You can file for divorce in Michigan without a lawyer by submitting a Complaint for Divorce to the circuit court in the county where you or your spouse meets the residency requirement, serving your spouse with the papers, waiting out the statutory period, and appearing at a final hearing. The case takes at least 60 days if you have no minor children and at least six months if you do. Filing fees start at $150.1Michigan Courts. Circuit Court Fee and Assessments Table Most of the work is paperwork and deadlines, and both are manageable if you stay organized.
Check Residency and Grounds First
Either you or your spouse must have lived in Michigan for at least 180 days and in the filing county for at least 10 days before you file. The court cannot waive these requirements, even if both spouses want to file somewhere else.2Michigan Judicial Institute. Divorce Proceeding Checklist A recent move to the state or across county lines means waiting.
Michigan is a no-fault state. The only ground you need to plead is that the marriage has broken down to the point where it cannot be preserved. That is the statutory language, and it is all you allege. You do not prove adultery, abuse, or any other specific wrongdoing.3Michigan Legislature. Michigan Compiled Laws 552.6 – Complaint for Divorce
Papers You File to Start the Case
The case begins with a Complaint for Divorce filed at the circuit court. The complaint has to include both spouses’ names (including names before marriage), contact information, whether minor children are involved and their ages, and whether there is property to divide.2Michigan Judicial Institute. Divorce Proceeding Checklist If you have minor children, you also file a Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction Enforcement Act affidavit that tells the court about the children’s living arrangements and any other custody cases involving them.
Both spouses complete a Verified Financial Information Form disclosing income, monthly expenses, financial accounts, retirement plans, vehicles, and other personal property.4State of Michigan Courts. Michigan Court Form CC 320 – Domestic Relations Verified Financial Information Form Be thorough. Hiding assets or shading numbers on this form damages your credibility with the judge and can unravel your case.
The base filing fee is $150 for a divorce without minor children. With minor children, additional fees for custody, parenting time, and support bring the total to roughly $230.1Michigan Courts. Circuit Court Fee and Assessments Table If you cannot afford the fee, submit a Fee Waiver Request and ask the court to let you proceed without paying.
Serve Your Spouse Within 91 Days
After filing, you have to formally deliver copies of the complaint and summons to your spouse. The summons expires 91 days after issuance. Miss that window and the case is dismissed without prejudice, which means refiling from scratch.5Michigan Courts. Michigan Court Benchbook – Summons
Two standard methods are available. Another adult (not you) can hand-deliver the documents to your spouse in person. Or you can send them by registered or certified mail, return receipt requested, restricted to your spouse. Service is complete when your spouse signs for the delivery.6Court Rules Network. Rule 2.105 – Process; Manner of Service Then file a Proof of Service showing the court how and when the papers were delivered.
If your spouse is dodging service or you truly cannot locate them, you can ask the court for permission to serve by an alternative method such as newspaper publication. The court will want to see that you tried the standard methods first.
The Waiting Period Before You Can Finalize
Every Michigan divorce has a statutory waiting period, even when both spouses agree on everything. With no minor children, the court cannot finalize your case for at least 60 days after the complaint is filed. With minor children under 18, the wait is six months.2Michigan Judicial Institute. Divorce Proceeding Checklist
The six-month period can be shortened to 60 days on a showing of unusual hardship or a compelling reason, but a judge will not eliminate the waiting period entirely. Use the time. Work on a settlement agreement, pull together financial documents, and figure out a parenting plan if children are involved.
What Happens If Your Spouse Does Not Respond
Once served, your spouse has a set number of days (stated on the summons) to file a written response. If they do nothing, you can ask the court to enter a default, which strips their ability to participate.
A default does not end the divorce on its own. Michigan courts will not enter a default divorce judgment without a hearing. You still appear before the judge, give testimony, and submit proposed orders covering property, support, and custody. The defaulting spouse must be served with the proposed judgment at least 14 days before the hearing, and they get a limited window after entry to ask the court to set the default aside if they can show a valid reason for not responding.
Self-represented filers sometimes stumble here because they assume a default equals an automatic win. It doesn’t. Every financial disclosure, parenting plan, and support calculation still has to be prepared and filed properly.
If You Have Minor Children: The Friend of the Court
Divorces involving minor children run through the Friend of the Court (FOC), an office within the circuit court that handles custody investigations, support calculations, and enforcement. The FOC is not your advocate or your spouse’s. Treat it as the court’s investigative arm for anything involving the children.7Michigan Legislature. Michigan Compiled Laws 552.505 – Duties of Friend of the Court
- Custody and parenting time investigations, where ordered, involve interviews with both parents, a records review, and a written recommendation to the judge.
- Child support is calculated using the Michigan Child Support Formula and recommended to the judge.
- The FOC informs both parties about mediation and other alternatives to a courtroom fight over the children.
- After the divorce, the FOC monitors compliance with support and parenting time orders and initiates enforcement proceedings when a parent falls behind.
Early in the case, the FOC provides an informational pamphlet on its role, your rights, and community resources. You can get blank motion forms and filing instructions from the FOC if you later need to request a modification without a lawyer.7Michigan Legislature. Michigan Compiled Laws 552.505 – Duties of Friend of the Court In cases where neither party is receiving Title IV-D child support services, you can opt out of FOC involvement.
Custody itself turns on the child’s best interests, which the statute defines through a dozen specific factors: the emotional bond with each parent, each parent’s ability to provide food, clothing, and medical care, the stability of each home, the child’s preference if old enough to express one, and others. Domestic violence is always considered, whether the child witnessed it or not.8Michigan Legislature. Michigan Compiled Laws 722.23 – Best Interests of the Child Defined Michigan separates legal custody (decision-making over education, health care, and religion) from physical custody (where the child lives). Joint legal custody is common; physical custody ranges from equal parenting time to primary custody with scheduled parenting time for the other parent.
Support is calculated from both parents’ incomes, the number of overnights each parent has, health care costs, and child care expenses.9State Court Administrative Office. 2025 Michigan Child Support Formula Manual Support orders are enforced through wage withholding, and either parent can request a modification when there is a significant change in circumstances.
Property, Debt, and Retirement Accounts
Michigan uses equitable distribution. The judge divides marital property fairly based on the circumstances rather than automatically at 50/50, though many splits land close to equal. Factors include the length of the marriage, each spouse’s contributions and earning ability, and the cause of the divorce.10Michigan Legislature. Michigan Compiled Laws 552.19 – Restoration of Real and Personal Estate to Parties
Marital property covers almost everything acquired during the marriage: bank accounts, real estate, vehicles, household goods, retirement savings. Debts incurred during the marriage get divided too, and a spouse who takes more property may also take more of the debt. Property owned before the marriage, along with gifts and inheritances received during it, is generally separate and stays with the original owner. Commingling changes that. Depositing an inheritance into a joint account or using premarital savings to renovate the marital home can pull some or all of that value into the marital pot.
Retirement Accounts and QDROs
Retirement accounts are marital property to the extent they grew during the marriage, and dividing them without triggering taxes takes specific paperwork. For 401(k) plans and traditional pensions, you need a Qualified Domestic Relations Order (QDRO), which directs the plan administrator to split the account or assign a share of benefits to the non-employee spouse.11Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 414 – Definitions and Special Rules
A QDRO identifies both spouses, names the plan, states the dollar amount or percentage transferred, and specifies the payment period. The plan administrator has to approve it before the judge signs, so submit a draft for review early. Many administrators require specific templates and language, and using the wrong format causes delays. Michigan public employee plans use an Eligible Domestic Relations Order (EDRO) rather than a QDRO. IRAs do not require a court order at all; the transfer happens directly between the financial institution and your spouse as a transfer incident to divorce.
Spousal Support
Spousal support is not automatic. A judge orders it only when the property division alone leaves one spouse without adequate means for support, and the court looks at each spouse’s ability to pay, their financial situation, and all other circumstances of the case.12Michigan Legislature. Michigan Compiled Laws 552.23 – Judgment of Divorce or Separate Maintenance In practice, the length of the marriage, age and health, earning capacity, and contributions to the marital estate (including homemaking and child-rearing) all factor in. A 25-year marriage where one spouse left the workforce to raise children looks nothing like a five-year marriage between two working professionals. Support can be short-term to get a spouse back on their feet or longer-term in a marriage of significant duration, and the judge can also award temporary support while the divorce is pending.
Mediation as an Alternative
Mediation lets you and your spouse work out disagreements over property, custody, and support with a neutral mediator. It is usually cheaper than a contested hearing, less adversarial, and gives you more control over the outcome. The Friend of the Court has to inform both parties about mediation as an option in custody and parenting time disputes.7Michigan Legislature. Michigan Compiled Laws 552.505 – Duties of Friend of the Court Any agreement you reach still goes to the judge for approval before becoming a binding court order.
The Final Hearing
Once the waiting period is over and the issues are resolved or ready for decision, the court schedules a final hearing. If you and your spouse agree on everything, the hearing is brief: you appear, confirm the terms under oath, and the judge enters the Judgment of Divorce.
Disputed hearings are longer. Both sides present evidence and testimony, and the judge decides property division, support, and custody. For a self-represented filer, preparation carries the day. Organize your financial documents, bring copies of proposed orders, and be ready to explain your position clearly. The judgment spells out every term of the divorce and is enforceable as a court order.
After the Judgment Is Entered
The Judgment of Divorce does not automatically update property records, insurance policies, or government documents. The follow-through is on you.
Transferring Real Estate
If both names are on the deed and one spouse is keeping the home, the other signs a quitclaim deed in front of a notary. The spouse keeping the property records the new deed at the county Register of Deeds, which typically costs around $30. Transfers as part of a divorce are generally exempt from Michigan’s real estate transfer taxes. If your ex refuses to sign the quitclaim deed as ordered, you can file a motion to enforce the judgment, and contempt penalties can follow.
A point that trips people up: a quitclaim deed removes a name from the title, but it does not remove anyone from the mortgage. If both names are on the loan, both spouses stay responsible for the debt until the loan is refinanced or paid off. The judge cannot order a bank to release someone from a mortgage.
Restoring a Former Name
If you took your spouse’s name and want your former name back, put the restoration in the Judgment of Divorce itself. Once it is in the judgment, no separate name-change petition is needed. Take certified copies of the judgment to the Social Security Administration, Secretary of State, and any other institution that needs to update your records.
Updating Beneficiary Designations
Life insurance policies, retirement accounts, and payable-on-death bank accounts often still list an ex-spouse as beneficiary after a divorce. The judgment does not change these designations. If you forget to update them, your ex may still receive the benefit. Review and update every one as soon as the divorce is final.