The following is a brief description of a divorce case. There is no
specific information available in this Self-Help Center to aid you with
the entire legal process in a divorce case. Because of the complexity
of most divorce cases where children and property are involved, it may
be advisable to contact an attorney.
At the conclusion of a divorce case, the judge enters an order dissolving
the marriage. Some of the issues the judge must decide are custody of any
children, including parenting time and child support; spousal support (formerly
known as alimony); and division of property. For information about the law,
see the
Filing a Divorce Case Generally
If you are starting the divorce action, you are called the plaintiff
and your spouse is the defendant. The plaintiff must file a complaint
asking the court to grant a divorce. There is a filing fee for this
action. The filing fee may be more if there are children of the marriage
who are under the age of 18.
The family division of circuit court handles all divorce cases in Michigan.
If you want to file for a divorce, one of the parties must have lived
in Michigan for at least 180 days, and in the county where the case
will be filed for at least 10 days before filing.
Processing Divorce Cases Generally
Most divorce cases are processed in the same manner. A complaint must
be filed, fees must be paid, a summons must be issued, the parties must
be served notice of the complaint, hearings must be scheduled and noticed,
answers must be given, and hearings must be attended. The end result of
the case will be entry of a judgment of divorce. General information about
court forms, fees, service, hearings, finding legal information, and how
the courts operate can be found in this Self-Help Center by clicking on
any of the topics in the horizontal bar at the top of this page. Specific
information about processing a divorce case is not provided, but there
are more details
about general case processing >>.
Minimum Requirements for Entry of a Divorce Judgment
In Michigan, a divorce can be granted even if one of the parties
does not want the divorce.
If there are no minor children (children under the age of 18), there
is a 60-day waiting period before a divorce can be granted.
In cases where there are minor children, the waiting period is generally
six months. In these cases, the divorce judgment will address child
custody, support, and parenting time. These cases may be referred
to the friend of the court office for evaluation and recommendations
regarding child support, custody, and parenting time. See
more details >>.
Before a divorce is granted, the court must find that there has been
a breakdown in the marriage relationship to the extent that the parties
cannot live together as husband and wife. At least one of the parties
must appear in court to show that this breakdown exists.
A divorce judgment can be changed if necessary. See details for changing
a support order, parenting
time order, or custody
order >>.
