To be brief, a release form currently will have no effect unless it fits within some very narrow parameters, described below. Under Michigan law, neither parents nor minor children (18 and younger) can release a person from liability. This is the shocking result of a recent Michigan Supreme Court decision, Woodman v Kera LLC, 486 Mich. 228 (2010); the decision in that case even shocked members of the Supreme Court, who wrote strong dissenting opinions disagreeing with the majority ruling. Nevertheless, it is the current law of Michigan.

After that court decision, the Michigan state legislature changed a very narrow part of the law to allow for parents or guardians to release liability on behalf of their child when actively participating in an “athletic or recreational sport.”

That means, basically, that a parent can release someone for liability arising from injuries received by the child when actually playing a game: not before the game, not on the sidelines, and not while being transported to a game. Furthermore, the law does not release liability for negligence but only for economic and non-economic damages arising from the “inherent risks” of the sport or recreation. So if you send a child out on the ice without a helmet, you’re still liable but if he gets hurt defending the goal, then most likely you are not liable.

Based on this reasoning, something like a camping trip or a bus ride to or from a game does not meet the definition of active participation in an athletic or recreational sport, and thus, a release form that attempts to limit yours or anyone’s liability signed by the parent or the minor child is utterly without effect. But a release form could and should be used by children who actively participate in games, or other athletic or recreations sports. So if you’re a coach, or somehow associated with a sport for minors, you should requirement a release like this.

All that being said, there are some additional considerations that go beyond the black letters of the law. It may still be a good idea to have a release in place, but at the time of writing this article, it certainly is not a defense against anything. You should consult with an attorney to help you review your options, for a thorough discussion of the issues involved, and for additional considerations and actions that may help to mitigate risks and liabilities.

There are several methods that can be used in order to enforce and collect on a judgment. Among the methods for collecting on a judgment are seizure of property and garnishment. The most common is garnishment, of which are several kinds:

In order to begin collection, I require from my clients:

• A copy of the judgment and date the complaint was filed with the court (or at a minimum, the court and the case number)
• Any available defendant-tenant information, such as that on a rental application like employer information, driver’s license number, social security number, license plate number, and/or bank account information, full name or maiden names, and previous addresses

Even if the landlord does not possess that information, it can be gained through use of court proceedings such as debtor examinations. A debtor examination is basically bringing the debtor into court after receiving a money judgment and requiring they testify as to their assets, bank accounts, and other relevant personal information. With that information, it is then possible to serve their employer, bank, and the department of treasury with writs of garnishment. Judgments in Michigan are valid for at least 10 years and they can be renewed for an additional 10 years.

You can serve as many writs of garnishment as necessary until the judgment is satisfied in full. Each judgment continues to bear interest at statutory rates. Seizure of property involves finding non-exempt property (certains cars, houses, and personal belongings are considered exempt), and having it sold at auction under court supervision.

If you want to collect on your landlord tenant judgments, or have further questions, please do not hesitate to call my office at (734) 855-4999, or use the “Contact” link above to send me an e-mail.

First, a defining what it means to be a legally incapacitated individual is necessary. According to Michigan law, a legally incapacitated individual is an individual who:

is impaired by reason of mental illness, mental deficiency, physical illness or disability, chronic use of drugs, chronic intoxication, or other cause, not including minority, to the extent of lacking sufficient understanding or capacity to make or communicate informed decisions.

MCL 700.1105(a). The words should be plain enough, but in effect this means that guardianship can be appropriate in a wide variety of circumstances, including an elderly parent or grandparent with cognitive/memory problems from dementia or Alzheimer’s, someone with a physical disability, such as a speech or hearing problem that prevents them from making or communicating informed decisions (for example, whether to agree to medical treatment or surgery), or it could even be an adult child who unsuccessfully struggles with drug or alcohol addiction and is need of help but incapable of doing for themselves.

Any of these can be reason enough to seek guardianship, but there may be other possibilities for seeking guardianship for someone. The law requires that the person be impaired to the extent that they lack sufficient understanding or capacity to make or communicate informed decisions, which can result from a wide variety of different conditions.

If you have questions about becoming the guardian for someone you know, or if someone you know is trying to obtain guardianship over you or someone you know and you disagree and object to the guardianship please do not hesitate to contact my office at (734) 855-4999.

Circuit court judges will be appointed to serve as Business Court judges in Circuit Courts that already have at least 3 judges. The business disputes must exceed $25,000 (or otherwise would be handled at the district court level). The law defines the types of disputes that are covered as:

(i) An action in which all of the parties are business enterprises.

(ii) An action in which 1 or more of the parties is a business enterprise and the other parties are its or their present or former owners, managers, shareholders, members, directors, officers, agents, employees, suppliers, or competitors, and the claims arise out of those relationships.

(iii) An action in which 1 of the parties is a nonprofit organization, and the claims arise out of that party’s organizational structure, governance, or finances.

(iv) An action involving the sale, merger, purchase, combination, dissolution, liquidation, organizational structure, governance, or finances of a business enterprise.

MCL 600.8031(c). The bill has other interesting provisions, such as making the written opinions of the business court available on a central website, and electronic filing of case materials wherever possible. MCL 600.8039.

When a creditor has a judgment against a person with a membership interest in an LLC, a court may issue what is called a “charging order” which, before this law was enacted, could have allowed for the creditor to overtake the member’s interest in the LLC, force a distribution in satisfaction of the judgment, demand the LLC take certain actions, foreclose a lien, etc.

As a result of this new law, a creditor can only intercept distributions made from the LLC to the member whom the judgment is against; the law explicitly states that the judgment creditor’s relief under the judgment and associated charging order is limited to receiving or interecepting distributions; the creditor is forbidden from taking over the membership interest in the LLC and from foreclosing the lien the creditor has in the membership interest. Moreover, the judgment creditor cannot “step into the shoes” of the member of the LLC and demand an accounting, take an action, or make a distribution.

Thus, if operating agreement of  the LLC states that it may withhold  distributions to the members then the creditor cannot obtain anything in satisfaction of the judgment; better yet is, in addition, if the membership interest is held in a manner that the creditor has no right to a distribution once it is made.

These are all important issues that should be addressed before you ever form an LLC, or before you ever suspect there may be trouble on the horizon from one of your creditors; otherwise, you might run afoul of fraudulent transfer laws.

So, if you are like a lot of clients I encounter, stop filing your articles of organization and forgetting about your LLC. That’s a recipe for disaster. It also flouts a number of requirements for what LLC’s operating in Michigan should do, like maintaining records and having a written operating agreement. You should hire an attorney who knows what he is doing if you want to protect LLC assets and even distributions from potential creditors.

If you need an LLC formed, or have further questions, please do not hesitate to call my office at (734) 855-4999, or use the “Contact” link above to send me an e-mail.

One of the most common ways for immigrating into the U.S. is through an immediate relative who is already in the U.S. Any U.S. Citizen or legal permanent resident of the U.S. can file a petition with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services to have their relatives immigrate to the United States. This puts them on the path to U.S. citizenship.

1. If you or your relative is  a U.S. Citizen,  a petition can be filed on behalf of a spouse, parent(s), married or unmarried children (regardless of age) and/or a brother or sister.
2. If you or your relative is a lawful permanent resident (i.e., “green card” holders), a petition can be filed on behalf of unmarried children (of any age), or a spouse.

When a U.S. citizen petitions for a husband, wife, parent or unmarried minor child a U.S. Visa becomes immediately available, meaning that there is no waiting period beyond the normal processing time. Thus, in a majority situations once the petition is filed the process can be completed within a year if you do everything right the first time and have good documentation.

However, there is often a lot of documentation required. The documentation and evidence requirements are multiplied if you are petitioning for an adopted child, a spouse, a fiancee whom you haven’t seen in person in 2 or more years, a step child, or if you are petitioning for your father who is not on your birth record, or a child who is not not legitimate (e.g., born out of wedlock). Sometimes these documents do not exist or are very hard to obtain, and other evidence is hard to come by.

Once the petition is approved by USCIS, the journey has just begun. The petitioner and beneficiary of the petition (the foreign relative) is then required to apply for a visa through the U.S. Department of State.

It is important to do things right the first; petitions can be rejected outright or you will be sent a request for further evidence. If further evidence is requested, you may delay your application.

My fee as an attorney for most petitions of this nature is typically $1,000.00, plus whatever filings fees required by USCIS. To discuss the particulars of your situation and what else is included for this fee please call my office at (734) 855-4999 or contact me through this website.

I want to thank the Livonia Observer for the running the piece.

I have to correct people who think the process of eviction takes several months. I hear this repeated often, but it is without any real basis in fact. The reasons for these mistaken view, as near as I can tell, fall into one of the following categories:

• A mistaken belief that the law “favors” tenants; or,
• A mistaken belief that it is more difficult to evict someone if they have no place to go, or would become homeless, or have a large family.

In the average case, if someone hasn’t paid their rent you can get them out of premises within a month depending on the court’s docket (that is, how many cases it must hear). The time it takes to get an eviction also depends on how well you’ve prepared your case; if you fail to follow the substantial law or the procedures set out in the law and court rules (or properly complete court forms), you open yourself to losing the case and having to start from scratch, including paying the filing fees again.

If you haven’t kept the premises in good repair, or if there are unresolved problems at the premises (such as bug infestation, leaky plumbing, no heat or utilities, etc), then the tenant may have some success in hiring an attorney, or through their own wits, using these issues to slow down or stop the eviction process. However, even if the court does adjourn (i.e., delay) the hearing date, the tenant can be required to deposit rent with the court as it becomes due. If they fail to pay, they lose their right to a trial by jury and a hearing must be held within approximately 14 days.

However, in the best case a landlord can remove a tenant for failure to pay rent within the space of (3) weeks. In the worst case scenario… well, I have personally known a few scenarios where it has taken a couple months. Why? The primary reasons are

• court/judge timing difficulties
• landlord/attorney error in notice requirements or initial pleadings
• complex counterclaims and defenses, such as:
• failure of the landlord to deal honestly with the tenant
• failure to make necessary repairs
• failure to follow the law regulating written leases and security deposits
• failure of the landlord to keep adequate receipts for rent

What is the best thing to do? If you’re a landlord then you should hire a firm to do your evictions for you on a flat fee basis. Get the notices of termination and notices to quit for non-payment of rent out as soon as the rent is not paid. I repeat, as soon as the rent is paid and not a day longer. Otherwise, people will take advantage of you; if they seem like good people, remember that even good people can go bad. Don’t believe promises of future money to come.

Michigan law provides that if a lease agreement with your tenant requires that the tenant is responsible for the water, that a landlord can prevent any unpaid bills from becoming a lien on your property and being added to the property taxes for the property. If this is something you are interested in doing, please contact my office at (734) 855-4999 for a consultation.

Under Michigan’s summary proceedings act, before you can evict someone you must first establish that you have a right to possession of the premises. This is usually shown by establishing the lease ended or that the lease has been breached by the tenant (usually for failing to pay rent).

Once this is established, the tenant usually is given 10 days to leave the premises, pay back rent, or they must move. If they do not, the landlord then can apply to the court to have the tenant and/or their property forcibly removed (an application for an order of eviction or writ of restitution). That forcible removal is the actual eviction. If they move voluntary before eviction is applied for then they will not be considered evicted.

This distinction makes a difference to some tenants who may be trying to receive housing assistance from charities, or federal and state governments.

Even if no eviction occurs, what the landlord has from the court is called a judgment against the tenant for possession. If there was backed rent due and sued for, then there nay also be a money judgment.

Nevertheless, the entire process described above is usually called an “eviction,” even by lawyers. Therefore, unless a specifically stated otherwise, discussion of evictions on this blog is a reference to the entire legal process of getting a possession and money judgment from start to finish, regardless of whether or not the person ever is actually evicted.