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What Does No-Fault Divorce Mean in Michigan?
If you are considering getting a divorce in Michigan, you may have pressing concerns about how fault will play a role in the court proceedings if one party caused the breakdown of the marriage. Every state has its own interpretation of fault during a divorce, and Michigan allows for couples to separate without needing to cast blame to one side.
However, this does not mean Michigan courts will ignore marital misconduct in all cases. The skilled Michigan divorce lawyers at Elkouri Heath, PLC are ready to protect your best interests throughout your divorce and, if necessary, make a case that your spouse’s misconduct should impact the outcome of the divorce settlement.
What Is No-Fault Divorce?
Michigan has been a no-fault divorce state since 1971. This means that neither spouse has to prove that misconduct occurred to initiate a divorce and that a divorce does not require mutual agreement to be initiated. This allows for less fraught, more amicable separations if a married couple decides a divorce is in their best interests. In all cases, a couple in a no-fault divorce can cite irreconcilable differences as a reason for separating.
How is Parenting Time Decided in Michigan?
When you are in the midst of an ongoing divorce, questions about parenting time and custody are likely among your most pressing concerns. This can be a highly stressful time for all parties involved. The courts spend time determining a child’s best interest before making decisions about physical custody, or parenting time.
A family law attorney in Oakland County, MI, can provide compassionate, individualized counsel to help you reach a place of stability with your child. Attorneys Susan L. Elkouri and Symantha Heath have over 46 years of combined experience proudly representing the people of southeastern Michigan in complex, emotionally charged family law cases.
Joint Custody Agreements
When two spouses in a divorce can agree to split the responsibilities of parenting their children, a joint custody agreement allowing for shared parenting time may be appropriate. In these arrangements, parents typically roughly receive an equal amount of time with their child, adhering to a regular schedule. Parents who split parenting time equally may also share responsibility over certain decisions, known as joint legal custody.
The Four Types of Alimony in Michigan
Spousal support can take a few different forms. It is often not permanent, sometimes lasting only until your divorce is finalized. In other situations, it can last for a few years to allow a homemaker spouse time to get back into the workforce. Alimony is normally only ordered on a permanent basis when there is little to no chance that the receiving spouse will ever be able to support herself or himself. You should also know that many spouses will demand alimony at the outset of the divorce regardless of whether or not they qualify for it. This demand is often quickly dropped in negotiations. If you are getting divorced and know that spousal support may be an issue, you need an experienced Oakland County, MI alimony attorney to help you.
Temporary Spousal Support Orders
Courts sometimes order one party in a divorce to continue supporting the other party on a short-term basis. These orders come with expiration dates. Often, one party will be ordered to provide some financial support for the other only for the duration of the divorce proceedings. This type of order usually just means that the higher-earning spouse will be ordered to keep paying the bills for the family home while the divorce is in process. When the temporary order expires, the payor may no longer have any spousal support obligations, or there may be a new, more permanent alimony order to take its place.
Helping a Child Who Acts Out During Divorce
Divorce can be hard on children. Their lives change drastically when their parents establish two separate households that the child likely has to move back and forth between according to your temporary child custody order. It is unsurprising that some children struggle to cope with their parents’ divorces and begin acting out. Although the transition might be difficult for your children, know that getting divorced is likely best for your child in the long run. Children who grow up with parents who are unhappily married are often worse off than children whose parents are divorced and happy. Your children will adapt in time, but may require some extra help while they are settling into a new routine. An experienced Novi, MI divorce lawyer can handle the legal aspects of your divorce while you focus on your children.
When to Seek Professional Help
Involving a therapist should not be a last resort. If you can tell that your child is struggling with the divorce and could use some help processing his feelings, therapy might be good for him. A therapist is a neutral third party who the child can be open and honest with. Your child may be happy to talk to a therapist about things he or she might not be comfortable addressing with you. Therapists who work with children are usually highly experienced in treating children whose parents are getting divorced.
Should I Call CPS on My Co-Parent?
Knowing that your children are being neglected or abused when they are with their other parent can be horrible. If you know that something is wrong in your co-parent’s household, dropping your children off there may feel like torture. The signs that something is wrong may be subtle - your children are always hungry when you pick them up, or they are coming back to you wearing dirty clothes and in need of a bath. Or, you may have seen more substantial evidence that your children are not safe with your co-parent. Many parents who are facing this incredibly difficult situation believe that calling CPS on their co-parent will mean that the children are removed from the co-parents' custody and placed in the caller’s exclusive custody. While this would often be best for the children, it is, unfortunately, not how these situations usually end. A Northville, MI child custody lawyer can take immediate steps to help you protect your children. You should always call 911 if someone is in immediate danger.
Planning to Co-Parent During an Unexpected Pregnancy
When you find out that you are expecting a child with someone you are not in a committed relationship with, you might experience a lot of strong feelings. You may be anxious, overwhelmed, and excited all at the same time. If you intend to have a co-parenting relationship with your child’s other parent, it is best to start preparing as soon as possible. While you cannot formalize a child custody plan until your child is born and his or her needs are known, making a tentative plan now can help you focus on bonding with your baby once he or she is born. An experienced Northville, MI child custody attorney can help you begin talks with your co-parent immediately.
Consider Your Relationship First
It makes sense to take stock of your relationship before you begin talking about legal custody arrangements. If you are currently in a romantic relationship, do you plan to stay together to raise your baby? If so, will you get legally married? While being legally married can offer some security and added benefits, like automatic paternity, it should not be rushed into. If you decide to marry, you should strongly consider a prenuptial agreement.
Divorce When Your Spouse Has Lost Marital Assets
A big part of divorce is dividing your marital assets. If your spouse has lost or wastefully spent a large amount of money that belonged to both of you, you may be able to recover some of those funds during your divorce. Dissipation of marital assets is the legal term that describes a situation where one spouse has taken marital funds and recklessly spent them on himself or herself without the other’s agreement. If you find that your spouse has withdrawn money from your joint bank account or retirement plan, or has sold assets like your shared stock holdings and used the money for his or her own enjoyment, the divorce court may award you other assets to make up for that loss. An experienced Novi, MI divorce lawyer may be able to help you recover some or all of the funds your spouse dissipated.
What is Dissipation of Marital Assets?
For one spouse’s spending to qualify as dissipation of marital assets, it must meet a few requirements. First, the money spent must have been a marital asset. Each spouse can dispose of his or her separate property at will. Second, the spending must have taken place without the other spouse’s agreement or consent. If you were aware of your spouse’s spending and did not object, you might be considered complicit in the spending. Finally, the spending must be wasteful and for the sole benefit of the spouse doing the spending, not for the benefit of the family as a whole.
Divorce When You Are Caring for Grandchildren
Nearly one out of every 25 children in the U.S. are raised by their grandparents. Many of these children have parents who may be struggling with substance abuse or mental illness or are incarcerated. Others were born to very young parents who were not ready for a baby. A few of these children were removed from their parents’ custody due to neglect or abuse. Grandparents often take in their grandchildren to provide them with a stable, loving home. When grandparents who are caring for their grandchildren on a temporary or permanent basis get divorced, their child custody issues can be complicated both legally and emotionally. You will need an experienced Novi, MI divorce lawyer to help you create a plan.
When Grandparents Have Legal Custody
If you and your spouse have been through the formal legal process to get custody of your grandchildren, you will likely need to create a child custody plan. If you have permanent custody and your grandchild’s parents have lost their parental rights or if you have adopted your grandchildren, this process will be the same as it would if these were your biological children. If you have a temporary form of custody, such as if your adult child signed a Delegation of Parental Authority that is set to expire when she returns from inpatient substance abuse treatment, your situation may be more complicated.
How Do Michigan Courts Decide Who Keeps What in a Divorce?
If you are facing a contested divorce, you are probably wondering how courts in Michigan decide how marital property should be divided. Michigan is an equitable distribution state, meaning that courts should divide marital property in the most fair way possible. Equitable does not mean equal - your marital assets are probably not going to be divided 50/50. Instead, the court will try to gain a good understanding of your particular situation to help it decide how to divide your marital property fairly. While courts have broad discretion in dividing marital property, there are certain factors they must consider. An experienced Northville, MI divorce lawyer can discuss how different factors might affect your marital property division.
Factors in Marital Property Division
Factors the court will consider when dividing your marital property include:
- Length of marriage - How long your marriage lasted will impact how your marital property is distributed. In short marriages, courts are likely to try to leave each spouse in the position he or she was in before the marriage. In longer marriages, courts lean toward a more even split.
4 Things Most Divorcing Spouses Can Agree On
You and your spouse might not agree on many things by the time you decide to divorce. Your opinions on politics, religion, childrearing, and financial matters may differ drastically these days. However, if you are planning to attempt an uncontested divorce, you will need to agree on a lot of things, including how to divide up your marital property and how to function as co-parents. Even if your divorce is amicable, creating a divorce agreement you are both willing to sign can be difficult. Mediation can help, or you might decide to use attorney-facilitated negotiation if your relationship is quite tense. However you decide to approach your divorce, you should be represented by an experienced Oakland County, MI divorce attorney.
What You And Your Spouse Might Already Agree On
Establishing common ground can be a productive start to divorce mediation or negotiations. You and your spouse probably already agree that:
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