Courts


The 13th Circuit Court handles issues involving the rights and responsibilities of individuals and Michigan Law. This includes, but is not limited to, civil lawsuits involving the awarding of dollar amounts over $25,000 and criminal felonies.

The Circuit Court also hears cases appealed from the District Court.

The 86th District Court is divided into three divisions:

  • The Criminal/Traffic division handles violations of the State's Criminal Code and local ordinance violations.  It is responsible for scheduling all matters, opening and closing cases, communicating with the jail regarding sentencing inmates and notifying the Department of State  Police Records Division of case dispositions.  In addition, it is responsible for entering traffic tickets into the computer system, taking payments for both traffic and criminal cases, receiving and disbursing bonds and notifying the Secretary of State of case dispositions.  This division also handles weddings that are performed by the court.
  • The Civil Division division processes all general civil, small claims and summary proceedings (landlord-tenant) cases.  It schedules civil hearings and trials, processes civil writs, garnishments and receives filing fees for cases filed.  The District Court has jurisdiction over disputes involving individuals and businesses where the amount in controversy is $25,000 or less. 
  • The Probation Department performs two functions:  (1) meeting with criminal defendants and preparing pre-sentence reports for the judges for use at sentencing, and (2) supervising probationers

The Probate Court & Family Division supervises adoptions, emancipations, name changes, juvenile delinquency and neglect/abuse matters, jury service, guardianships, conservatorships, estates, trusts, wills, mental commitments, probate matters, and all juvenile probationary matters.