M Civ JI 50.10 Defendant Takes the Plaintiff As He/She Finds Him/Her

You are instructed that the defendant takes the plaintiff as [ he / she ] finds [ him / her ]. If you find that the plaintiff was unusually susceptible to injury, that fact will not relieve the defendant from liability for any and all damages resulting to plaintiff as a proximate result of defendant’s negligence.

Note on Use

This instruction should not be used in negligence cases in which the action is based on emotional distress, fright, or mental shock without a contemporaneous physical impact. While recovery may be permitted in such cases, it is subject to the limitation that “Absent specific knowledge of plaintiff’s unusual sensitivity, there should be no recovery for hypersensitive mental disturbance where a normal individual would not be affected under the circumstances.” Daley v LaCroix, 384 Mich 4, 13; 179 NW2d 390, 395 (1970) (citations omitted).

Comment

See Wilkinson v Lee, 463 Mich 388; 617 NW2d 305 (2000); Richman v City of Berkley, 84 Mich App 258; 269 NW2d 555 (1978).

History

M Civ JI 50.10 was added January 1982.