Zeni v. Anderson

Two issues confront us in this negligence case. The first is the effect of an alleged violation of statute by plaintiff. The second is the sufficiency of Michigan Standard Jury Instruction 14.01 on last clear chance. We hold that violation of a statute by plaintiff or defendant creates a prima facie case from which a jury may draw an inference of negligence. The jury may also consider whether a legally sufficient excuse has been presented to refute this inference. As for the second question, we find that the approach of the American Law Institute in the second Restatement of Torts gives a…