26-000200 SAD and Dismiss.pdf

Andrew Nesbitt, Petitioner V Township Of Porter, Respondent · 26-000200-TT

← View full record

Text extracted from the reviewed PDF, organized by page. OCR and reading order may contain errors; confirm details in the PDF below.

STATE OF MICHIGAN

 

GRETCHEN WHITMER 

GOVERNOR 

DEPARTMENT OF LICENSING AND REGULATORY AFFAIRS 

LANSING

MARLON I. BROWN, DPA 

DIRECTOR 

 

 

MICHIGAN TAX TRIBUNAL · 611 W. OTTAWA ST., LANSING, MI 48933 · 517-335-9760 

PO BOX 30232, LANSING, MI 48909 · Other Carriers: 2407 N. GRAND RIVER AVE., LANSING, MI 48906 

Andrew Nesbitt, 

MICHIGAN TAX TRIBUNAL 

 

Petitioner, 

SMALL CLAIMS DIVISION 

 

v 

 

MTT Docket No. 26-000200 

 

Porter Township, 

 

Presiding Judge 

Respondent. 

 

Patricia L. Halm 

 

ORDER GRANTING PETITIONER’S MOTION TO SET ASIDE DEFAULT 

 

ORDER OF DISMISSAL 

 

On March 5, 2026, Petitioner filed a motion requesting that the Tribunal set aside the 

Order of Default entered in this case on March 3, 2026.1 

 

Respondent has not filed a response to the motion. 

 

The Tribunal has considered the motion and the case file, and finds that Petitioner was 

placed in default because they did not submit a copy of the notice giving rise to the 

appeal. Having now filed the requisite notice, Petitioner has complied with the 

Tribunal’s orders as required by TTR 237. As such, the Tribunal finds good cause to 

grant the motion and set aside the default. 

 

However, based on the provided notice giving rise to the appeal, the Tribunal finds that 

it has no authority over Petitioner’s appeal. The pleadings, motion, and accompanying 

documentation indicate that Petitioner is appealing the true cash and taxable values 

indicated by Respondent’s assessment for Parcel No. 80-16-016-001-10 for the 2023, 

2024, and 2025 tax years. However, the Tribunal has no authority in this case under 

MCL 205.735a because Petitioner was required to protest the disputed assessments to 

the March Board of Review and file a petition with the Tribunal on or before July 31 in 

each of the tax years at issue, specifically 2023, 2024, and 2025. Petitioner failed to do 

so, filing the instant appeal on February 27, 2026. 

 

The Tribunal also has no authority under MCL 211.53a because the facts alleged do not 

establish that the assessments were the result of a clerical error (i.e., “an error of a 

transpositional, typographical, or mathematical nature”) or a mutual mistake of fact (i.e., 

“an erroneous belief, which is shared and relied on by both parties”).2 And though MCL 

211.53b provides July and December boards of review with the authority to correct 

 

1 Petitioner’s filing of the response to Order of Default and $25.00 filing fee for a Motion to Set Aside 

Default was construed to serve as the Motion. 

2 See International Place Apartments – IV v Ypsilanti Township, 216 Mich App 104, 109 (1996), Ford 

Motor Company v City of Woodhaven, 475 Mich 425, 442 (2006).

MTT Docket No. 26-000200 

Page 2 of 3 

 

qualified errors, Petitioner did not appear before Respondent’s July or December Board 

of Review or appeal an action taken by any such board. As such, and inasmuch as the 

Tribunal has no equitable power to waive or otherwise disregard a statutory requirement 

or filing deadline, it has no authority to grant Petitioner the relief requested.3 

 

Therefore, 

 

IT IS ORDERED that Petitioner’s Motion to Set Aside Default is GRANTED. 

 

IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that the case is DISMISSED. 

 

This order resolves all pending claims in this matter and closes this case. 

 

APPEAL RIGHTS 

If you disagree with the final decision in this case, you may file a motion for 

reconsideration with the Tribunal or a claim of appeal with the Michigan Court of 

Appeals. 

 

A motion for reconsideration must be filed with the Tribunal with the required filing fee 

within 21 days from the date of entry of the final decision. Because the final decision 

closes the case, the motion cannot be filed through the Tribunal’s web-based e-filing 

system; it must be filed by mail or personal service. The fee for the filing of such 

motions is $50.00 in the Entire Tribunal and $25.00 in the Small Claims Division, unless 

the Small Claims decision relates to the valuation of property and the property had a 

principal residence exemption of at least 50% at the time the petition was filed or the 

decision relates to the grant or denial of a poverty or disabled veterans exemption and, 

if so, there is no filing fee. You are required to serve a copy of the motion on the 

opposing party by mail or personal service or by email if the opposing party agrees to 

electronic service, and proof demonstrating that service must be submitted with the 

motion. Responses to motions for reconsideration are prohibited and there are no oral 

arguments unless otherwise ordered by the Tribunal. 

 

Alternatively, you may file a claim of appeal with the Michigan Court of Appeals. If the 

claim is filed within 21 days of the entry of the final decision, it is an “appeal of right.” If 

the claim is filed more than 21 days after the entry of the final decision, it is an “appeal 

by leave.” A copy of the claim of appeal must be filed with the Tribunal to certify the 

record on appeal. There is no certification fee. 

 

 

Entered: March 9, 2026 

 

 

 

By _____________________________ 

cs/am 

 

 

3 The Tribunal’s powers are limited to those authorized by statute and do not include powers of equity. 

See Federal-Mogul Corp v Dep’t of Treasury, 161 Mich App 346 (1987), Elec Data Sys Corp v Flint Twp, 

253 Mich App 538 (2002), and VanderWerp v Plainfield Twp, 278 Mich App 624 (2008).

MTT Docket No. 26-000200 

Page 3 of 3 

 

PROOF OF SERVICE 

 

I certify that a copy of the foregoing was sent on the entry date indicated above to the 

parties or their attorneys or authorized representatives, if any, utilizing either the mailing 

or email addresses on file, as provided by those parties, attorneys, or authorized 

representatives. 

 

By: Tribunal Clerk

← View full record