in the original action, even if the result is different in the subsequent trial.

(9) If a reviewing panel enters an order granting relief from judgment under this section and orders a new trial, the action must be reassigned to a judge who has not participated in previous proceedings in the action.

(10) If a reviewing panel enters an order granting relief from judgment under this section and orders a new trial, the fact that a request for relief was made and granted, and the findings of the reviewing panel, are not admissible in evidence and must not be presented at the new trial. This subsection does not prohibit the admission of the factual evidence underlying the request for relief, if otherwise admissible.

(11) This section does not apply to an action to which section 6098 applies.

(12) This section applies retroactively to actions in which a request for relief from judgment was filed after May 31, 2019.