Ogemaw County Circuit Court Overview
Ogemaw County is served by the 34th Judicial Circuit Court. This circuit is shared with Roscommon County, so the same judges sit for both. The court holds its Ogemaw sessions in the county building in West Branch. Hon. Robert W. Bennett serves as the Circuit Court Judge and Chief Judge. Hon. Scott M. Williams presides over the family division and also serves as the Probate Judge. The county clerk acts as the clerk and record keeper for circuit cases.
The circuit court is the trial court with the widest reach in the county. It hears felony criminal cases, civil claims above the district-court dollar limit, family division matters, personal protection cases, and appeals from the district court and certain agencies. Because it handles the heaviest matters, its files draw many public records requests. Case status appears through the state MiCOURT portal, while full documents and certified copies come from the clerk's counter.
34th Judicial Circuit Court, Ogemaw
Chief Judge: Hon. Robert W. Bennett
806 West Houghton Avenue
West Branch, MI 48661
Phone: 989-345-0215
Judicial Secretary Susie Stein: 989-345-3560
Fax: 989-345-3959
Hours: 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday
The county's 34th Judicial Circuit Court page lists the court's staff, address, hours, and its direct link to MiCOURT case search.
That page is the right first stop for a phone number, a judicial secretary contact, or a case-search link before you file or request a record.
What the 34th Circuit Court Handles
The circuit court's docket runs from serious crimes to complex civil disputes. Felony cases arrive after a district-court bindover, which is the transfer of a case once a judge finds probable cause. Large civil claims, those above the district-court limit, start here as well. The family division adds divorce, custody, support, adoption, juvenile delinquency, child abuse and neglect, and personal protection cases.
Typical circuit case documents include the complaint, answer, summons, proof of service, motions, hearing notices, orders, judgments, and post-judgment writs. Criminal files may add the warrant, bindover order, information, plea, verdict, sentence, and probation order. Each of these entries can appear as a dated event on the case docket, which a reader can trace once a case number is known.
Ogemaw County Trial Courts
Michigan spreads trial work across three local courts rather than one county court. In Ogemaw County, the circuit, district, and probate courts share the same building but keep separate counters, phone lines, and staff. The table below lists the main trial courts and offices, what each one handles, and how to reach them.
| Court or Office | Jurisdiction or Use | Address | Phone |
|---|---|---|---|
| 34th Judicial Circuit Court, Ogemaw | Felony criminal, civil above the district limit, family division, PPOs, appeals from district and agency matters | 806 West Houghton Ave., West Branch, MI 48661 | 989-345-0215; secretary 989-345-3560 |
| 82nd Judicial District Court | Traffic and civil infractions, misdemeanors, preliminary felony proceedings, small claims, landlord-tenant, district civil | 806 West Houghton Ave., West Branch, MI 48661 | 989-345-5040 |
| Ogemaw County Probate Court | Estates, wills, guardianships, conservatorships, mental-health probate matters | 806 West Houghton Ave., West Branch, MI 48661 | 989-345-0145 |
| Friend of the Court | Support, custody, and parenting-time referee matters | 806 West Houghton Ave., Suite 106, West Branch, MI 48661 | 989-345-5520 |
| Prosecutor | Files and handles county criminal charges and victim services | 806 West Houghton Ave., West Branch, MI 48661 | 989-345-5700 |
Note: All of these offices share one West Branch address, so confirm the correct suite and phone line before a filing or a visit to avoid a wasted trip.
Circuit Court vs District Court vs Probate Court
Michigan has no county court tier, so these three trial courts divide the work between them. The circuit court takes the heavy matters. The district court takes the high-volume, everyday cases. The probate court takes estates and protective proceedings. The comparison below shows how the lines fall.
| Circuit Court | District Court | Probate Court | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Criminal | Felonies after bindover | Misdemeanors, preliminary felony steps | None |
| Civil | Above the district limit | Within the district limit, small claims, landlord-tenant | None |
| Family | Divorce, custody, PPOs, juvenile | None | Some minor guardianship overlap |
| Estates | None | None | Wills, guardianships, conservatorships |
| Phone | 989-345-0215 | 989-345-5040 | 989-345-0145 |
Matching the case type to the right court is the first step in any records search. A felony or a divorce belongs to the circuit court. A speeding ticket or a small-claims dispute belongs to the district court. An estate or a guardianship belongs to the probate court.
How a Case Moves Through the Ogemaw County System
A case does not stay in one court from start to finish. A criminal matter often begins in the district court and moves up to the circuit court, then on to the state appellate courts if a party appeals. Understanding that path helps a reader follow a file as it changes hands.
Case flow: 82nd District Court › 34th Circuit Court › Michigan Court of Appeals › Michigan Supreme Court
A felony starts with a complaint and warrant, gets a preliminary exam in the district court, and moves to the circuit court on a bindover. The circuit court then handles arraignment, pretrial, plea or trial, and sentencing. A civil case above the district limit runs its own course in the circuit court through pleadings, discovery, and judgment. Either type can end in an appeal to the higher courts.
The 82nd District Court in Ogemaw County
The 82nd Judicial District Court is the limited-jurisdiction trial court for Ogemaw County. It handles the cases the public meets most often. That list covers traffic tickets, civil infractions, misdemeanors, the early stages of felony cases, small claims, landlord-tenant disputes, and civil matters within the district-court dollar limit. The court sits at 806 West Houghton Avenue and answers at 989-345-5040.
Traffic and ticket work is a large share of the district court's docket. A person cited for a civil infraction has 14 days to pay or to contest the ticket, and a late payment can add a $40 default fee. Contested tickets go to an informal hearing before a magistrate or a formal hearing before the judge. Because these cases start and often end in the district court, a traffic or misdemeanor file is not a circuit court record and should be traced through the district court first.
Ogemaw County Probate Court
The Ogemaw County Probate Court handles estates and protective matters. Its docket covers wills, estate administration, trusts, adult guardianships, conservatorships, and certain mental-health proceedings. The court sits at 806 West Houghton Avenue and answers at 989-345-0145. It links to MiCOURT case search and to a virtual courtroom livestream.
Probate files can include a petition, the will, letters of authority, an inventory, accountings, guardian reports, and closing documents. Some categories carry strong privacy limits. Mental-health, adoption, and certain minor-guardianship information may be restricted, and the court can require party status, attorney status, or a court order before releasing them.
Ogemaw County Family Division
Michigan folded family cases into the circuit court through a unified family court. The Ogemaw family court materials state that the Family Court was created on January 1, 1998, to hear family matters that had been split between the Circuit and Probate Courts. That change created one Unified Family Court for the county.
The family division covers divorce and related matters, adoption, juvenile delinquency, child abuse and neglect, and personal protection cases. Judge Scott M. Williams presides over the Ogemaw family court and also serves as Probate Judge. Support, custody, and parenting-time questions may route to a Friend of the Court referee before they reach the judge. Divorce and PPO motions that a referee does not hear require a call to schedule a date and time.
Note: Family, juvenile, and adoption files carry heavy confidentiality rules, so public access is often limited to parties, attorneys, or people with a court order.
Ogemaw County Circuit Court Filing Fees
Circuit court filings carry set fees, many tied to Michigan statute. The county's Circuit Court FAQ lists the amounts and cites the law behind them. The general circuit civil filing fee draws on MCL 600.2529. Family and probate-style fees, such as ancillary guardianship and conservatorship, draw on MCL 600.1027, and an order of filiation draws on MCL 722.717. The table below gathers the fees the circuit clerk collects most often.
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Circuit civil filing | $175.00 |
| Divorce, no children | $175.00 |
| Divorce with children | $255.00 |
| Jury demand | $85.00 |
| Motion fee | $20.00 |
| Writ of garnishment, attachment, or execution | $15.00 |
| Appeal from circuit court | $25.00 |
| Ancillary guardianship or conservatorship | $150.00 |
| Order of filiation | $35.00 |
The circuit filing fee statute sits at the Michigan legislature site. A look at MCL 600.2529 shows the fee authority behind the county's civil filing charge.
Fee amounts can change, so confirm the current total with the clerk at 989-345-0215 before mailing a payment. Certified copies of circuit records come from the Ogemaw County Clerk, who is the circuit court record keeper.
Court Forms and SCAO Resources
Michigan uses standard statewide court forms produced by the State Court Administrative Office, known as SCAO. Ogemaw's circuit court materials route filers to these forms rather than to a local packet. SCAO forms cover civil, family, criminal, and probate filings, so a party can often download the exact form a case needs.
The statewide forms library lives on the Michigan Courts site. The SCAO forms page holds the approved forms the circuit court expects for most filings.
Using the correct SCAO form and the right fee keeps a filing from being rejected at the counter. When a form or a fee is unclear, the judicial secretary can point a filer to the correct document.
Ogemaw County Circuit Motion Days
The circuit court follows local scheduling rules for civil hearings. Motion days are typically set once a month on a Thursday, though the court may change that at its discretion. Motion days cover all hearings tied to 34th Circuit civil cases, not strictly motions. The rules carry a few local quirks that matter before a party files anything.
- Contact Susie Stein at 989-345-3560 to get a date and time before filing.
- Do not add extra motions without prior approval from the court.
- Include a judge's copy and a notice-of-hearing copy with the filing.
- Ogemaw County does not require a praecipe, the scheduling document some courts use.
- Request a Zoom appearance by email at SteinS@RoscommonCounty.net.
These practices are specific to the 34th Circuit and reflect a small, rural court where a phone call to the judicial secretary often replaces a formal scheduling filing.
Appeals from Ogemaw County Courts
An appeal moves a decision to a higher court for review. From the circuit court, most appeals go to the Michigan Court of Appeals, the state's intermediate appellate court. From there, a party may seek further review at the Michigan Supreme Court, the highest court in the state. The Supreme Court hears matters mostly by application, so it does not take every case.
The circuit court itself also acts as an appeals court in some situations. It reviews certain appeals from the district court and from state agencies. That dual role, trial court and appeals court, is one reason the circuit court sits at the center of the county's court structure. To follow a case record across these levels, the Ogemaw County court records overview explains the online and counter channels for each court.