Trial Court Collections
Collecting court-ordered financial sanctions is a top priority for the Michigan judiciary. Enforcing court orders, including financial sanctions, is a court responsibility that, if done effectively, improves courts' credibility and effectiveness while providing funds to support law enforcement, libraries, the Crime Victims Rights Fund, and local governments.
The State Court Administrative Office convened the Collections Advisory Committee in 2004 to develop a statewide strategy for improving collection of court-ordered financial obligations. The Supreme Court approved the committee's recommended collections strategy on June 5, 2005. This strategy includes communication, education, training, data collection, identification of best practices. On January 27, 2010, the Supreme Court approved the committee's final recommendations detailing its proposed plan to implement court collections program and collections related reporting requirements statewide. The final recommendations included adopting the proposed administrative order and that the Supreme Court work with staff, agencies, and associations to amend or enact legislation that enhances the courts' ability to enforce and collect court-ordered financial obligations.
Child support and civil judgments are not included in this collections initiative. For questions regarding child support, go to Friend of the Court Services. For questions regarding collecting money on civil judgments, please go to the Self-Help Center.
Court Collections Program Requirements
Each program model provides minimum requirements or components. Compliance with the Court Collections Program Requirements means that a court has adopted a program that includes the required components provided in the Court Collections Program Components and Details. Compliance does not require that a court implement each detail listed below each component. Rather, the details provide additional information about the component or concrete examples of ways a court may fulfill the listed requirement.
Confidentiality of Personal Identifying Information
The court has the authority to personal identifying information for purposes of trial court collections. That information must be kept confidential pursuant to the program requirements and
SCAO ADM Memorandum 2006-04.
Find best practices, policies, COLLECT applications, forms, press releases and news articles, training materials and videos, compilation of court rules and statutes, and administrative orders, communications to the courts, links of interest, and more.