Court Filing Fee Increases

In 2015, the Michigan Legislature passed a bill that requires courts to collect an electronic filing system fee in addition to the other fees authorized by law to be collected when filing documents in court.  The new fees take effect, and will begin to be collected by courts, on March 1, 2016.  Beginning March 1, 2016, the following fees will be due in addition to the filing fees already set forth by law:

  • For actions filed in the Supreme Court, Court of Appeals, Circuit Court, Probate Court and Court of Claims, the additional fee is $25.00.
  • For actions filed in the District Court:
    • The additional fee is $5.00 for actions filed in the Small Claims Division;
    • The additional fee is $10.00 for civil actions that do not seek money damages; and
    • The additional fee is $20.00 for civil actions seeking money damages.

The law also identifies that, unless a court was authorized by the Michigan Supreme Court to collect a fee of $2.50 for electronic filing before September 30, 2015, a court may not charge a fee specifically for electronic filing other than the additional $5.00-$25.00 authorized by this new statute.  Courts which were authorized by the Michigan Supreme Court to collect a fee of $2.50 for electronic filing before September 30, 2015 may continue to collect the $2.50 fee in addition to the new electronic filing system fee until December 31, 2016.

At Andrews Scheuerle + Huss, we are aware of the new fees required for cases filed after March 1, 2016 and are prepared to comply with the new legislation.

If you have questions or concerns about this new legislation, please contact our office at (231) 722-7766.

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