Is Coercive Control Recognized in Michigan?
Not in Michigan's personal protection order statute (MCL 600.2950), which doesn't define coercive control as its own category. But Michigan does something narrower and specific: it legally requires every domestic-relations mediator to screen for it — using almost that exact phrase — before mediation can even start.
The mediator screening requirement
MCL 600.1035(2) requires that in a domestic relations mediation, the mediator “shall make reasonable inquiry as to whether either party has a history of a coercive or violent relationship with the other party,” using the domestic violence screening protocol issued by the State Court Administrative Office. Subsection (3) goes further, requiring “reasonable efforts throughout the domestic relations mediation process” to keep screening for coercion or violence that would make mediation unsafe or undermine a genuinely voluntary resolution — not just a one-time checkbox at intake.
This has real teeth — settlements have been challenged over it
This isn't just aspirational language. Michigan courts have addressed cases where the question was specifically whether a mediated settlement agreement was reached without the mandatory screening MCL 600.1035(2) and (3) require. If a mediator skipped the required inquiry and one party can show the mediation wasn't actually safe or voluntary as a result, that can be grounds to challenge the agreement that came out of it.
Where this fits and where it doesn't
This is a mediation-safety statute, not a custody presumption and not a protective-order definition — it governs whether and how mediation happens, not what a judge weighs in a contested custody trial. A documented pattern of controlling behavior is exactly the kind of thing this screening is designed to surface, but it still enters the broader case through the same best-interest and protective-order channels other states use, not a separate coercive-control statute.
Why this matters before mediation, not after
If you're heading into a Michigan domestic-relations mediation and there's a real history of coercive or controlling behavior, this screening requirement is worth knowing about going in — it's your mediator's legal obligation to ask, and a documented pattern makes that inquiry easier to answer honestly and completely rather than downplaying it under pressure to just get through the session.
This is general information about Michigan law as currently written, not legal advice. Verity is not a law firm. Talk to a Michigan family law attorney about mediation screening or a protective order in your specific situation.
Document the pattern before mediation starts
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