180 Ottawa Avenue NW, Suite 2500
Grand Rapids, MI 49503
Phone: (616) 632-5440
Fax: (616) 632-5430

Hours: 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday - Friday
Filings accepted from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Mission Statement

Judges

Honorable David M. Murkowski, Chief Probate Judge, (616) 632-5428

Judge David M. Murkowski was born and raised in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where he graduated cum laude from Marquette University in 1979. He was awarded the university’s Outstanding Student Service Award, the Polanki College Achievement Scholarship, and was inducted into the National Jesuit Honor Society. From there, he attended Thomas M. Cooley Law School and was an honor roll graduate in 1983. Judge Murkowski served as law clerk to the Michigan House of Representatives Civil Rights Committee and worked as a solo practitioner in Grand Rapids until 1993, when he joined the law firm of Dilley & Dilley. He specialized in criminal defense, juvenile neglect and delinquency and probate law and served as managing partner of Dilley, Dilley, Murkowski & Goller until 2006 when he was appointed to the Kent County Probate bench to fill the vacancy created by the retirement of the Honorable Janet A. Haynes. Judge Murkowski has served as vice president and president of the Kent County Criminal Defense Bar, and on various committees for the Grand Rapids Bar Association. He currently serves on the executive committee of the Kent County Family and Children’s Coordinating Council, the Board of Directors of the Michigan Probate Judges Association, and the Council of the Probate and Estate Planning Section of the State Bar of Michigan. In December of 2007, the Michigan Supreme Court appointed Judge Murkowski to serve as the Chief Judge of the Kent County Probate Court commencing January 1, 2008.

• Honorable Nanaruth H. Carpenter
• Honorable Patricia D. Gardner – Chief Judge Pro Tempore, Probate Court
• Honorable G. Patrick Hillary

Overview

The Probate Court is primarily concerned with the protection of incapacitated or mentally ill individuals and their assets and the proper transfer of assets at death.

Protection of Incapacitated Individuals. Proceedings concerning the protection of incapacitated individuals involve guardianships for legally incapacitated adults, guardianships for minors, and guardianships for developmentally disabled individuals. In proceedings to appoint a guardian for an allegedly developmentally disabled individual, the court is required to appoint an attorney to represent the individual, if he does not have his own attorney. In proceedings to appoint a guardian for an allegedly legally incapacitated adult, the court appoints a guardian ad litem / visitor to explain to the individual the nature of the proceedings and his or her rights, to determine whether the individual contests the petition, and to investigate, report and recommend to the court whether the individual is in need of a guardian and, if so, who should be appointed. Under certain circumstances an attorney must be appointed to represent the individual. If after a hearing a guardian is appointed, the Court must monitor the guardianship, making sure that the required annual reports are filed by the guardian. The court social worker also conducts periodic reviews, including visiting the ward one year after appointment and then every three years thereafter. The Court must also conduct hearings regarding disputes that arise concerning the guardianship and petitions to terminate or modify the guardianship, and in many instances the Court must appoint an attorney to represent the ward. Guardianships for minors typically last until age 18, and guardianships for adults often last for the lifetime of the individual.

Hospitalization of Mentally Ill Individuals. The Probate Court hears petitions for hospitalization for mentally ill individuals alleged to be a significant danger to themselves or others. Hearings take place on a tight timeframe: they are normally required to be held within seven days of involuntary hospitalization. An attorney must be appointed to represent the individual, if he does not have his own attorney. Hearings are held twice a week at each of the three mental treatment facilities in the Grand Rapids area. Because persons may not be hospitalized indefinitely, there may be a series of hearings for any individual, and hearings must take place at least once a year to establish a continuing need for hospitalization. The Court is required to oversee and process paperwork for commitment of individuals from other counties hospitalized in Kent County, and other counties do the same when Kent County residents are hospitalized in other counties. In 2007 other counties oversaw 153 cases involving Kent residents hospitalized elsewhere, and conducted 103 hearings on those cases. In 2007, Kent County Probate Court oversaw 738 cases involving residents of other counties, and conducted 265 hearings on those cases, none of which is reflected in Kent’s SCAO caseload statistics.

Protection of Property of Incapacitated Individuals. Proceedings concerning the protection of the property of incapacitated individuals involve conservatorships for legally incapacitated adults, conservatorships for minors, and guardianships of the estate for developmentally disabled individuals. If after a hearing a conservator or guardian of the estate is appointed, the Court may require that the conservator or guardian of the estate furnish a bond to ensure protection of the assets, or may require that liquid assets be held in a restricted account where no withdrawals are permitted without Court order. The Court then must monitor the continuing proceedings, to ensure that the required annual accounts are filed and approved, that proofs of deposit of liquid assets are provided, and that the assets are being held and used for the benefit of the ward. The Court must also conduct hearings regarding disputes that arise concerning the conservatorship and petitions to terminate or modify the conservatorship. Conservatorships for minors typically last until age 18, and conservatorships for adults often last for the lifetime of the individual.

Transfer of Assets. The Probate Court also hears proceedings regarding the transfer of assets at death or transfers where property is held in trust. Transfers at death may involve probate of a Will (testate estate) or estates where there is no Will (intestate estate), the only difference being whether the Will or state statute determines who inherits the property. The Court may also be called upon to interpret Wills or Trusts in the event of uncertainty or conflict over the document’s meaning. In the case of a decedent’s estate, proceedings in the Probate Court may be very brief or summary in form (as when wills are self-executing and the Court need only review them briefly), or the proceedings may develop into full-scale adversarial proceedings. Such proceedings may be unsupervised or supervised by the Court, depending on the situation.

Other Matters. The Probate Court also hears a variety of other types of matters. These include Petitions for Protective Orders, which are typically one-time requests for the Court to allow or approve some action, such as approval of a settlement. They also include various civil actions, where one party is suing another party. These cases are just like cases in circuit or district court, except usually a trust, estate, or fiduciary is one of the parties, so the proceeding has some relation to the regular business of the Probate Court. Finally, the Probate Court holds Wills for safekeeping and hears proceedings for change of name, drain appeals and secret marriages.

Caseload. 2008 saw a slight drop in caseload for the Kent County Probate Court, consistent with other probate courts throughout the state.