Indiana Injury Lawyer Blog

Indystar.com reported on the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety's ("IIHS") annual list of the safest new vehicles for 2011. The IIHS picked 66 vehicles for its "Top Safety Pick" award. Hyundai, Kia, and Volkswagen led the pack of automakers with nine awards each, followed by General Motors, Ford, and Toyota who received eight awards apiece. Subaru won five awards overall, but was the only automaker to sweep with awards in every vehicle category that it competed.

A December 22, 2010 news release by the IIHS stated that its "Top Safety Pick recognizes vehicles that do the best job of protecting people in front, side, rollover, and rear crashes based on good ratings in institute tests."

To view the complete list of award winners visit the IIHS website here. Also the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's crash ratings can be found at their website.

It is important to keep in mind that Indiana courts will strictly apply the rule that a court cannot consider summary judgment filings outside of the thirty day window set forth in the trial rules. Examples of this happening can be found in several recent cases.

In Miller v. Yedlowski, 916 N.E.2d 246 (Ind. Ct. App. 2009), the defendant in Miller brought an interlocutory appeal following the denial of his motion for summary judgment. The Court of Appeals held that because the nonmoving party (plaintiff) filed their second motion for enlargement of time six days after the deadline set by the trial court, the trial court’s order granting their second motion for enlargement of time was a nullity, and the trial court was precluded from considering plaintiff’s response to defendant’s motion for summary judgment. Consequently, the Court of Appeals remanded the case with instructions for the trial court to enter summary judgment in favor of defendant because there was no evidence to oppose defendant’s motion.

Continue reading "Indiana Trial Rule for Summary Judgment Filings Strictly Applied" »