The trial court erroneously referred this custody case to the Friend of the Court without first determining whether there was proper cause or a change in circumstances that necessitated a review of custody and parenting time, the Michigan Court of Appeals has ruled.

The order reducing the plaintiff’s spousal support obligation to the defendant by several thousand dollars each month must be vacated the Michigan Court of Appeals has ruled.

An award of sole legal custody to the father of the parties’ minor child must be reversed, because the trial court did not exercise “a proper degree of caution”.

The trial court properly modified the original custody order in this case to award the plaintiff-mother sole physical custody of the parties’ minor children.

The trial court’s order denying the plaintiff-father’s motion to remove the lawyer-guardian ad litem (L-GAL) from this custody case is reversed and the matter is remanded for an evidentiary hearing.

The plaintiff-mother was properly awarded sole custody of the parties’ child and the defendant-father was correctly ordered to continue supervised parenting time.