Background
The dispute concerned a 0.16-mile section of Old Pinckney Road in Marion Township, about 100 feet of which crosses property owned by JAC Enterprises, LLC. The City of Howell alleged that the Livingston County Road Commission transferred jurisdiction over the section to the City in 2006 through resolutions and a written agreement.
After JAC and its manager, Aaren Currie, asserted that the road section had been abandoned and belonged to them, they placed a chain across the road. The City sued for declaratory relief, public nuisance, and trespass. Defendants counterclaimed for a declaration that MCL 224.18 transferred jurisdiction to Marion Township rather than the City. The circuit court agreed with defendants on the parties’ competing declaratory claims, reasoning that the City could not acquire jurisdiction over a road outside its municipal boundary.
The Court’s Holding
The Court of Appeals held that the Transfer of Jurisdiction Over Highways Act, not MCL 224.18, governed the 2006 transfer because the alleged transfer was from a county road commission to a city. Under the court’s precedent, MCL 224.18 instead governs transfers from a county to a township in this context.
The Transfer Act contains no requirement that a transferred highway lie within the receiving city’s corporate boundaries. The court therefore refused to import MCL 224.18’s geographic limitation into the Transfer Act and held that the Act did not prohibit the road commission from transferring the disputed section to Howell. It reversed the judgment for defendants on the City’s declaratory claim and directed entry of summary disposition for the City on defendants’ MCL 224.18-based counterclaim, while leaving the trial court free on remand to address factual arguments about whether the transfer satisfied the Transfer Act.
Key Takeaways
- The Transfer of Jurisdiction Over Highways Act governs a transfer of road jurisdiction from a county road commission to a city.
- The Act does not limit transfers to roads located within the receiving city’s municipal boundaries.
- The decision did not finally declare that Howell has jurisdiction; factual challenges to compliance with the Transfer Act may still be considered on remand.
Why It Matters
The decision clarifies that Michigan courts may not carry the geographic restriction in MCL 224.18 into the separate statutory scheme governing county-to-city road transfers. A city may therefore acquire jurisdiction over a road segment outside its boundaries if the Transfer Act’s requirements are met.
The ruling also illustrates the limits of pleading-stage relief: Howell defeated the counterclaim and stated a viable declaratory claim, but defendants may still contest whether the alleged 2006 transfer was properly completed.