Sumner & Associates P.C.

Michigan divorce rules regarding “How long it takes to get a divorce in Michigan”. If there are no children born to the marriage, there is a sixty (60) day waiting period, before your divorce can be final. This waiting period starts when you file your divorce, even if you and your spouse have been separated before that. If there are children born of the marriage and any child is still a minor, at the time of filing for divorce, the waiting period grows to six (6) months. Although Michigan law requires divorcing parties with minor children to wait six months before they can divorce, there are exceptions. The court can wave the six-month waiting period “in cases of unusual hardship or such compelling necessity”, after the expiration of 60 days.

Both are useful estate planning tools that serve a different purpose, and both can be used together in your estate plan. One of the main differences between a Last Will & Testament and a Living Trust, is that a Will goes into effect only after you die, while a Trust takes effect as soon as it is created. Secondly, a Will must go through the Probate Court and suffer the delays and costs of Probate, while assets in a Trust avoid the Probate process. Finally, a Will must disburse assets upon the completion of the Probate process. A Trust can be designed to hold assets until a beneficiary reaches a certain age, allowing the Trustee to pay expense for the beneficiary such as Medical, Support, Maintenance, and Education, until the beneficiary reaches the designated age of final disbursement - such as "age 25 years old".