How much does a divorce cost in Michigan?
Anna Tsaturova
Michigan managing attorney at Marble Law
Key Takeaways
- The cost of every divorce varies based on the circumstances of the case.
- Currently, on average, a divorce in Michigan costs about $1,600 in fees and $9.500 to $11,300 in attorney fees.
- Other costs associated with a Michigan divorce may include filing fees, paying someone to serve the divorce papers on your spouse and using mediation.
The cost of a Michigan divorce depends on many factors, such as whether you and your spouse get along or have children. In short, every situation is unique, resulting in different expenses.
That said, the cost of getting a divorce in Michigan currently includes about $1,600 for fees such as filing the paperwork to initiate your divorce, paying expert witnesses to testify for you and hiring an accountant to dive into your finances. Then there’s attorney fees. On average these currently total $9,500 to $11,300.
Let’s take a deeper look at the various costs you may face with a Michigan divorce.
Filing fees
To initiate a divorce, one spouse must complete and file the appropriate paperwork with the court. At this time, they also pay a filing fee.
The base filing fee is currently between $150 and $300, depending on where you file. Most Michigan courts charge additional money to file online and for cases involving child support, parenting time and custody matters.
Service fees
After filing the divorce papers, you need to serve them to your spouse. You can do this in a few ways, each with different costs:
Hire a process server or the sheriff: The cost to serve divorce papers is currently $26, plus mileage or other fees incurred by the process server or sheriff to accomplish this task.
Mail them: Use certified mail, return receipt requested, via the United States Postal Service or another reputable service provider. The current cost for this is about $4 plus postage.
Attorney fees
You don’t have to hire an attorney to get divorced in Michigan, but many people find it helpful.
Divorce lawyers typically charge flat or hourly fees to handle a case. The current average hourly rate for a divorce lawyer in Michigan is $225 to $270, though some attorneys charge more. Overall, more complex Michigan divorces may cost you more than $11,000 in attorney fees.
Temporary spousal or child support
The court may require one party to pay spousal or child support payments while the divorce is pending.
If one spouse earns significantly more than the other, the court may ask the higher-earning spouse to pay the other spouse’s filing fees or living expenses. The amount of the spousal support payments depends on what the court decides the party needs.
For temporary child support, the court uses a standardized formula to calculate payments. This formula takes into account the paying spouse’s income, expenses, deductions and the cost of providing for a child.
Discovery
In discovery, the parties typically request information from each other. This step can involve a number of costs:
- Attorney fees to prepare requests for documents from your spouse.
- Minimal fees for copies of documents from institutions like banks and hospitals.
- Transcriptionists to document any depositions can cost several hundred to more than a thousand dollars.
- Expert witnesses—such as child psychologists, forensic accountants and others who may have special knowledge about an issue that you’re dealing with—for depositions. These witnesses generally charge a few hundred dollars an hour to participate in divorce proceedings.
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Mediation
Before going to trial for divorce in Michigan, the court may ask you to engage in mediation. During this legal process, you and your spouse work with a neutral third party to resolve some or all of the legal issues involved in the divorce. If you reach a consensus, the mediator helps you prepare a settlement agreement for the court to review.
While mediation costs money, the overall fees can be substantially less than going through a divorce trial. Mediators generally charge a few hundred dollars per hour.
Trial
If you and your spouse can’t reach an agreement on any terms of the divorce, you need to resolve them in court. The cost of a trial typically includes:
- Attorney fees for time spent preparing for trial and arguing your case in court.
- Expert witness fees.
- Paralegal fees for preparing documents for court.
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