HOUSE BILL No. 5821

 

April 22, 2004, Introduced by Reps. Ehardt, Mortimer, Brandenburg, Sak, Bieda and Vander Veen and referred to the Committee on Judiciary.

        

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                 A bill to amend 1961 PA 236, entitled                                             

                                                                                

    "Revised judicature act of 1961,"                                           

                                                                                

    by amending section 5851 (MCL 600.5851), as amended by 1993 PA              

                                                                                

    283.                                                                        

                                                                                

                THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:                      

                                                                                

1       Sec. 5851.  (1) Except as otherwise provided in  subsections                

                                                                                

2   (7) and (8)  subsection (2), (6), or (7), if the person first               

                                                                                

3   entitled to make an entry or bring an action under this act is              

                                                                                

4   under  less than 18 years of age or insane at the time the claim           

                                                                                

5   accrues, the person or those claiming under the person  shall               

                                                                                

6   have 1 year after the disability is removed, through death or               

                                                                                

7   otherwise, to make the entry or bring the action although the               

                                                                                

8   period of limitations has run.  This section does not  lessen               

                                                                                

9   shorten the time  provided for in  within which an action may be            

                                                                                

10  commenced under section 5852.                                               

                                                                                


                                                                                

1       (2) The term insane as employed in this chapter means a                     

                                                                                

2   condition of mental derangement such as to prevent the sufferer             

                                                                                

3   from comprehending rights he or she is otherwise bound to know              

                                                                                

4   and is not dependent on whether or not the person has been                  

                                                                                

5   judicially declared to be insane.                                           

                                                                                

6       (2) If a claim that arises from sexual conduct with a person                

                                                                                

7   accrues when the person is less than 18 years of age, the person            

                                                                                

8   or a person entitled to bring an action based on the claim has 2            

                                                                                

9   years after the effective date of the amendatory act that added             

                                                                                

10  this subsection or 20 years after the disability is removed,                

                                                                                

11  whichever is later, to bring the action, regardless of whether              

                                                                                

12  the period of limitations has run.                                          

                                                                                

13      (3) To be  considered  a disability under this section, the                 

                                                                                

14  infancy or insanity must exist at the time the claim accrues.  If           

                                                                                

15  the disability comes into existence after the claim  has accrued,           

                                                                                

16  a court shall not recognize the disability under this section for           

                                                                                

17  the purpose of modifying  accrues, the period of limitations is             

                                                                                

18  not modified by this section.                                               

                                                                                

19      (4)  A person shall not tack successive disabilities.  A                    

                                                                                

20  court shall recognize only  Successive disabilities may not be              

                                                                                

21  tacked.  Only those disabilities that exist at the time the claim           

                                                                                

22  first accrues and that disable the person to whom the claim first           

                                                                                

23  accrues  for the purpose of modifying  modify the period of                 

                                                                                

24  limitations under this section.                                             

                                                                                

25      (5)  A court shall recognize  If both of the disabilities of                

                                                                                

26  infancy  or  and insanity  that  disable the person to whom  the            

                                                                                

27  a claim first accrues at the time the claim first accrues, both             


                                                                                

1   disabilities apply under this section A court shall count the            

                                                                                

2   year  A period of grace provided in this section  from  begins on           

                                                                                

3   the termination of the last disability to the person to whom the            

                                                                                

4   claim originally accrued that has continued from the time the               

                                                                                

5   claim accrued, whether this disability terminates because of the            

                                                                                

6   death of the person disabled or for some other reason.                      

                                                                                

7       (6) With respect to a claim accruing before the effective                   

                                                                                

8   date of the age of majority act of 1971, Act No. 79 of the Public           

                                                                                

9   Acts of 1971, being sections 722.51 to 722.55 of the Michigan               

                                                                                

10  Compiled Laws, the disability of infancy is removed as of the               

                                                                                

11  effective date of Act No. 79 of the Public Acts of 1971, as to              

                                                                                

12  persons who were at least 18 years of age but less than 21 years            

                                                                                

13  of age on January 1, 1972, and is removed as of the eighteenth              

                                                                                

14  birthday of a person who was under 18 years of age on January 1,            

                                                                                

15  1972.                                                                       

                                                                                

16      (6)  (7)  Except as otherwise provided in subsection  (8)                   

                                                                                

17  (7), if, at the time a claim alleging medical malpractice accrues           

                                                                                

18  to a person under section 5838a the person has not reached his or           

                                                                                

19  her eighth birthday, a person shall not bring an action based on            

                                                                                

20  the claim unless the action is commenced on or before the                   

                                                                                

21  person's tenth birthday or within the period of limitations set             

                                                                                

22  forth in section 5838a, whichever is later.  If, at the time a              

                                                                                

23  claim alleging medical malpractice accrues to a person under                

                                                                                

24  section 5838a, the person has reached his or her eighth birthday,           

                                                                                

25  he or she is subject to the period of limitations set forth in              

                                                                                

26  section 5838a.                                                              

                                                                                

27      (7)  (8)  If, at the time a claim alleging medical                          


                                                                                

1   malpractice accrues to a person under section 5838a, the person             

                                                                                

2   has not reached his or her thirteenth birthday and if the claim             

                                                                                

3   involves an injury to the person's reproductive system, a person            

                                                                                

4   shall not bring an action based on the claim unless the action is           

                                                                                

5   commenced on or before the person's fifteenth birthday or within            

                                                                                

6   the period of limitations set forth in section 5838a, whichever             

                                                                                

7   is later.  If, at the time a claim alleging medical malpractice             

                                                                                

8   accrues to a person under section 5838a, the person has reached             

                                                                                

9   his or her thirteenth birthday and the claim involves an injury             

                                                                                

10  to the person's reproductive system, he or she is subject to the            

                                                                                

11  period of limitations set forth in section 5838a.                           

                                                                                

12      (8)  (9)  If a person was serving a term of imprisonment on                 

                                                                                

13  the effective date of the 1993 amendatory act that added this              

                                                                                

14  subsection  April 1, 1994, and that person has a cause of action            

                                                                                

15  to which the disability of imprisonment would have been                     

                                                                                

16  applicable under the former provisions of this section, an entry            

                                                                                

17  may be made or an action may be brought under this act for that             

                                                                                

18  cause of action within 1 year after  the effective date of the              

                                                                                

19  1993 amendatory act that added this subsection  April 1, 1994, or           

                                                                                

20  within any other applicable period of limitation provided by                

                                                                                

21  law.                                                                        

                                                                                

22      (9)  (10)  If a person died or was released from imprisonment               

                                                                                

23  at any time within the period of 1 year preceding  the effective            

                                                                                

24  date of the 1993 amendatory act that added this subsection  April           

                                                                                

25  1, 1994, and that person had a cause of action to which the                 

                                                                                

26  disability of imprisonment would have been applicable under the             

                                                                                

27  former provisions of this section on the date of his or her death           


                                                                                

1   or release from imprisonment, an entry may be made or an action             

                                                                                

2   may be brought under this act for that cause of action within 1             

                                                                                

3   year after the date of his or her death or release from                     

                                                                                

4   imprisonment, or within any other applicable period of limitation           

                                                                                

5   provided by law.                                                            

                                                                                

6       (10)  (11)  As used in this section:  , "release                            

                                                                                

7       (a) "Insane" means suffering under a condition of mental                    

                                                                                

8   derangement that prevents the sufferer from comprehending rights            

                                                                                

9   he or she is otherwise bound to know, and does not depend on                

                                                                                

10  whether the individual has been judicially declared to be                   

                                                                                

11  insane.                                                                     

                                                                                

12      (b) "Release from imprisonment" means either of the                         

                                                                                

13  following:                                                                  

                                                                                

14                                                                               (i)  (a)  A final release or discharge from imprisonment in a                        

                                                                                

15  county jail.                                                                

                                                                                

16      (ii)  (b)  Release on parole or a final release or discharge                 

                                                                                

17  from imprisonment in a state or federal correctional facility.              

                                                                                

18      (c) "Sexual conduct" means conduct proscribed by section                    

                                                                                

19  520b, 520c, 520d, 520e, or 520g of the Michigan penal code, 1931            

                                                                                

20  PA 328, MCL 750.520b, 750.520c, 750.520d, 750.520e, and 750.520g,           

                                                                                

21  regardless of whether the conduct was the subject of a criminal             

                                                                                

22  prosecution or whether the conduct can be proved beyond a                   

                                                                                

23  reasonable doubt.