Holding that the trial court misinterpreted MCL 722.31(1) in addressing the defendant-father's move and thus, failed to evaluate it according to the factors set forth in the statute, the court vacated the trial court's order granting defendant's motion to modify the parties' parenting time schedule and exchange location, and remanded. The court concluded that the trial court "ignored the plain language of MCL 722.31(1)" by focusing on the number of miles defendant moved from his most recent address, rather than on the number of miles he moved from "the child's legal residence at the time of the commencement of the action . . . ." Pursuant to the statute's plain language, a child whose custody is governed by a court order (such as the divorce judgment here) "has a legal residence with each parent." Further, the statute provides that, "where custody is governed by a court order, a parent shall not change a legal residence of a child - except in conformance with MCL 722.31(2)-(4) - 'to a location that is more than 100 miles from the child's legal residence at the time of the commencement of the action in which the order is issued.'" The fact that "a parent may have subsequently relocated a child's legal residence after the issuance of the order governing custody does not change the residence that is the focus of the 100-mile rule." The children's "legal residence at the time of the commencement of the action in which the judgment of divorce was issued was located in Clinton Township." Because there was no dispute that the city where defendant now lived is more than 100 miles from Clinton Township, he was "required to seek court approval, or plaintiff's consent, before making the move." As plaintiff did not grant approval, the trial court should have evaluated his move using the factors in MCL 722.31(4). Further, "if the move requires a modification of parenting time that results in a change in the children's custodial environment," then the trial court must consider the statutory best interest factors to determine whether the moving party proved by clear and convincing evidence that the move and change in the ECE and parenting time is in the children's best interests. In deciding the matter on remand, the court instructed the trial court to consider the issue within the framework of the four-step approach set forth in Rains.
Primary custody with mother is proper where child looks to mother for all essential care and emotional support
The trial court did not err in evaluating the evidence and concluding that no ECE existed in either parent's home. The trial court also properly found a CIC, and the court found no error requiring reversal in the trial court's analysis of the...
Condo association's litigation costs cannot be passed on to members without approval of members
The court reversed the trial court's order granting the plaintiff-condo association summary disposition and vacated the amended judgment awarding plaintiff attorney fees and costs. It also remanded for an order granting the defendants-condo owners...
Trust deemed to be a support trust rather than a discretionary trust, therefore is subject to collection actions by creditors
Holding that the trusts at issue are not discretionary trusts, and thus, they are reachable by the state, the court reversed the order of the probate court holding that the State Treasurer could not reach the trust assets under the SCFRA, and...
Transfer of the underlying note necessarily includes the transfer of a beneficial interest in the mortgage
Holding that the defendant did not show that she had a meritorious defense as required under MCR 2.603(D)(1), the court affirmed the trial court's denial of her motion to set aside the default entered against her in this foreclosure action. The...
Son who killed father not entitled to any share of father's estate
The court affirmed the probate court order granting the appellee-PR's (petitioner) petition for revocation of benefits under Michigan's slayer statute. Based on the statutory provisions, the trial court did not abuse its discretion in concluding...
Property purchased after religious wedding ceremony, but before civil ceremony is not part of marital estate
The trial court properly found that the parties equally contributed to the breakdown in the marital relationship and that property in Jordan was the defendant-ex-husband's premarital property. Also, it did not abuse its equitable discretion in...
Defect in foreclosure proceeding is not grounds for setting aside foreclosure unless Plaintiff establishes prejudice
Holding that there was no factual support for plaintiff's newly raised claim on appeal that former MCL 600.3204(4)(d) was violated, and rejecting his claim that former MCL 600.3205c(5) was violated, the court affirmed the trial court's order...
Retention pond used solely for wastewater conveynace not "waters of the state" for purposes of water resources protection
The court held that the trial court erred by granting summary disposition for the defendant-DNR because the plaintiff-township's CAP is being "used solely for wastewater conveyance, treatment or control" and consequently is not "waters of the...
Mother's inability to care for children despite two years of services from DHS results in termination of parental rights
The court held that the trial court did not err by finding that the DHS made reasonable efforts to reunify the respondent-mother with the children (AG and AL). It also held that statutory grounds supported terminating her parental rights, and...
Police officers immune from prosecution where they reasonably believed suspect had a gun and posed a serious threat of physical harm
Where the suspect's conduct gave the officers probable cause to believe he had a gun and posed a threat of serious physical harm, the district court erred by denying the defendants-officers qualified immunity on the plaintiff's Fourth Amendment...
Father who failed to provide basic care for child during marriage to mother cannot prove established custodial environment with child
In light of the record and the trial court's findings, the court could not conclude that the trial court abused its discretion when it awarded plaintiff-Durbin (mother) sole custody of the child. Also, the trial court did not make any legal error...
Award of stepped alimony designed to enable ex-wife to return to the workforce properly awarded
The court held that the trial court's amount and term of spousal support was not an abuse of discretion, and it did not err in modifying the child support order on remand. The parties divorced and the trial court ordered the plaintiff-husband to...
Bank has standing to seek reformation of legal description in foreclosure
The court affirmed the trial court's judgment of foreclosure as to the real property at issue, holding that plaintiff-Deutsche Bank had standing to seek reformation of the mortgage instrument and that the trial court properly granted plaintiffs'...
Court's imputation of income to father in error where court failed to consider mental disabilities, past criminal conviction
The court held that the trial court did not err in granting sole custody of the parties' child to the defendant-mother, and its best interests findings were not against the great weight of the evidence. However, it erred by imputing income to the...
Intention of plattor to create a single, 33-foot easement is evidenced by examination of plat alone, leaving no issue upon which reasonable minds could differ
The court held that the trial court properly granted summary disposition for the plaintiffs and third-party plaintiffs in this dispute between adjacent landowners as to whether their property is divided by a single 33-foot easement or two 16.5-feet...
Where trust's principal place of administration is in another state, Michigan courts lack jurisdiction to administer trust
The court held that the trust's principal place of administration is in Florida, and that the trial court erred in concluding it had subject-matter jurisdiction. Appellee-JP Morgan, as successor trustee, was not allowed to transfer that principal...
Probate Court, not Circut Court, has jurisdiction over administration and distribution of trust
The court held that the circuit court did not err by granting the defendant-trustee's motion to transfer the case to the probate court. As trustee of his mother's trust, defendant executed a promissory note with the plaintiff, his brother, which...
'Approval of Land Contract' clause in purchase agreement is condition precedent to purchaser's obligation to perform
Concluding that the acceptance clause in the purchase agreement created a condition precedent, the court held that pursuant to the precise wording of the clause, the sellers' "approval or disapproval of the land contract had to be related to the...
Estate should be divided equally among children, despite deceased mother adding only one child to her bank accounts
On remand from the Michigan Supreme Court, the court again affirmed the trial court's judgment for the plaintiffs following a bench trial, holding that they rebutted the presumption in MCL 487.703. The case arose from a dispute among siblings over...
Although neighboring property owners had right to use and enjoy beachfront property, only front lot owners had exclusive riparian rights
The court held that the trial court did not err by ruling that the beach at issue was not public, but should have vacated certain of the platted roads in their entirety. The plaintiff-township sued the defendants-property owners seeking to settle...
Invalid mortgage assignment does not prevent foreclosure where owners defaulted under mortgage
Holding that the plaintiffs lacked standing to challenge the mortgage assignment, and that even if they had standing, summary disposition was appropriate on the merits of their quiet title claim, the court affirmed the trial court's order granting...
Change in residence request granted where move would provide mother with higher earning potential and therefore improve child's quality of life
The court held that the trial court did not err in determining that the factor listed in MCL 722.31(4)(a) supported its grant of defendant-mother's motion. As to MCL 722.31(4)(c), it held that the trial court's factual findings did not "clearly...
Termination of mother's parental right premature when mother uncertain about voluntarily reliquishing rights
Concluding that the record failed to show that the respondent-mother released her parental rights knowingly and voluntarily, the court reversed the trial court's order terminating her parental rights and remanded for further proceedings. The court...
Man who executed quit claim deed to ex-girlfriend cannot recover property after breakup
The court held that the trial court did not err by granting summary disposition to the defendant-ex-girlfriend in the plaintiff-ex-boyfriend's action to quiet title to property he conveyed to her during their relationship because the deed validly...
Frequent moves by military family sufficient to trigger revisiting custody
The court held that the trial court erred by denying the defendant-father's motion to revisit custody. The parties were awarded joint legal custody of the children, and the plaintiff-mother was awarded primary physical custody. Approximately four...
Where occupants' leases are not recorded, they are not entitled to same notice as owners in tax foreclosure
The court held that despite any violations of MCL 211.78f and MCL 211.78i, the trial court properly denied the respondents-property owners' motion to set aside the judgment of foreclosure because they were properly served with notice and thus, they...
Property held by same-sex couple as joint tenants with full rights of survivorship cannot be partitioned or sold in lieu of partition
Concluding that the property could not be reasonably partitioned or sold in lieu of partition, the court affirmed the trial court's order granting the defendant summary disposition as to the plaintiff's partition claim. As to plaintiff's motion to...
Mother's parental rights terminated where she fails to participate in parenting classes, drug testing, and counseling
The court held that the trial court properly terminated the respondent-mother's parental rights to the children. On appeal, she claimed that the DHS did not provide her with a service plan to achieve reunification. She wrongly asserted that the DHS...
Property owned as tenants by entireties does not become an asset of the estate when spouse dies
The court held that the value of the marital home was not to be deducted from the Marital Trust at issue because it did not "pass" from decedent to the respondent given that they owned the property as tenants by the entireties. Further, the trial...
Foreclosed homeowners lack standing to challenge dismissal of mortgage priority suit
Holding that the defendants-Zairs' contention that the trial court should have imposed limitations on the voluntary dismissal was without merit, the court affirmed. The case began as a priority dispute between two mortgagees as to the Zairs' real...
Trial court must fully describe ECE and address statutory best interest factors in making custody and parenting time decisions
Concluding that the trial court failed to describe on the record the child's ECE, and failed to adequately address the statutory best interest factors affecting its custody and parenting time decisions, the court vacated the custody and parenting...
Easement extinguished when one party becomes owner of both dominant and servient estates
The court affirmed the trial court's grant of summary disposition to defendants as to all the claims of easement by deed. It affirmed the trial court's ruling that the MacDonald plaintiffs did not establish a prescriptive easement, but reversed its...
Michigan Tax Tribunal erred in using capitalization-of-income approach to calculate value of property
The court reversed the MTT's opinion and judgment, which valued the shopping center at a TV of $1,482,875 in 2011 and at a TV of $1,509,700 in 2012, and remanded to the MTT. For the 2011 and 2012 tax years, respondent-City assessed the shopping...
Private drive easement extinguished where property owners are not landlocked and did not actually use easement
The court held that the defendants-Kosts were not entitled to a prescriptive easement, concluding that by a combination of estoppel and overt acts, they abandoned any easement rights they might have had remaining in the property that was platted as...
Probate court retains jurisdiction during pendency of appeal
The probate court was not divested of jurisdiction to remove appellant-Crystal Waller as PR and to appoint appellee-Fraser as successor PR while an appeal was pending, because these actions related to its management of the estate property. Thus,...
Parental rights terminated where mother fails to secure adequate housing for children
The court held that the trial court properly terminated the respondent-mother's parental rights to the three children where the statutory grounds for termination were established by clear and convincing evidence and termination was in their best...
Failing to object to placement of fence not sufficient to establish acquiescence
Noting that "having no objection to a feature on property is not the same as recognizing that feature as the boundary[,]" the court held that the plaintiff failed to establish acquiescence for the statutory period. Thus, it affirmed the trial...
Woman's spousal support terminated when she consumes alcohol in violation of consent judgment
Where the defendant-wife (Sheryl) actively participated in the hearing and unequivocally stated that she "understood the settlement's terms, waived certain rights, and agreed to be bound by the consent judgment[,]" the trial court did not abuse its...
Landlord can only terminate lease where tenant, not third party, makes misrepresentation regarding housing subsidy
The court held that the district court erred in concluding that the defendant-tenant violated ¶ 8 of her lease where there was no factual finding that she was the individual making the misrepresentation about where her grandchildren resided, and...