Legal Question in Civil Litigation in Michigan

Re: What happens in this Court hearing?

I have received your post about your daughter and her ex-husband. I wish I had a quick answer for you, but I don't. I do not know who her trial judge was, so I can't tell you what he would do if you tried to assist your daughter by speaking on her behalf. I suggest that you call his clerk and ask him/her what the judge's policy is. If you explain that your daughter has trouble handling the pressure of speaking in public,the Judge MIGHT allow you to speak on her behalf. The very best option is to hire an attorney to appear for that one court appearance. You can probably get one to do so for about $500.00. It might even be less if there is not a lot of work to do like reviewing the whole divorce file in order to get up to speed. A poor second option is to ask the judge if there is any way to get a court appointed lawyer to assist you. Finally, you need to know that the matter might be referred to the Friend of the Court for some type of hearing. That may take place the same day as the currently scheduled hearing or it may take place at a later date depending on how busy the Referee is. Good Luck, John C. Talpos (http://www.Mich-Lawyer.com)

Re: What happens in this Court hearing?

The short answer is that you NEED to have a lawyer with you. You prob won't get this in time, but you should go to the judge and find a way of getting time to find yourself a lawyer. You can call me if you're in Washtenaw County (give me at least 3 hours before the hearing to get up to speed), but otherwise, you'll need to call a referral service.

The reason is, it's very difficult to overturn a judgment on the basis of fraud,--especially if you didn't conduct a lot of discovery before the divorce was entered. At least in Kent County, it was difficult getting judges to listen, when they apparently believed that "if you didn't know, too bad, you should have found out." That's where a lawyer comes in. There's NEVER an excuse not to have a lawyer at least for a while in a divorce with assets, because after-the-fact is too late.

Anyway, take some PROOF of what you're saying with you,--an affidavit, something to show that there were assets that were hidden (not just overlooked). If you can show at least something(and make sure everything said is on the record, so you can get a transcript later!), you might convince the judge. Going in and crying and that sort of thing will do you NO good. Get to the point, show proof and be clear.

Ask to be sworn, instead of just giving your "opinion." Even without a lawyer, the judge can ask you questions, if you let him/her know that's the way you need to do it UNTIL YOU GET A LAWYER!

$500 is a start, but if there's a lot of work to dig around, it WILL cost you a fair bit more than that. Yet, if you can prove it, you may get the judge mad enough to charge the guilty party with all expenses of having to re-open the judgment and dig through the assets all over again.

Good Luck!