Announcing New and Transplanted Friends of the Court – Pandemic Edition

By Friend of the Court Bureau

By now it is common knowledge that many jobs have shifted since the COVID-19 pandemic began – a phenomenon referred to as “The Great Resignation.” The friend of the court (FOC) world has not been immune to such shifts. In fact, since our last article introducing new FOC directors in July 2019, the FOC director has changed in 21 offices, with at least three more to change early in 2022. We thought it was time to introduce some of these new or transplanted directors.

Jesse Ammerman

Friend of the Court
41st Circuit Court, Iron County

Education and experience:

• Bachelor of Arts, University of Iowa
• Juris Doctor, University of Illinois-Chicago School of Law

I have a background in family law as an attorney, and I always appreciated the opportunity to help people work through custody and other issues as they faced crossroads in their lives. I was working as the Assistant Prosecutor for Iron County when I applied for this position.

‘Customers’ Who Also Staff the Program: Learning from Your Experiences

By Friend of the Court Bureau

The State Court Administrative Office Friend of the Court Bureau has been making an effort to elevate voices of parents who have experienced the child support program and learn from what they share. In 2020 and 2021, we hosted three webinar parent panels. Many child support professionals who attended these webinars offered suggestions for future expansion on these topics, which included hearing from parents who work within the Michigan Child Support Program and also have a child support case of their own.

Michigan’s Child Support Program Takes a ‘LEAP’

By Kim Kerns, Administrative Assistant to Office of Child Support (OCS) Director; and Julie Vandenboom, OCS Program Re-engineering Specialist

In December 2020, Michigan requested a waiver from the federal Office of Child Support Enforcement (OCSE) to allow the use of IV-D funds to pilot and evaluate an employment program for child support payers. The program, called Learn, Earn, and Provide (LEAP), is a collaboration between the Michigan Office of Child Support (OCS) and the Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity (LEO). The waiver was granted for a two-year period which began during the first fiscal quarter that funds were spent for the pilot.

Daniel J. Wright Memorial Scholarship Honors, Continues Former FOCB Director’s Dedication to Children’s Welfare

 By Hon. Maura D. Corrigan and Marcia M. McBrien

Daniel J. Wright 

There were—and are—plenty of reasons to love, honor, and miss the late Daniel J. Wright (1948-2012), attorney and former director of the Friend of the Court Bureau (FOCB) and Child Welfare Services division of the State Court Administrative Office (SCAO).

A Tribute to Lisa Robinson

By Michigan Family Support Conference Board Members and Erin Lincoln, Wayne County Friend of the Court Director

Lisa Robinson being congratulated by former
Chief Judge Robert J. Colombo at the 2018 Third Circuit
Court Employee Recognition ceremony.

Recently, the Michigan Child Support Program lost a very valued partner in the passing of Lisa Robinson.  For those of you who never had the pleasure of meeting Lisa, you missed knowing an incredible individual.  Lisa was a force to be reckoned with.  Here are just some of the tributes to Lisa from people who knew and worked with her.

Meet FOCB’s New Management Analyst

Lindsay Poetz joined the Michigan Supreme Court’s Friend of the Court Bureau (FOCB) in October. Lindsay earned her undergraduate degree from Baylor University and her Master’s Degree in Education and Employment Law from Nova Southeastern University’s Shepard Broad College of Law. After a 17-year career teaching public school, Lindsay obtained her Juris Doctor from Michigan State University College of Law.

Using Technology to Conduct “FIG” Conferences: Adjusting Course in a COVID-19 World

By Tracey M. Bankhead, Muskegon County Family Court Counselor

The child support world has always been a world of changes – changes in policies and changes in processes, but never so much and in such a short span of time as it has been with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020.

Legal Corner - December 2021

 "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.

Editor’s note: Court rule updates, SCAO form updates, legislative activity, and published opinion summaries have been published here with permission from the Michigan Judicial Institute’s “IMPACT” publication.