ESTATE OF BRANDON BILLS V COVENANT MEDICAL CENTER

Court of Appeals, State of Michigan
ORDER
ESTATE OF BRANDON BILLS V COVENANT MEDICAL
CENTER
Docket No. 379485
LC No. 20-043477-NH
Allie Greenleaf Maldonado
Presiding Judge
Christopher M. Murray
Andrew J. Lievense
Judges
The motion for immediate consideration is GRANTED.
The application for leave to appeal is DENIED for failure to persuade the Court of the need
for immediate appellate review.
_______________________________
Presiding Judge
Murray, J. (dissenting in part). I concur in denying leave to appeal on the economic damages argument,
but in lieu of granting leave to appeal, I would reverse the trial court’s order denying Dr. Hruby’s motion
for summary disposition. MCR 7.215(E)(2). Plaintiff’s theory was that Dr. Hruby failed to supervise the
physicians who worked in his lab and that the lab lacked adequate guidelines for when a specialist should
be consulted. However, it is undisputed that Dr. Hruby never examined anything pertinent to this case,
that plaintiff’s expert, Dr. Said, could not identify any involvement by Dr. Hruby with any alleged
negligence, and that any acts or omissions at issue are those of other defendants. Plaintiff cannot hold Dr.
Hurby liable for the actions of others; rather, Covenant, a named defendant, is the entity that can be held
liable for the actions of those physicians under the doctrine of respondeat superior. Nor can the lab’s
internal policies establish the appropriate standard of care. See Meyers v Rieck, 509 Mich 460, 475; 983
NW2d 747 (2022). For these reasons, there is no factual or legal basis upon which to impose liability
against Dr. Hruby, and he should have been dismissed from this matter.

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