December 1, 2005, Introduced by Reps. Walker, Elsenheimer, Palsrok, Stahl, Pastor, Moolenaar, Gillard, Hune, Gaffney, Hildenbrand, Ward, Nitz, Emmons, Proos, Pavlov, Jones, Booher, Casperson, Huizenga, Hansen, Mayes, Byrnes, Brown, Nofs, Newell, Brandenburg, Farhat, Vander Veen, Caswell, Hummel and Sheltrown and referred to the Committee on Judiciary.
A bill to amend 1961 PA 236, entitled
"Revised judicature act of 1961,"
by amending sections 2919 and 2973 (MCL 600.2919 and 600.2973),
section 2973 as added by 2002 PA 209.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:
Sec.
2919. (1) Any person who :
(a)
cuts down or carries off any
wood, underwood, trees, or
timber
or despoils or injures any trees on another's lands land,
or
(b)
digs up or carries away stone, ore, gravel, clay,
sand,
turf,
or mould or any root, fruit, or plant from another's lands
land, or
(c)
cuts down or carries away any
grass, hay, or any kind
of
grain from another's lands land
without the permission of the
owner
of the lands land, or on the
lands land or
commons of
any
a city, township, village, or other public corporation
without
license to do so, or damages or destroys an agricultural crop or
part of an agricultural crop on another's land without the
permission of the owner of the crop is liable to the owner of the
land or agricultural crop or the public corporation for 3 times the
amount
of actual damages and reasonable
attorney fees. If
Except
for an action for damaging or destroying all or part of an
agricultural crop on another's land, if upon the trial of an action
under
this provision or any other action for trespass on lands
land
it appears that the trespass was casual
and involuntary, or
that the defendant had probable cause to believe that the land on
which the trespass was committed was his or her own, or that the
wood, trees, or timber taken were taken for the purpose of making
or
repairing any a
public road or bridge,
judgment shall be given
for the amount of single damages only.
(2) (a)
Any A guardian, tenant in dower, life tenant, or
tenant
for years who commits or suffers any waste , during his
or
her term or estate ,
to the
lands land,
tenements, or
hereditaments,
without having a lawful license to do so , is
liable for double the amount of actual damages. Any joint tenant or
tenant
in common who commits or suffers waste of the lands land,
tenements,
or hereditaments held in joint tenancy , without
having
a lawful license in writing to do so
, is
liable for
double the amount of actual damages at the suit of his or her
cotenant.
(3) (b)
A claim under this provision subsection (2) may be
brought
by the person having the next immediate estate , in
fee ,
for
life, or for years, or by
any a person
who has the remainder
or reversion in fee or for life after an intervening estate for
life
or for years. ; and each Each of the parties shall
recover
damages according to his or her estate in the premises. A joint
tenant or tenant in common may bring the claim in case of waste by
one
1 of his or
her joint tenants or tenants in common.
An heir,
whether of full age or not, after coming into possession of his or
her inheritance, may maintain a claim for waste done in the time of
his or her ancestor as well as in his or her own time, unless
recovery has been had by the executor or administrator of the
ancestor. A tenant who assigns his or her full interest is not
liable for waste done or suffered by his or her assignees while he
or she remains out of possession of the premises.
(4) (3)(a)
The circuit court shall grant injunctions to stay
and prevent threatened trespass when the remedies provided by
subsection
(1) , above, are not fully adequate and
in any case
where the trespass is of a continuing nature.
(5) (b)
In The circuit court may
grant injunctions to stay
and prevent waste in any case where there is not a plain, adequate,
and
complete remedy provided for waste
by under subsection
(2) ,
above,
or where waste is threatened. the
circuit court may grant
injunctions
to stay and prevent waste.
(6) (c)
Having taken If the circuit
court takes jurisdiction
of the case under subsection (4) or (5), the circuit court may at
the same time dispose of all questions involved, including the
assessing and awarding of money damages.
(7) (4)
After the commencement of any
an action based on a
claim
for damages for waste, or for the recovery of land, or for
the
possession of land, the defendant shall not make any
waste of
the land in demand or premises in question during the pendency of
the action. If the defendant commits, threatens to commit, or makes
preparations to commit waste, the court in which the action is
pending or any circuit judge or circuit court commissioner may
make, on the application of the plaintiff, an order restraining the
defendant from the commission of any waste or further waste of the
land
in demand or premises in question.
Any A person violating
who
violates the terms of any
such an order issued
under this
subsection
is guilty of a
contempt of the court in which the
action
is pending, which is punishable as in other
cases of
contempt.
(8) (5)
If any a
person commits, threatens to commit, or
makes
preparations to commit any waste on real estate which
that has been attached or levied upon by execution in any civil
action, the court from which the execution or attachment issued or
any circuit judge or circuit court commissioner may make, on the
application of the plaintiff, an order restraining the person from
committing any
waste or further waste on the land which
that
has
been attached or levied upon. Any A
person who shall
violate
violates
the terms of any
such an order issued
under this
subsection is guilty of contempt of the court in which the action
is
pending, and is punishable as in other cases of contempt.
(9) (6)(a)
If, at any time after the sale of real estate on
execution and before a deed is executed in pursuance of the sale,
the defendant in the execution or any other person commits waste on
the real estate or removes from it any buildings, fences, or other
fixtures
belonging to the land which that
would pass to the
grantee by a deed of conveyance of the land, the purchaser at the
sale or any person who has acquired his or her rights may have and
maintain, against the person doing the injury and against any other
person who has the buildings, fences, or fixtures in his or her
possession
after their removal, the same actions
which that the
absolute owner of the premises would be entitled to.
(10) (b)
Whenever
any lands
or tenements are sold by
virtue
of an execution issued upon any a
judgment, the person to
whom the conveyance is executed by the sheriff pursuant to the sale
has
a claim for damages for any waste committed on the premises
by any person after the sale.
(11) (c)
Any A person entitled to the possession of lands
land or tenements sold under execution may use and enjoy the
premises until the period of redemption has run in the following
ways without being guilty of waste:
(a) (i) He may in all cases The person may use and enjoy the
premises sold in the same manner and for the same purposes in and
for which they were used and enjoyed prior to the sale, doing no
permanent
injury to the freehold. ;
(b) (ii) If the premises sold were buildings or other
erections
he structures, the person may make necessary repairs to
them,
although he the
person shall not make alterations in
the
form
or structure of them. ;
(c) (iii) If the premises sold were land, he
the person may
use and improve the land in the ordinary course of husbandry, but
he
shall not be is not entitled to any crops growing on the
premises
at the expiration of the period of redemption. ;
(d) (iv) He The
person may apply any
wood or timber on the
land
to the necessary repair of any fences, buildings, or erections
which
structures that were on the premises at the time of sale. ;
(e) (v) If he the
person is in actual occupation of the
land sold, he or she may take necessary firewood from the land for
the use of his or her family.
Sec. 2973. (1) A person who intentionally or negligently
damages or destroys all or part of a field crop belonging to
another person produced for crop research or testing purposes is
liable in a civil action for damages and costs and fees as further
described in subsection (2).
(2) The court shall award damages as well as costs and fees
associated with an action brought under subsection (1) to a
prevailing plaintiff in the following amounts:
(a) Twice
Three times the market value of the field crop
damaged or destroyed.
(b) If applicable, the value of the crop research or testing.
(3) As used in this section:
(a) "Costs and fees" means the normal costs incurred in being
a party in a civil action after an action has been filed with the
court, those provided by law or court rule, and the following:
(i) The reasonable and necessary expenses of expert witnesses
as determined by the court.
(ii) The reasonable cost of any study, analysis, engineering
report, test, or project that is determined by the court to have
been necessary for the preparation of the party's case.
(iii) Reasonable attorney fees.
(b) "Crop research or testing" means a crop produced in
conjunction with or as part of a private research or testing
program or facility or a research or testing program funded by a
federal, state, or local governmental agency.
(c) "Field crop" means plants that include, but are not
limited to, those considered and grown as production crops,
ornamentals, vegetables, fruit, turf, horticultural crops,
industrial crops, plants grown for the production of
pharmaceuticals or similar use, seed production crops, livestock
crops, and animal feed crops.