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STATE OF MICHIGAN
COURT OF APPEALS


ROBERT DREGER, Plaintiff-Appellee, v JOSEPH LEPERA and AUTOMATION SERVICE EQUIPMENT, Defendant-Appellants.

UNPUBLISHED August 20, 1996

No. 173554 LC No. 92-005753-CK

Before: Murphy, P.J., and Reilly , and C.W. Simon, Jr.*, JJ PER CURIAM. Plaintiff brought this action for breach of employment contract and age discrimination against his former employer, Automation Service Equipment, (ASE) and its president, Joseph LaPera. Defendants appeal by leave granted the circuit court order denying their motion for summary disposition of plaintiff's claims pursuant to MCR 2.116(C)(10). We affirm in part, reverse in part and remand. Defendants argue that the trial court improperly denied their motion for summary disposition as to the breach of employment contract because plaintiff's employment was at will, as is stated in the employee handbook. Plaintiff argues that there was a genuine issue of material fact about whether he had a legitimate expectation of just cause employment. Plaintiff relies on the deposition testimony of LaPera to show that in 1992, ASE had a policy and practice to terminate employees only for good cause and that LaPera told plaintiff that plaintiff had to have good cause or good reason to fire someone. The first step in analyzing a "legitimate expectations" claim is to determine what express or implied promise, if any, the employer has made. Rood v General Dynamics Corp, 444 Mich 107, 138; 507 NW2d 591 (1993). In Rood, the Court quoted the definition of "promise" found in the Second Restatement of Contracts,

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