Court Opinion

ID: 9576112
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-21 21:21:01.963791+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T12:59:02.677080
License: Public Domain

Taylor, J.
(dissenting). I respectfully dissent because I cannot accept the majority’s conclusion that arbitration was mandatory and, thus, tolled the period of limitation.
Contrary to the majority’s conclusion, arbitration was not a condition precedent to instituting a suit for judicial relief. Although the preamble to the grievance procedure is stated in mandatory terms,1 the arbitration provisions in. the agreement are permissive:_
*192Arbitration — within ten (10) school days after delivery of the Board’s decision, a grievance may be appealed to advisory arbitration by the Union. The arbitrator shall be sélected and the arbitration shall be conducted under the rules of the American Arbitration Association. The fees and expenses of the arbitrator and of the American Arbitration Association shall be shared equally by the Board and the Union. The arbitrator’s decision shall be advisory only and shall not be binding upon any party except in matters involving wages, discharge or suspension. [Emphasis added.]
The word "shall” is generally used to designate a mandatory provision, while "may” designates discretion. Mollett v Taylor, 197 Mich App 328, 339; 494 NW2d 832 (1992). The mandatory and permissive provisions in this contract are not inconsistent. They are harmonious and allow a permissive use of arbitration following the mandatory grievance procedure. It is simply impossible, utilizing a plain-language analysis of the contract, to justify the majority’s conclusion that these arrangements manifest the parties’ intention to either "opt for arbitration or abandon the claim.” Indeed, a plain reading leads to a different conclusion: opt for permissive arbitration or file an action in court.
Moreover, even if the traditional rules of contract interpretation do not militate convincingly against the majority’s skewed interpretation, one might think our Supreme Court’s dispositive handling of this issue does. In Ensley v Associated Terminals, Inc, 304 Mich 522, 528; 8 NW2d 161 (1943), our Supreme Court held:
A mere agreement to arbitrate does not prevent a suit at law. ... To have that effect, it must be accompanied by another and further agreement which either in express terms or by proper con*193struction makes the award a condition precedent to the right of action.
Like the trial court, I conclude that the Ensley decision is directly on point and controls the resolution of this lawsuit. The majority, while acknowledging that the case is on point, chooses not to follow Ensley because it "has not been cited by any other court since its release in 1943.” This position of insubordination is unseemly in an inferior court. The fact that no published decision has cited Ensley is of no consequence. The Supreme Court’s holding in Ensley is applicable to the facts of this case and this Court is bound to follow it. This Court cannot ignore a Supreme Court decision merely because it concludes that the precedent is invalid because it is too old.
[I]t is the Supreme Court’s obligation to overrule or modify case law if it becomes obsolete, and until [that] Court takes such action, the Court of Appeals and all lower courts are bound by that authority. [Boyd v WG Wade Shows, 443 Mich 515, 523; 505 NW2d 544 (1993).]
According to the collective bargaining agreement’s plain language and our Supreme Court’s decision in Ensley, I would hold that the arbitration provision is voluntary, not mandatory. Therefore, plaintiffs were not required to arbitrate before filing their action in the circuit court.
A claim accrues, for purposes of the statute of limitations, when suit may be brought. Harris v Allen Park, 193 Mich 103, 106; 483 NW2d 434 (1992). For contract actions, the period of limitation generally begins to run on the date of the contract breach. Id. In this case, the claim accrued and the limitation period began to run no later than the date the grievances were filed in July *1941984 and February 1985. Because the arbitration provision was not mandatory and did not need to be exhausted before plaintiffs’ court action could be pursued, the period of limitation was not tolled and expired in July 1990 and February 1991, respectively. MCL 600.5807(8); MSA 27A.5807(8). Inasmuch as plaintiffs’ complaint was filed on April 15, 1991, it was untimely. The trial court did not abuse its discretion in granting defendant’s motion for summary disposition.
I would affirm.

 Paragraph 8 of the parties’ agreement states:
It is the intent of the parties to this Agreement that the grievance procedure set forth herein shall serve as a means for a peaceful settlement of disputes that may arise between them as to the application and interpretation of this Agreement and disciplinary action or other conditions of employment. Further, it shall serve to settle complaints by a bargaining unit employee, or by the Union in its own behalf.