Local Administration

How the court is run

Day to day, the Genesee County District Court is run by its Chief Judge. The Chief Judge is the court's presiding officer and also its administrator, with authority over the other judges and all court staff. The Chief Judge may hand some administrative work to a local court administrator.

The Chief Judge must follow the Michigan Court Rules, the Supreme Court's administrative orders, and the court's own local rules. They are also expected to ask the other judges and magistrates for advice. The Supreme Court keeps general oversight of every court, no matter what authority a Chief Judge has.

What the Chief Judge does

If a judge falls behind on their cases or ignores a directive, the Chief Judge reports it to the State Court Administrator, who acts under the Supreme Court's direction. With the State Court Administrator's approval, the Chief Judge may also relieve a judge of part or all of their docket.

Leave for judges and magistrates

A judge or magistrate needs the Chief Judge's approval to be absent from the court, except in an emergency. They may take up to 14 days of absence each year, and up to 15 more with approval. Up to five unused days can carry over to the next year. The Chief Judge approves leave unless the court's business would suffer, and keeps records of absences that the Supreme Court can request.

Local court rules

A local court rule is a rule for how things work in this court only. The court can adopt one only if it doesn't conflict with the statewide Michigan Court Rules and covers something they don't.

1. The Chief Judge drafts the ruleOnly the Chief Judge may write a local court rule.
2. The public gets notice and a chance to commentUnless the court finds immediate action is needed, it must give reasonable notice to lawyers in the county and collect their comments.
3. The judges and magistrates voteThe rule is adopted if a simple majority of the court's judges and magistrates approve it.
4. The Supreme Court approves it, if neededA rule that tells lawyers or the public to do something, or that depends on them knowing about it, can't be enforced until the Supreme Court approves it.
5. The court publishes itThe rule and any comments are sent to the Supreme Court Clerk, and the rule is published.

Administrative orders

An administrative order is a directive about how the court manages itself. Unlike a local rule, it can cover only internal court operations. It can't change what lawyers and the public must do in a case.

• Administrative orders are numbered in order.
• Each one must be sent to the State Court Administrator before it takes effect. The Administrator can tell the court to delay an order or revoke it.
• The court can also ask the Supreme Court to turn an order into a local court rule.

The court is required to publish every local rule and administrative order and may not hide them from the public.

Local rules and orders in effect

Local court rules

Rules open for comment are not in effect yet. Lawyers in Genesee County can send comments to the court before the vote.

Administrative orders