Court Opinion

ID: 9674919
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-24 04:37:20.181698+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:16:30.208281
License: Public Domain

R. M. Maher, J.
(concurring). I concur in Judge Hood’s disposition of this case, but for different reasons. I adhere to the view that a public employee is immune from liability for negligence if the allegedly negligent act falls within the scope of his employment. See Davis v Lhim, 124 Mich App *86291; 335 NW2d 481 (1983). A negligent act falls within the scope of the actor’s employment only if the duty he breached is imposed upon him because he is a public employee. Davis, supra, p 296. In the present case, the plaintiff alleged that the individual defendants were guilty of malpractice inasmuch as they breached their duty to follow the applicable professional standards. In Davis, surpa, p 297,1 said:
"All psychiatrists, whether employed by a state institution or private facility, are subject to a duty to exercise competent, professional judgment in all aspects of treatment of their patients * * *.”
Thus, the duty that the individual defendants allegedly breached is not a public duty. Consequently, their acts of malpractice, as alleged, are not within the scope of their employment. Accordingly, I hold that the individual defendants are not immune from liability for malpractice.