Probate Court

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

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

Judges

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

Judge David M. Murkowski was born and raised in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where he attended Marquette University High School and was elected senior class president and vice-president of the student council. In 1979 he graduated cum laude from Marquette University, where he was awarded the university’s Outstanding Student Service Award and the Polanki College Achievement Scholarship. In 1978 Judge Murkowski 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 and Dilley. Judge Murkowski specialized in criminal defense, juvenile neglect and delinquency and probate law and served as managing partner of Dilley, Dilley, Murkowski and 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. In November of 2007 the Michigan Supreme Court appointed Judge Murkowski Chief Judge of the Kent County Probate Court commencing January, 2008.

Judge Murkowski has served as vice president and president of the Kent County Criminal Defense Bar, and has served on various committees for the Grand Rapids Bar Association. He has lectured throughout the state and currently serves on the executive committee of the Kent County Family and Children’s Coordinating Council.

• 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 is appointed to represent the individual. If after a hearing a guardian is appointed, the Court then monitors 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 1 year after appointment and then every 3 years thereafter. The Court also conducts hearings regarding disputes that arise concerning the guardianship and petitions to terminate or modify the guardianship. 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 7 days of filing of a petition for hospitalization. Additionally, 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 and monthly at Kalamazoo Psychiatric Hospital. Because persons may not be hospitalized indefinitely, there may be a series of hearing for any individual, and hearings must take place at least once a year to establish a continuing need for hospitalization.

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 monitors the continuing proceedings, making sure 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 also conducts 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 whereby 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. While the number of cases filed in Probate Court has remained fairly constant over the past few years, the number of active matters continues to grow, because guardianships and conservatorships often last many, many years. The monitoring of these proceedings requires extensive staff time, and presents a continuing challenge to the personnel and resources of the Court.

Goals

• To process all contested civil matters within the State’s guidelines
• To efficiently process contested estate, guardianship and conservatorship matters
• To process and hold hearings on all petitions filed for the involuntary commitment for persons requiring treatment in a timely manner as required by the State

2008 Adopted Uses: $1,315,926

2008 Adopted Revenues: $357,547

Selected Performance Measures

Department History of Uses

Significant Budget Issues

The 2008 Budget, and particularly funding for upgrading of obsolete equipment and for repair/ restoration of deteriorating microfilm, will assist the Probate Court in efficient processing of cases and compliance with record retention requirements. The 2007 restoration of personnel to the 2004 level has enabled the Probate Court to significantly improve monitoring of cases toward compliance with state guidelines, and the 2007 personnel level continues for 2008. However, pending statutory changes (House Bills 5186, 5187, 5188), if passed, will impose even more new monitoring duties on the probate court, and further stress the ability of the Court to keep up with increasing caseloads.

History of Uses (in millions)