Legal Question in Civil Litigation in Michigan

Re: Litigation Cost

It boils down to whether his contentions were frivolous, which is a subjective determination by the judge. A determination that an action was frivolous will not be overturned if the judge did not abuse his or her discretion. To be frivolous, the man would have had to have few, if any, legitimate grounds to bring the action. If he had an attorney, the attorney will be equally responsible for the costs of bringing a frivolous action. Simply because he was a father is not good enough. He had to have grounds to show that there was something deficient in the way the woman was raising the child to make it in the child's best interests to transfer custody. Bill Stern 248-353-9400

Re: Litigation Cost

Certainly a man has the right to ask for custody of his child. Further, each party must bear his or her own legal costs in the matter UNLESS the attempt to get custody was utterly frivolous or done for the primary purpose of harassment, etc..

So, your best bet is to consult with your lawyer and review that question specifically: was there testimony or facts presented which would lead a judge to believe that the custody request was a(n intentional) waste of court's time?

The other question, however, which relates to the issue of harassment, was whether the parties have a clear disparity in income. It is not at all uncommon for the wealthier party to bring an action (or unreasonably defend against something they know to be true) because they can, not because they expect to win. It is like harassment, but also a matter of discretion with the court.

Finally, you need to look at how the judge came down on the best interests of the child test. Look in the opinion to see if your relation got slammed or not. That will give you an idea of how the judge feels. If the judge can look to his/her own opinion and say "that party was obnoxious: I thought so then, and I think so now," s/he is more likely to grant attorneys fees.

That's not the exact legal standard, but it gives you the idea. If none of those things are true, and the custody battle was fairly fought, then you probably have nothing to worry about. She can ask for the moon, but she has to have a ship to get it.