Washington v. Sinai Hosp. of Greater Detroit

This medical malpractice case presents the question whether a successor personal representative of a decedent’s estate is barred from filing a subsequent complaint by the doctrine of res judicata when the initial personal representative filed a complaint that was involuntarily dismissed. The Court of Appeals held that the successor representative’s complaint was not barred by res judicata because a grant of summary disposition on statute of limitations grounds in the first action was not an adjudication on the merits. The Court of Appeals, however, overlooked MCR 2.504(B)(3), which states…