Terms Used In Michigan Laws 552.619

  • Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
  • Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
  • Friend of the court act: means the friend of the court act, 1982 PA 294, MCL 552. See Michigan Laws 552.602
  • Friend of the court case: means that term as defined in section 2 of the friend of the court act, MCL 552. See Michigan Laws 552.602
  • Health care coverage: means a fee for service, health maintenance organization, preferred provider organization, or other type of private health care coverage or public health care coverage. See Michigan Laws 552.602
  • Income: means any of the following:
  (i) Commissions, earnings, salaries, wages, and other income due or to be due in the future to an individual from his or her employer or a successor employer. See Michigan Laws 552.602
  • Obligation: An order placed, contract awarded, service received, or similar transaction during a given period that will require payments during the same or a future period.
  • Office of the friend of the court: means an agency created in section 3 of the friend of the court act, MCL 552. See Michigan Laws 552.602
  • Order of income withholding: means an order entered by the circuit court providing for the withholding of a payer's income to enforce a support order under this act. See Michigan Laws 552.602
  • Payer: means an individual who is ordered by the circuit court to pay support. See Michigan Laws 552.602
  • Source of income: means an employer or successor employer, a labor organization, or another individual or entity that owes or will owe income to the payer. See Michigan Laws 552.602
  • state: when applied to the different parts of the United States, shall be construed to extend to and include the District of Columbia and the several territories belonging to the United States; and the words "United States" shall be construed to include the district and territories. See Michigan Laws 8.3o
  • Support: means all of the following:
    •   (i) The payment of money for a child or a spouse ordered by the circuit court, whether the order is embodied in an interim, temporary, permanent, or modified order or judgment. See Michigan Laws 552.602
  • Support order: means an order entered by the circuit court for the payment of support, whether or not a sum certain. See Michigan Laws 552.602
    •   (1) If the court awards to the payer sole custody of a child for whom the payer has been previously ordered to pay support and a previously accumulated arrearage under the support order for that child does not exist, the court shall modify any existing support order to exclude support ordered to be paid by that payer for that particular child. If an existing support order does not provide for support to any other child of whom the payer does not have custody, for support to a former spouse, or for payments of pregnancy or birth expenses, the court shall terminate the order of income withholding as soon as any previously accumulated arrearage has been paid.
      (2) The office of the friend of the court shall suspend or terminate an order of income withholding under any of the following circumstances:
      (a) The location of the child and custodial parent cannot be determined for a period of 60 days or more, and the friend of the court case is being closed.
      (b) The court determines that there is no further support obligation.
      (c) When otherwise determined by the court, upon a showing of good cause, and if the court determines that such suspension or termination is not contrary to the best interests of the child. In making a determination under this subdivision, the court may consider the previous payment record of the payer, evidence of the payer’s intent to make regular and timely support payments, and any other factors considered relevant by the court. However, the payment of arrearages under the support order shall not be the sole reason for termination of an order of income withholding.
      (d) The parties enter into a written agreement that is reviewed and entered in the record by the court that provides for all of the following:
      (i) The order of income withholding shall be suspended.
      (ii) An alternative payment arrangement.
      (iii) For a friend of the court case, the payer shall keep the office of the friend of the court informed of both of the following:
      (A) The name and address of his or her current source of income.
      (B) Any health care coverage that is available to him or her as a benefit of employment or that is maintained by him or her; the name of the insurance company, health care organization, or health maintenance organization; the policy, certificate, or contract number; and names and birth dates of the persons for whose benefit he or she maintains health care coverage under the policy, certificate, or contract.
      (3) The parties shall not enter into a written agreement under subsection (2)(d) if either of the following circumstances exists:
      (a) There is a support arrearage.
      (b) An order of income withholding was previously suspended or terminated and subsequently implemented due to the payer’s failure to pay support.
      (4) If a written agreement is entered into under subsection (2)(d), the order of income withholding shall take effect when an arrearage in support payments as agreed to under the written agreement reaches the arrearage amount that would require the initiation of 1 or more support enforcement measures if the case were a friend of the court case, as provided in section 11 of the friend of the court act, MCL 552.511.
      (5) The court may suspend or terminate an order of income withholding if the custodial parent moves out of this state without court authorization.
      (6) The office of the friend of the court shall promptly refund money that has been improperly withheld.

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