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The Family
Division of Circuit Court
has
jurisdiction over all proceedings involving
families with minor children, including:
domestic relations - divorces with minor
children; paternity; child custody,
parenting time, and support; juvenile
delinquency; child neglect and abuse;
adoption; emancipation; and name changes.
(Personal protection orders involving adults
and minors are not processed through the
Family Division.)
Family Court
A divorce proceeding can be initiated with
or without an attorney. If you choose to
proceed in pro per (without an
attorney), forms and instructions are
available on the State Court website at
courts.michigan.gov; you may
purchase The Michigan Divorce Book with
minor children, which gives detailed
instructions on filing; or, visit the local
library. At this time the Court does not
have forms available to the public.
The Friend of the Court’s
office is involved in all domestic
proceedings. Any pleadings filed with the
Family Court Clerk must be copied to the
Friend of the Court also.
Filing fees: $175.00 fee
payable at time of filing; $80.00 Friend of
the Court investigation fee, payable upon
entry of Final Judgment; $20.00 motion fee;
copies of documents, $1.00 per page.
Delinquency
All
petitions must first be filed with the
Prosecuting Attorney [906-482-3214].
Juveniles found by the court to be
delinquent are placed on probation and
supervised by the Juvenile Officer or
Probation Officer; occasionally, referrals
are made to the Department of Health and
Human Services.
Out-of-home placement decisions are made
based on a youth’s prior record and current
allegation before the court. If a juvenile
is placed out of the home, the parents will
be responsible for at least partial
reimbursement of foster care expenses
incurred by the County. All child care fund
questions should be directed to the Juvenile
Officer [906-482-1032]. Scheduling questions
can be handled by the Family Court Office
[906-482-3120].
Neglect/Abuse
All neglect proceedings are initiated
through the Department of Health and Human
Services and
approved by the Prosecuting Attorney. All
children involved in a neglect or abuse
situation will be appointed an
attorney/guardian ad litem to represent
their best interests. Scheduling questions
can be handled by the Family Court Office
[906-482-3120].
Adoption
Direct placement and foreign adoptions are
filed through an adoption agency or an
attorney. The filing fee is $175.00;
petition fees are $20.00; copies of records
are $1.00 per page. Adoptions involving
step-parents or relatives, i.e. grandparent,
aunt, uncle, etc, can be handled through the
Court’s adoption worker, Susan L. O’Connell
[906-482-0252]. All of the above fees apply
to step-parent and relative adoptions, as
well as an additional $250.00 court
supervision fee. Requests for confidential
intermediaries can also be directed to the
Court’s adoption worker. The applicable fee
is $20.00. Adoption search fee is $20.00per
search.
General
Emancipation; $175.00 filing fee; must be at
least 16 years old; only a child can
petition, not a parent; copy of birth
certificate and ability to manage financial
and social affairs required; child cannot be
receiving any state assistance; affidavit
must be signed by professional with personal
knowledge of minor, i.e. physician, school
counselor, teacher, clergy, etc; court will
schedule hearing and notify petitioner,
parents, and affiant. Attorney will be
appointed to represent minor on an as-needed
basis. Forms are available at the Family
Court Office.
Name Changes
$175.00 filing fee; $64.45 publication fee
(payable to local newspaper and subject to
change); fingerprinting fees applicable to
anyone filing over age 22; contact Family
Court Office for further information and
forms.
Click Here for
Name Change Instructions and Forms
To order transcripts of
court proceedings, please make your request
in writing to the Court Reporter, with the
name of the case, date of hearing, and file
number, if available. Transcripts are billed
at the rate of $2.05 per page.
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