MCL 484.2601 Interpretation

In Michigan, attorney fees may not be awarded unless specifically authorized by statute. Section 601 of the MTA, MCL 484.2601; MSA 22.1469(601), empowers the PSC to make whole ratepayers and others who have suffered an economic loss, but does not confer on the PSC the authority to award attorney fees. Furthermore, the fact that the MTA provides for an award of attorney fees if an opposing party's position is frivolous, MCL 484.2209(1); MSA 22.1469(209)(1), indicates that the Legislature could have provided for an award of attorney fees under 601 if it had chosen to do so. In re Complaint of Southfield, 235 Mich. App. 523, 533-535; 599 N.W.2d 760 (1999).