BOBO v. THORN APPLE VALLEY, INC., 459 Mich. 890 (1998)

587 N.W.2d 501

No. 111224.Supreme Court of Michigan.
October 27, 1998.

Summary Dispositions October 27, 1998.

In lieu of granting leave to appeal, the judgment of the Court of Appeals is vacated, and the case is remanded to that Court for further proceedings. MCR 7.302(F)(1). The Court of Appeals, while retaining jurisdiction, is to remand the case to the trial court for rehearing and a decision on the issues whether the shortened six-month period of limitation in the Salaried Employee Handbook was unreasonable and whether the plaintiff’s waiver of the statutory period of limitation was knowing, intelligent, and voluntary under the heightened judicial scrutiny that is applied to the loss of a civil rights claim in this context. Herweyer v. Clark Hwy Services, Inc, 455 Mich. 14 19-21 (1997). Myers v. Western-Southern Life Ins Co, 849 F.2d 259 (CA 6 1988). The Court of Appeals is to direct the trial court to allow the parties an opportunity to present testimony and to take additional discovery, if necessary, and to state concisely its assessment of the evidence and findings of fact that bear upon these issues. The Court of Appeals is to impose appropriate time constraints on the trial court for filing the statement of its findings of fact and conclusions of law. When the trial court’s statement of its findings of fact and conclusions of law is received, the Court of Appeals is to proceed to reconsider and decide the plaintiff’s appeal from the trial court’s rulings on the issues whether the contractual period of limitation was reasonable and whether the plaintiff’s waiver of the statutory period of limitation for civil rights claims was voluntary. The Court of Appeals is to allow the parties an opportunity to submit supplemental briefs on these issues before reaching its decision. Jurisdiction is not retained. Court of Appeals No. 184775.