HB-5337, As Passed House, March 10, 2004                                    

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                              SUBSTITUTE FOR                                    

                                                                                

                           HOUSE BILL NO. 5337                                  

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                

                                                                                 A bill to amend 1961 PA 236, entitled                                             

                                                                                

    "Revised judicature act of 1961,"                                           

                                                                                

    by amending sections 504, 517, 518, 549g, 803, and 8142 (MCL                

                                                                                

    600.504, 600.517, 600.518, 600.549g, 600.803, and 600.8142),                

                                                                                

    sections 504, 517, and 803 as amended by 2002 PA 715, section 518           

                                                                                

    as amended by 2001 PA 256, and section 549g as added by 1981 PA             

                                                                                

    182.                                                                        

                                                                                

                THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:                      

                                                                                

1       Sec. 504.   (1)  The third judicial circuit consists of the                 

                                                                                

2   county of Wayne and has  the following number of  63 judges.  :             

                                                                                

3       (a) Until 12 noon, January 1, 2003, 64 judges.                              

                                                                                

4       (b) Beginning 12 noon, January 1, 2003, 63 judges; however,                 

                                                                                

5   if, after 12 noon, January 1, 2003, a vacancy occurs in a                   

                                                                                

6   judgeship held by an incumbent judge of this circuit who would be           

                                                                                

7   ineligible to seek reelection to that office in 2004, that                  

                                                                                


                                                                                

1   judgeship is eliminated unless the total number of judgeships in            

                                                                                

2   this circuit has been reduced to 61 before that vacancy                     

                                                                                

3   occurred.                                                                   

                                                                                

4       (c) Beginning 12 noon, January 1, 2005, 61 judges.                          

                                                                                

5       Sec. 517.  The sixteenth judicial circuit consists of the                   

                                                                                

6   county of Macomb and has  9  11 judges.  Subject to section 550,            

                                                                                

7   this circuit may have  2 additional judges effective January 1,             

                                                                                

8   2003, and  1 additional judge effective January 1, 2005.   If 2             

                                                                                

9   new offices of judge are added to this circuit by election in               

                                                                                

10  2002, the candidate receiving the highest number of votes in the            

                                                                                

11  November 2002 general election shall be elected for a term of 8             

                                                                                

12  years, and the candidate receiving the second highest number of             

                                                                                

13  votes shall be elected for a term of 6 years.  If a new office of           

                                                                                

14  judge is added to this circuit by election in 2004, the term of             

                                                                                

15  office of that judgeship for that election only shall be 8                  

                                                                                

16  years.  Subject to section 550, this circuit may have another               

                                                                                

17  additional judge effective January 1, 2007.                                 

                                                                                

18      Sec. 518.  The seventeenth judicial circuit consists of the                 

                                                                                

19  county of Kent and has  7  9 judges.  Subject to section 550,               

                                                                                

20  this judicial circuit may have  2  1 additional  judges  judge              

                                                                                

21  effective January 1,  2003  2007.                                           

                                                                                

22      Sec. 549g.   If the county of Isabella approves the                         

                                                                                

23  reformation of the twenty-first judicial circuit pursuant to law            

                                                                                

24  and the counties of Clare and Gladwin approve the creation of the           

                                                                                

25  fifty-fifth judicial circuit pursuant to law, the  The                      

                                                                                

26  fifty-fifth judicial circuit consists of the counties of Clare              

                                                                                

27  and Gladwin and has 1 judge.  effective January 1, 1982.  Subject           


                                                                                

1   to section 550, this judicial circuit may have 1 additional judge           

                                                                                

2   effective January 1, 2005.                                                  

                                                                                

3       Sec. 803.  (1) Except as otherwise provided in this section,                

                                                                                

4   each county  which  that is not part of a probate court district            

                                                                                

5   created pursuant to sections 808 to 810 or previously created               

                                                                                

6   pursuant to law shall have  at least  1 judge of probate.                   

                                                                                

7       (2) Each probate court district created pursuant to law shall               

                                                                                

8   have 1 judge of probate.                                                    

                                                                                

9       (3) The counties of Berrien, Calhoun, Ingham, Monroe,                       

                                                                                

10  Muskegon, Saginaw, St. Clair, and Washtenaw shall each have 2               

                                                                                

11  judges of probate.                                                          

                                                                                

12      (4) Until 12 noon, January 1, 2005, the county of Genesee                   

                                                                                

13  shall have 3 judges of probate; however, if, after 12 noon,                 

                                                                                

14  January 1, 2003, a vacancy occurs in the judgeship held by the              

                                                                                

15  incumbent probate judge in Genesee county whose term of office              

                                                                                

16  expires January 1, 2005 and who would be ineligible to seek                 

                                                                                

17  reelection to that office in 2004, that probate judgeship is                

                                                                                

18  eliminated effective 12 noon, January 1, 2005.  Beginning                   

                                                                                

19  12 noon, January 1, 2005, the county of Genesee shall have                  

                                                                                

20  2 judges of probate.                                                        

                                                                                

21      (5) Until 12 noon, January 1, 2005, the county of Macomb                    

                                                                                

22  shall have 3 judges of probate; however, if the incumbent probate           

                                                                                

23  judge in Macomb county whose term of office as probate judge                

                                                                                

24  expires on January 1, 2005 is elected in 2002 to the office of              

                                                                                

25  circuit judge in the sixteenth judicial circuit for a term                  

                                                                                

26  beginning January 1, 2003, that probate judgeship is eliminated             

                                                                                

27  effective 12 noon, January 1, 2005.  Beginning 12 noon,                     


                                                                                

1   January 1, 2005, the county of Macomb shall have 2 judges of                

                                                                                

2   probate.                                                                    

                                                                                

3       (6) The county of Kalamazoo shall have 3 judges of probate.                 

                                                                                

4       (7) The county of Kent shall have 4 judges of probate.                      

                                                                                

5       (8) The county of Oakland shall have 4 judges of probate.                   

                                                                                

6       (9) The county of Wayne shall have  the following number of                 

                                                                                

7   9 judges of probate.  :                                                     

                                                                                

8       (a) Until subdivision (b) takes effect, the county of Wayne                 

                                                                                

9   shall have 9 judges of probate.                                             

                                                                                

10      (b) The county of Wayne shall have 8 judges of probate                      

                                                                                

11  beginning on the earliest of the following dates:                           

                                                                                

12                                                                               (i) Upon the occurrence of a vacancy in a judgeship held by                         

                                                                                

13  an incumbent probate judge in Wayne county whose term expires on            

                                                                                

14  January 1, 2005, and who would be ineligible to seek reelection             

                                                                                

15  to that office in 2004.                                                     

                                                                                

16      (ii) Upon the expiration of the term of an incumbent probate                 

                                                                                

17  judge who is not eligible to seek reelection to that office.                

                                                                                

18      (10) When 1 or more new judges of probate are authorized in a               

                                                                                

19  county pursuant to this section, the new judgeship or judgeships            

                                                                                

20  shall appear on the ballot separate and apart from other judicial           

                                                                                

21  offices of the same court in the primary and general election.              

                                                                                

22      Sec. 8142.  (1)  The  Except as provided in subsection (2),                 

                                                                                

23  the seventy-seventh district consists of the counties of Mecosta            

                                                                                

24  and Osceola, is a district of the first class, and has 1 judge.             

                                                                                

25      (2) Subject to section 8175, effective January 1, 2005, the                 

                                                                                

26  seventy-seventh district consists of the counties of Mecosta and            

                                                                                

27  Osceola, is a district of the first class, and is divided into              


                                                                                

1   the following election divisions:                                           

                                                                                

2       (a) The first division consists of the county of Mecosta and                

                                                                                

3   has 1 judge.                                                                

                                                                                

4       (b) The second division consists of the county of Osceola and               

                                                                                

5   has 1 judge.                                                                

                                                                                

6       Enacting section 1.  If the new judgeship in the                            

                                                                                

7   seventy-seventh district authorized by this amendatory act is               

                                                                                

8   approved as provided by law, the election for that judgeship                

                                                                                

9   shall take place in Osceola county.