Friend of the Court in Michigan
The office of the Friend of the Court administers and enforces the obligations of the parties related to the divorce proceeding. The Friend of the Court has a number of duties, including:
- to inform the parties about community services, joint custody, and domestic relations mediation;
- when parties cannot come to agreement, or when a judge orders: investigate, hold hearings, report on, and make recommendations about child custody, parenting time, property division, and spousal support disputes;
- to provide domestic relations mediation;
- to investigate support orders after judgment, collect and process payments, and petition the court for modifications, if necessary; and
- enforce orders regarding child custody, support, and parenting time.
If you agree to use the services of the Friend of the Court or a judge orders it, an office of the Friend of the Court in your circuit will open a case for your divorce. The parties are not required to have a Friend of the Court case opened for their divorce and can petition the court not to have one. This request will be granted unless one of the following situations exists:
- The parties will not assume full responsibility for the administration and enforcement of the obligations imposed by the domestic relations case;
- One of the parties is entitled to IV-D services because of the party's current or past receipt of public assistance;
- One or both of the parties applies for IV-D services;
- A party requests that the Friend of the Court opens and maintains a Friend of the Court case for the divorce case;
- There is evidence of domestic violence or uneven bargaining position between the parties and the party needing services has not requested IV-D services against the best interest of either party or the party's child; and
- The parties have not signed a document listing the services of the Friend of the Court and acknowledging they are choosing to do without the services.
- If a party in a domestic relations matter wants to ensure that any payments made under a domestic relations matter are accounted for, all payments must be made through the Michigan State Disbursement Unit. The Friend of the Court will not terminate its case until both parties have provided the information necessary to process child support payments in the domestic relations matter.
(MCL 552.505(a))
Carefully weigh the decision whether to opt out or in of the Friend of the Court system. Several reasons to opt in include if the payor has an inconsistent payment history, if the parties do not communicate well together as regards matters relating to the child(ren), if there has been domestic abuse or the parties receive public assistance, and if the Friend of the Court could provide useful services to the parties.
Reasons to consider opting out of the Friend of the Court system include delays in setting up accounts and difficulty in tracking receipts and disbursements, if the parties cooperate well together and have a good record of payments, they can take care of the payments through a direct deposit they can set up on their own, without intervention from the state bureaucracy.
Practice varies widely among the state's circuit courts and while some circuits refer most cases for investigation and recommendation by the Friend of the Court, others rarely do so.
A large portion of the Friend of the Court's work is enforcement of child and spousal support provisions in divorce judgments. When orders are violated and payments are not made, the Friend of the Court has the authority to conduct hearings and recommend an enforcement action, which can include:
- Income withholding
- License suspension, including driver's, occupational, recreational
- Civil contempt
- Liens on personal or real property
- Interception of tax refunds
- Interest surcharges
- Liens against inheritances
- Liens against personal injury awards
- Liens against arbitration awards
- Liens against workers' compensation awards
(MCL 552)
More information on the Michigan Friend of the Court Bureau may be found at http://courts.michigan.gov/scao/services/focb/focb.htm.
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