FOC Approval of Orders
When and How Do I Get FOC Approval?
The Friend of the Court must review and approve all of the following orders before they can be finalized and entered by the Court:
- Final Judgment of Divorce with Children.
- Final Judgment of Divorce with Spousal Support.
- Final Child Custody Order.
- Final Uniform Child Support Order.
- Final Uniform Spousal Support Order.
- Any order modifying custody, parenting time, or child support from a prior order.
- Stipulated Motion & Order to Credit/Discharge Arrears
The Judge will not sign your order unless and until the FOC has reviewed and approved the order to ensure that all statutory requirements have been met. In addition to checking for required information, the FOC will ensure that your parenting time provisions are enforceable and that your child support order follows the Michigan Child Support formula.
FOC approval must occur before the final hearing in any divorce case or before the judge signs the final order in any custody case. The Clare County FOC uses the following checklists to ensure compliance with mandatory provisions: Checklist for judgments of divorce and Checklist for final orders.
What Happens If FOC Objects to My Order?
If there is a problem with your proposed order you will receive a copy of the FOC’s written objection with explanation of how to correct it. Please allow at least a week for the FOC to review your paperwork. Your case may be dismissed by the court if you do not correct and resubmit within a reasonable time.
Where can I get help preparing my Judgment or Order?
If you would like help completing forms, try www.michiganlegalhelp.org. There's an online "interview" that helps you fill out the forms without having to make sense of the form yourself. Once you answer the questions, it will help you print all required forms and/or save your data to print later.