Court Of Appeals Clarifies When A Stipulated Dismissal Is Appealable
Stanley v Farmers Insurance Exchange
Opinion Published: June 9, 2026 (Bazzi, P.J., and Rick and Maldonado, JJ.)
Docket No. 374881
Wayne County Circuit Court
Holding: Under MCR.7.203(A)(1), the court’s jurisdiction over an appeal of rights is limited to appeals filed by an aggrieved party from a final judgement or final order. A stipulated order of dismissal may serve as an appealable final if it reserves the right to appeal earlier orders. The Court of Appeals dismissed the appeal for lack of jurisdiction because plaintiff stipulated to a dismissal in favor of arbitration without reserving the right to appeal prior orders and therefore, was not an aggrieved party.
Facts: Plaintiff filed a first-party no-fault action against Auto-Owners Insurance Company and Michigan Automobile Insurance Placement Facility (MAIPF). Plaintiff sought personal protection insurance (PIP) benefits after a motor vehicle accident occurred, striking her vehicle head on. Farmers sought partial summary disposition, arguing that plaintiff could not recover certain hospital expenses, as she assigned her right to those benefits. Plaintiff disputed the validity of the assignment. The trial court granted partial summary disposition and ruled plaintiff could not pursue those claims where an assignment in favor of the hospital had been executed.
The parties later entered a stipulated order dismissing remaining claims and instead submitting them to binding arbitration. The order closed the case and constituted a final order, which Plaintiff appealed, seeking review of the earlier order dismissing the assigned claims.
Key Appellate Holding:
Failure to preserve appellate rights to an earlier ruling in a later stipulated order of dismissal waives the right to appeal the earlier order under MCR 7.203(A)(1).
MCR 7.203(A)(1) states jurisdiction over an appeal of right is limited to appeals filed by an aggrieved party from a final judgment or final order. Per Dora v. Lesinski, 351 Mich 579, 582; 88 N.2d 592 (1958) a party is not aggrieved by an order to which that party has contested. A party may not appeal from a consent judgment or stipulated order because such order reflects the parties’ agreement.
When a party expressly reserves the right to appeal a prior ruling in a stipulated dismissal, that reservation may be enforced. However, when a party agrees to a final dismissal with the same opposing party and fails to reserve appellate rights, the stipulated dismissal extinguishes any claim of appeal from earlier rulings involving that party. In this case, the appellant was not an aggrieved party within the meaning of MCR 7.203(A)(1) because she failed to preserve her right to appeal the earlier order in the stipulation to dismiss and therefore, the Court of Appeals lacked jurisdiction.
