Andy Blodgett is an attorney in Traverse City, Michigan who practices in the areas of construction litigation, commercial litigation, premises liability, first-party and third-party automobile liability, personal injury defense, governmental law, agriculture law, and insurance coverage. His clients include insurance companies, municipalities, contractors, retailers, food processors, other businesses and individuals.

Andy has a B.S. in Biology from Cedarville University and a J.D. from the University of Indiana - Bloomington. In his spare time, Andy enjoys skiing, hiking, and cheering for the Chicago Cubs. He lives in Traverse City with his wife, Jenni, and their four sons.

Noteworthy

• 2010 Recipient - Young Lawyer's Section Golden Gavel Award, Michigan Defense Trial Counsel

Education

• Cedarville University (B.A., Biology, 2001); Au Sable Institute of Environmental Studies, Great Lakes Campus, Summer 1999
• Indiana University - Bloomington (J.D., 2004), Moot Court Octofinalist; Moot Court External Team Coordinator; taught Legal Research and Writing to international law students

Admitted to Practice

• State Bar of Michigan, 2005

Previous Professional Experience

• Summer Associate – Fletcher & Niemann, Fort Wayne, IN
• Summer Clerk – United States District Court, Southern District of Indiana

Presentations

• "Serving as an Expert Witness and Liability Issues in Timber Trespass Cases," Association of Consulting Foresters, 2009 Annual Conference

Examples of Andy's recent successful cases include the following:

• Represented a multi-location manufacturer in a defense of a Whistleblower's Protection Act lawsuit. Vigorous and thorough discovery led to an early settlement of the lawsuit for less than six months of the employee's wages. Client CEO happily reported that avoiding protracted litigation freed up his time to pursue further sales leads in the second half of the year.
• In five day trial with partner Mark Bickel, defended a cable company who admitted negligence following a motor vehicle collision. Plaintiff claimed three million dollars in damages stemming from an alleged traumatic brain injury. Cross-examination of plaintiff's economics expert by Mr. Blodgett resulted in a reduction in plaintiff's lost wage claim from $2.1 million to $495,500. The jury ultimately awarded plaintiff zero damages.
• Summary Disposition dismissal for a water authority board which had been sued for allegedly violating the equal protection rights of a local developer.
•  Working with attorney Todd Millar to achieve a "no cause of action" jury verdict on behalf of a subcontractor sued following a fall at a construction site. The subcontractor had covered a hole, but case law and construction regulations showed that the subcontractor did not owe a duty to a fellow subcontractor.
• Working with attorney Mark Bickel to achieve a "no cause of action" jury verdict on behalf of a retailer sued following an assault in the retailer's parking lot. Following a recent Michigan Supreme Court decision, the retailer had no duty to prevent the attack and properly fulfilled its duty to respond to the attack.
• Successful representation of an insurance company at trial to defend a coverage dispute. The jury concluded that though the building in question had been mistakenly addressed on the declaration sheet, the insured had opted for the lesser "farm dwelling" coverage which did not provide coverage for the loss.
• Representation of a local commercial landlord against a large national drugstore chain to enforce a lease provision prohibiting signage on the site. The settlement reached denied the use of nationwide "brand" sign, but instead limited the tenant's signage to conform with the existing site signage designed by the landlord.
• Representation of food processing facility in lawsuit against and negotiations with Michigan Department of Agriculture resulting in release of canned foods which had been seized for over one year.
• Representation of commercial logger in timber trespass lawsuit; following initial demand of over $120,000, lawsuit settled following case evaluation amount of $7,000.
• Trial verdict of no benefits owed in dispute over PIP benefits after vehicle rolled over plaintiff; established that the plaintiff had recovered from his injuries, that benefits denial following medical evaluation was proper, and plaintiff's termination from work was not due to accident-related injuries.

Client Successes for Andrew J. Blodgett

• 4/1/2009
  Todd Millar and Andy Blodgett obtained a dismissal in favor of their client, a water and sewer authority. The plaintiff claimed that his proposed development was unfairly treated when the authority established a new rate structure. Todd and Andy convinced the court that the authority had treated the plaintiff 's proposed development the same as all other similarly situated developments. The client was pleased that this decisive ruling would allow it to continue implementing its recently enacted rate schedule, allowing commercial growth to continue within the authority's jurisdiction.

External Publications

• “After Fultz, Can a Third Party Still Use a Contract to Sue in Tort?”, Michigan Defense Quarterly, Vol 23, No 1, July 2006
• "Other Insurance Clauses: Pro Rata or Excess?", Michigan Defense Quarterly, Vol 24, No 4, April 2008

Smith Haughey Publications

News for Andrew J. Blodgett

1/6/2011
Smith Haughey Announces New Shareholders and Board of Directors

8/24/2010
SHRR Presents Webinar About Changes to the Michigan No-Fault Act

3/23/2010
Blodgett Selected as Recipient of the MDTC's Young Lawyer Section Golden Gavel Award

6/6/2005
Smith Haughey Welcomes Andrew Blodgett

Professional/Civic Affiliations

• State Bar of Michigan
• Great Lakes Children's Museum, Board member