A divorce doesn't happen all at once. The Michigan divorce process takes months to complete. Here are the seven steps to getting a divorce in Michigan, so you know what to expect.

Step 1: Preparing for a Michigan Divorce

It is important not to rush into filing for divorce. Even in high-conflict cases where you need to take immediate steps to protect yourself and your children through restraining orders, you can still take time to prepare yourself, before filing. As you begin to navigate divorce, gather copies of legal and financial documents, including:

• Deeds to real property (including the marital home)
• Titles of vehicles, boats, and recreational vehicles
• Statements for mortgages, utilities, credit cards, student loans, medical loans, and other debts
• Tax returns and W-2s or 1099s
• Pay stubs
• School records and medical records for children
• Passports and ID
• Healthcare cards

Preparations come to a head when you meet with a Michigan family law attorney for an initial consultation. At this meeting, you will be able to identify your priorities, explain your concerns, and set goals for your divorce. Following the consultation, you will be asked to sign a retainer agreement and pay an initial retainer, allowing the attorney to represent you in getting a divorce.

Step 2: Filing and Serving the Complaint for Divorce

Once you have retained an attorney, the firm will begin drafting the initial documents in your case. You will need to provide information, including financial details, and review and sign the Complaint for Divorce and related documents. They will then be filed with the Court, a filing fee will be paid, and your case will be assigned to a Michigan family court judge and given a case number.

Once the paperwork is filed, your spouse must be personally served with the Summons, Complaint, and other related paperwork. Depending on the degree of conflict in your case, this may be as simple as your spouse signing an Acknowledgement of Service, or it may involve hiring a process server to deliver the papers. As a party, you cannot serve your spouse yourself, but any other adult can do so on your behalf.

Step 3: Temporary Orders

At the start of many divorces, one or both parties will file motions with the Court requesting temporary orders for things like:

• Child custody and parenting time
• Child Support
• Spousal support
• Interim attorney fees
• Exclusive use and occupancy of the marital home
• Status quo orders for payment of marital expenses
• Restraining orders against dissipation of assets or physical harm

You should expect to attend court with your attorney for these motions, unless you and your spouse can agree on how temporary issues will be handled without getting the court involved.

Step 4: Discovery and Information Gathering

Next comes the information gathering phase, called “discovery,” where both parties' attorneys send requests for information to the other side, issue subpoenas to third parties to get objective information, and hire appraisers or other experts to determine the value of property within the marital estate.

Depending on the issues in your case, discovery can take many forms. You may even be asked to testify at a deposition, where your spouse's attorney will ask you questions under oath. The more information you can obtain for your attorney and share with the other side, the less time-consuming and costly the information gathering process will be.

Also, during this phase, the Court may order a Friend of the Court investigation and recommendation as to child custody, parenting time, child support, or alimony. This could include an informal conference or a full evidentiary hearing. When the Friend of the Court issues a recommendation, you only have 21 days to object to the findings if you want the Court to make the final decision.

Step 5: Mediation and Negotiations

Once each side has an idea of the issues, assets, and liabilities in the divorce, the case will almost always be referred to mediation (except in some domestic violence cases). This is an opportunity for both sides to come together with a neutral facilitator to resolve as many issues as possible. While attending mediation is mandatory, settlement is not. You should never feel forced to say yes to a proposal. However, engaging in good faith negotiations and resolving what issues you can reduce litigation costs later, and can even avoid a public trial entirely.

Step 6: Trial and Entry of Judgment

No divorce can end without going before the judge. If mediation or negotiations are successful, this involves a short hearing where the Judge hears testimony confirming it has authority to decide the case, that the parties understand and agree to the settlement, and that it is in the children's best interest.

However, if you have not reached a settlement, the Court will set the matter for trial. This is your opportunity to make your case to the judge, presenting witness testimony and evidence in favor of your preferred outcome. Unlike in criminal cases, you can be called as a witness even if you don't want to testify. You should work with your attorney to be prepared to take the stand.

Step 7: What to Do After Getting a Divorce in Michigan

At the end of the trial, the judge will issue a decision, either aloud on the record or in a written opinion. Then one of the parties' attorneys will draft a Judgment of Divorce and related orders to transform that opinion into an enforceable order of the court.

The Judgment of Divorce will include actions that each party may or must take, such as:

• Refinancing the marital home
• Listing property for sale
• Paying the other party
• Taking possession of personal property
• Transferring accounts into one party's name
• Dividing retirement and investment accounts
• Registering a legal name change with the Secretary of State

Talk to your attorney to make sure you have a clear understanding of what to do after getting a divorce to avoid going back to court.

Get Help Getting a Divorce from a Michigan Family Lawyer

At Bebout, Potere, Cox & Bennion, P.C., we care about you and your family. We help individuals and families in Rochester Hills, Rochester, Troy, Lake Orion, Oxford, Oakland County, Macomb County and throughout Southeast Michigan. We can walk you through getting a divorce. Call us at 248-651-4114 or contact us here to speak to an attorney.