District Court Update

May 2009

I had previously reported that the legislature had passed a new bill to increase the small claims limits from $3,000 to $4,000 effective July 1, 2009, to $4,500 beginning July 1, 2010, and to $5,000 beginning July 1, 2010, amending MCL 600.8401. Apparently the attorney lobby had an impact on the outcome since the Governor vetoed the bill on January 21, 2009.

Public Act 460 of 2008 became effective on April 1, 2009 amending the Michigan Vehicle Code 257.732a to allow for reinstatement of a driver’s license that has been suspended solely due to a failure to pay driver responsibility fees. The new law allows a driver to enter into a payment plan with the Secretary of State to pay driver responsibility fees for up to 24 months. As long as the driver adheres to the payment plan, the suspension may be terminated and the driver’s license may be reinstated.

It should be noted that the installment agreement would not include fees for any future years. Therefore, a driver must enter into a new agreement if an additional year assessment is added in a second year. The second year will not be automatically rolled over into the payment plan.

Lastly, you may see some odd numbers assessed by the Courts when your client is sentenced. The legislature has raised the State Minimum fees on criminal cases effective April 1, 2009. The fee is now $48.00 (from $40.00), and $53.00 on serious misdemeanors/specified charges (up from $45.00).

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