Wayne County’s 'Pioneer of Justice' and the Birth of the Friend of the Court System

By Amy Lindholm, Management Analyst, Friend of the Court Bureau

Source: Bench & Bar of Michigan: 

Nineteen Hundred Eighteen.

The work of Michigan’s first Friend of the Court began on January 12, 1918, in the chambers of Wayne County’s Third Circuit Court Judge Ira W. Jayne when 38-year-old Edward Pokorny was sworn into the new office, formed just five days earlier on January 7, 1918, by court order. 

Two Friend of the Court Employees Have Served More Than 50 Years

By the Friend of the Court Bureau

The Friend of the Court Association celebrated the 100th birthday of Michigan’s friend of the court (FOC) system with service awards, among other events, for directors across the state. Following that trend, the Pundit began asking FOC directors for information on their employees with the most years of service to the FOC. Two names were put forward, each with more than 50 years of service, and they were asked to share some observations with readers on the evolution of FOC operations. Both also shared a pre-21st century ‘throwback’ career photo.

Chief Justice McCormack Thanks Friends of the Court

By the Friend of the Court Bureau

Michigan Supreme Court Chief Justice Bridget M. McCormack joined with the Friend of the Court Association on July 26, 2019, to celebrate August 2019 as the 100th anniversary of Michigan’s Friend of the Court. The Chief Justice also attended the annual meeting of the association and swore in their officers.

Chief Justice McCormack (left) with the newest FOCA officers (left to right):
Suzanne Hollyer, Sarah Anderson, Michael LaFave, and Kristi Bray.

Providing Dignity and Support to Michigan Families

By Steven Capps, Director, SCAO Friend of the Court Bureau

[ED NOTE: The following is adapted from Steve Capps’ speeches commemorating the friend of the court 100th anniversary at the Friend of the Court Association’s summer conference in Muskegon on July 24, 2019 and at the Michigan Family Support Conference in Boyne Falls on October 4, 2019.]

Steve Capps speaking to the Friend of the Court Association on July 24, 2019.

Friend of the Court Association History

By Suzanne Hollyer, Director, Oakland County Friend of the Court, and President, Friend of the Court Association

The Friend of the Court Association (FOCA) just celebrated the 100-year anniversary of the Friend of the Court. This landmark anniversary caused association members to take a look back into our history.

Pundit Flashbacks

By the Friend of the Court Bureau

First page of the first edition of the state's child support newsletter.

As the institution of the Friend of the Court celebrates its 100th anniversary, the Pundit team reflected back on the newsletter’s history, as well. Did you know that the first edition of the state’s quarterly child support newsletter was published in July 1987 under the temporary title “Pseudonym”?

Legal Corner - December 2019

"The Legal Corner" provides a summary of recent Michigan Supreme Court and Michigan Court of Appeals decisions relevant to the child support program, as well as recently released state memoranda.

Encouraging Better Compliance with Motivational Interviewing

By Tom Blohm, Director, Macomb County Friend of the Court, and Amy Lindholm, Management Analyst, SCAO Friend of the Court Bureau

In the emotionally charged world of custody, parenting time, and child support, every friend of the court (FOC) needs as many tools in its toolset as possible to engage noncompliant or even stubborn individuals. We often deal with inherently good people whose judgment is clouded during our interactions with them because of the emotions they are struggling with.

The Macomb County Friend of the Court (Macomb FOC) first learned of motivational interviewing from the administrator of the Macomb Juvenile Court. The juvenile court trained all of its probation officers in motivational interviewing and found it very effective.

Randy Estes (far right) from the Center for Strength-Based Strategies based in Mason, MI, conducted the 2-day motivational interviewing training for our child support audience and some of the Macomb Juvenile Services staff.

Friend of the Court Amnesty Week in Muskegon

By Amy Rebideaux, Staff Attorney, Muskegon County Friend of the Court

The Muskegon County Friend of the Court (Muskegon FOC) is working to make better connections with the community it serves. This includes efforts to provide better information and explanations to all parties and to build trust and communication with payers.

After working with the three family court judges, the Muskegon FOC decided to try to get some of the most difficult payers to come in and talk with a caseworker. Many of these payers have suspended drivers’ licenses and/or an outstanding bench warrant. To provide some incentive for payers to come in, we held an amnesty event.

During the week of March 25, parties could meet with a Muskegon FOC family court officer to try to resolve outstanding bench warrants or reinstate licenses.

Washtenaw Friend of the Court Director Judah Garber Retires

By Amy Lindholm, Friend of the Court Bureau Management Analyst

Judah Garber

Judah Garber retired from the Washtenaw County Friend of the Court (FOC) in May 2019, having served that office for 32 years. I had the pleasure of speaking with him about his career shortly before he retired.

Letting Data Guide the Way

By Ian Broughton, Manager, Office of Child Support (OCS) Planning, Evaluation, and Analysis Section

If you know me, you know that I love to travel. When I’m planning a trip, I use multiple sources of data and analytics for my decision making. I might consult TripAdvisor reviews to check out lodging or activities. I can look at restaurant ratings, reviews, and even filter by type of cuisine or meal. I also analyze historical flight price trends to help determine the best time to purchase tickets. I want my travel experience to be the best it can be, so I take advantage of the available data created by others.

We use statistics and analytics every day to make decisions in our lives.

Visualization example: Michigan child support cases by assistance type.

But of course, the statistics we use in the work we do for the children and families in Michigan is far more important than where we stay on a trip. That said, we must continue to improve our access to the information we need to make decisions in the child support program.

Using the Electronic Document Exchange

By Sheila Waldrop, Case Management Policy Manager, Office of Child Support; Jillian Thelen, Child Support Specialist, Interstate Central Registry, Office of Child Support; and Elizabeth Stomski, Management Analyst, SCAO Friend of the Court Bureau

The Electronic Document Exchange (EDE) is a portal provided by the federal Office of Child Support Enforcement (OCSE) that allows secure transmission of documents between states and counties. It can be used to transmit documents not only interstate, but also intrastate for responding to requests from other counties within the same state. Michigan began using EDE on August 24, 2018. EDE is currently used by 30 states, Guam, and Puerto Rico. Wisconsin will begin using EDE July 1, 2019. (See the map below for the states currently using EDE.)

EDE State Status map, last updated October 23, 2018, available on the Federal Child Support Portal.

Announcing New Friends of the Court

By Friend of the Court Bureau

There have been many new faces in friend of the court leadership over the past couple years. A few of the newest directors provided some information about themselves to help everyone in the Michigan child support program get to know them better.

Michigan Family Support Council Conference Updates

By Amy Gilmore, Michigan Family Support Council Vice President

The Michigan Family Support Council (MFSC) is a non-profit organization established in 1982 and consists of members who work in child support and understand Michigan's needs for professional development training and program involvement to support Michigan families.

Cole Williams of Son to a Father presents at the Central MFSC Region’s spring conference.

The MFSC is divided into four organizational regions (see map below). Every spring, each region hosts a one-day training conference as a supplement to the annual MFSC three-day fall conference held at Boyne Mountain in October.

Legal Corner - July 2019

"The Legal Corner" provides a summary of recent Michigan Supreme Court and Michigan Court of Appeals decisions relevant to the child support program, as well as recently released state memoranda.

2019 National Child Support Policy Forum: “Lifting Families Out of Poverty”

By Keegan Malone, Prosecuting Attorney Liaison, Michigan Office of Child Support, Julie Vandenboom, Program Re-Engineering Specialist, Michigan Office of Child Support, and Carol Montavon Bealor, J.D., Director, Cass County Friend of the Court

A record number of child support professionals attended the 2019 National Child Support Enforcement Association (NCSEA) Policy Forum, “Lifting Families Out of Poverty,” which was held in February in Washington, D.C. The annual Policy Forum is a great way for child support professionals to connect and learn what other programs are doing across the country and around the world, as well as gain perspective on federal priorities, initiatives, and hot topics. Michigan was fortunate to have a diverse team of leaders attending the conference from the Office of Child Support (OCS), the State Court Administrative Office (SCAO), and the Friend of the Court Association (FOCA).

Federal Office of Child Support Commissioner Scott Lekan and Division Director Barbara Lacina start the conference with their "View from the Top" plenary session.

Friend of the Court Launches No-Cost, Walk-In Mediation

By Dan Fojtik, Director, Kent County Friend of the Court

Most domestic relations cases involving children remain open for years until the youngest child reaches adulthood. During that time, disagreements between the parents about what is best for their children are all too common. The Kent County Friend of the Court (FOC) has offered mediation services for many years. Unfortunately, collecting the necessary forms from both parents and scheduling them to meet with a mediator can take three to six weeks. While waiting, parents can become even more entrenched in conflict, leaving their children in the middle.

Kent County Friend of the Court's Alternative Dispute Resolution staff.

To expedite resolution, the Kent FOC’s alternative dispute resolution (ADR) unit, led by Traci Schenkel, recently launched “walk-in mediation” on a first-come, first-served basis. Parents can meet with a mediator without an appointment each Tuesday morning from 8:00 a.m. until 10:30 a.m. and Thursday afternoon from 1:00 p.m. until 3:00 p.m.

Women’s History: Early Female Friend of the Court Director

By Amy Lindholm, SCAO-FOCB Management Analyst and Pundit editor

Maria Peel

Women have a played an important role in Michigan’s child support program from its very early days.

Michigan’s child support program began in 1918, when the 3rd Circuit Court in Wayne County appointed an attorney to the friend of the court role to assist the court in domestic relations cases. State legislation passed in 1919, instituting friend of the court in every county.

By 1931, friends of the court from 42 different circuits worked together to form the Friend of the Court Association (FOCA). Maria Peel represented Washtenaw County at the first FOCA meeting at the Hotel Olds in Lansing, one of only two women at that first meeting of 15 friends of the court. She was appointed secretary-treasurer of FOCA.

Mark Vermeer: Reflections on His Years in Establishment Work

By Amy Lindholm, SCAO-FOCB Management Analyst and Pundit editor

Mark Vermeer

Mark Vermeer recently retired from the Kent County Prosecutor’s Office after working there for over 32 years, and for its Family Division since 1998. He became well-known in Michigan’s child support program through his service on leadership groups, workgroups, and special committees.

Beyond the Numbers: We are Rich!

By Suzy Crittenden, Deputy Director, Jackson County Friend of the Court

I recently took a new position at the Jackson County Friend of the Court (FOC), growing my perspective of Michigan’s child support program beyond that of my previous roles with the Office of Child Support (OCS) and with the State Court Administrative Office’s Friend of the Court Bureau (SCAO-FOCB). My former colleague, who is editor of “The Pundit,” asked if I would be willing to write an article about what I have learned from this transition.

Truth be told, after working in the child support program for over 15 years, with employment experiences in three different partner agencies, my great insight is this one simple fact: we are rich!

Introducing FOCB’s New Management Analyst

By SCAO Friend of the Court Bureau

Nikki Withrow

Nikki Withrow (formerly Searle) is the new management analyst at the Friend of the Court Bureau (FOCB).

Recent Friend of the Court Seminar

By Michigan Judicial Institute

In January, the Michigan Judicial Institute (MJI) teamed up with the Friend of the Court Bureau (FOCB) to provide an annual training event for friend of the court (FOC) staff. Over 140 FOC staff from counties across the state participated in this educational event, which is record attendance for this seminar!

Legal Corner - March 2019

"The Legal Corner" provides a summary of recent Michigan Supreme Court and Michigan Court of Appeals decisions relevant to the child support program, as well as recently released state memoranda.