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Marquette Mountain suit appeal rejected

MARQUETTE — The Michigan Supreme Court has rejected an appeal from Marquette Mountain in a lawsuit over a severe head injury suffered by a snowboarder in 2010.

The decision last week wasn’t unanimous since Chief Justice Stephen Markman wanted to take the case. In his dissent, he questioned whether the Michigan Court of Appeals last year correctly interpreted the Ski Area Safety Act, which basically requires a ski operator to mark the top or entrance to each ski run, slope and trail that’s closed to skiing with an appropriate symbol indicating its closure.

Markman said he would assess whether the act applies to the closing of only an individual feature on a run, slope or trail, in this case, a snowboarding rail. He also wrote he would assess whether the correct legal standard was applied in addressing whether the trail constituted a ski hazard that’s inherent in the sport.

Trevor Rhoda suffered a brain injury when he fell after his snowboard caught a gap on a rail in 2010. According to Michigan State Court of Appeals documents, Marquette Mountain knew that the rail’s separate sections were incompletely welded together. It erected two crossed red poles to discourage users, but safety rules suggest it should have done more.

Michigan’s Ski Area Safety Board requires “a sign containing a regulatory symbol and the word ‘closed’ in 3-inch or larger letters” plus the placement or a rope, mesh tape or fence across the top or entrance to a closed run.

The appeals court determined administrative regulations apply to snowboarding runs like the rail, and that the crossed poles didn’t comply with the SASB’s closure requirements.

The appeals court last year said Marquette Mountain can’t escape all liability. If the lawsuit goes to trial, jurors could also consider whether the snowboarder bears some responsibility for his injuries.

The court said a jury must weigh Marquette Mountain’s violation of its duty to properly mark the closed rail against the snowboarder’s negligence, if any, in failing to recognize the danger the defective rail posed.

Christie Bleck can be reached at 906-228-2500, ext. 250. Her email address is cbleck@miningjournal.net.

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