Rule 3.207.Ex Parte, Temporary, and Protective Orders
Subchapter 3.200 — Domestic Relations Actions · Last verified September 5, 2026
Full Text of Rule 3.207
Plain-English Summary
MCR 3.207 controls the fast-moving part of a domestic relations case. Subrule (A) lets the court issue ex parte and temporary orders on any matter within its jurisdiction, and protective orders against domestic violence under subchapter 3.700. The rest of the rule is the procedure that power costs.
An order without notice
Under subrule (B)(1), the court may enter an ex parte order pending a temporary order only if specific facts in an affidavit or verified pleading show that irreparable injury, loss, or damage will follow from the delay required to effect notice, or that notice itself will precipitate adverse action before an order can issue.
Custody and parenting time carry more. Subrule (B)(1)(a) requires the pleading or affidavit to establish whether the child has an established custodial environment with either parent, both parents, neither parent, or a third party, and then either that the order will not change it or that clear and convincing evidence shows the change serves the child's best interest. A third party must show by clear and convincing evidence that parental custody does not serve those interests.
Subrule (B)(1)(b) attaches a hearing to any order that could alter an established custodial environment: an evidentiary hearing under MCL 722.27, held within 21 days after entry, with notice of it in the order. The ex parte order expires when a subsequent order issues after that hearing.
Service and effect
The moving party must arrange service of a true copy on the friend of the court and the other party within 3 days of the order being issued. An ex parte order is effective upon entry and enforceable upon service, and stays in effect until a temporary or final order modifies or supersedes it. Subrule (B)(7) adds that MCR 3.310 governs temporary restraining orders in domestic relations cases.
The objection track
Subrule (B)(5) sets out what happens once the order has been served.
- A motion to rescind or modify filed without an objection goes to the court, which must hold an evidentiary hearing and resolve the dispute within 21 days of filing, or on the hearing date named in the order.
- A timely objection goes first to the friend of the court, which must notify the court to cancel any hearing date named in the order and must try to resolve the dispute within 14 days of the objection. Failing that, it must give the objecting party form pleadings and written instructions for proceeding without counsel, and must reschedule the cancelled evidentiary hearing or, if none was scheduled, schedule one to be held within 21 days of the motion being filed.
- If no timely objection or motion to rescind or modify an ex parte custody, parenting time, or support order is filed, that order is a temporary order, and any evidentiary hearing date named in it still goes forward.
- Whichever path the case takes, subrule (B)(5)(d) permits a change made after the hearing to run back to the date the ex parte order was entered.
Subrule (B)(6) supplies the notice an ex parte order for child support, custody, or parenting time under MCL 722.27a must carry: 14 days after service to file a written objection or motion, a true copy to the friend of the court and the party who obtained the order, and a warning that the order must be obeyed unless a later order changes it.
Temporary orders
A verified motion setting out facts sufficient to support the relief may be filed while the case is pending. A temporary order may not issue without a hearing unless the parties agree otherwise or nothing is filed under subrule (B)(5). It may be modified at any time while the case is pending, following a hearing and a showing of good cause; it must state its effective date and whether its provisions may be modified retroactively; and it remains in effect until it is modified or until the final judgment or order enters.
Subrule (C)(6) closes the loop: an unsatisfied temporary order is vacated by the final judgment unless specifically continued or preserved. Support arrearages assigned to the state survive unless the judgment specifically waives or reduces them.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long do I have to object to an ex parte order in Michigan?
The notice required by subrule (B)(6) gives 14 days after service to file a written objection or a motion to modify or rescind with the clerk of the court, with a true copy served on the friend of the court and the party who obtained the order. The same 14-day period applies to other ex parte orders, which must state that they become temporary orders absent a written objection or motion and a request for a hearing.
What happens if nobody objects to an ex parte order?
Under subrule (B)(5)(c), the ex parte custody, parenting time, or support order becomes a temporary order. If the ex parte order named an evidentiary hearing date, that hearing still proceeds on the specified date.
What must an affidavit show to get an ex parte custody order?
Subrule (B)(1)(a) requires facts establishing whether the child has an established custodial environment with either parent, both parents, neither parent, or a third party, plus facts showing either that the requested order will not change that environment or that clear and convincing evidence supports the change as being in the child's best interest. A third party must show by clear and convincing evidence that it is not in the child's best interests for the parents to have custody.
When must the evidentiary hearing be held after an ex parte order?
Where the order could alter a child's established custodial environment, subrule (B)(1)(b) requires a hearing under MCL 722.27 within 21 days after entry, with notice of it included in the order. On the objection track, subrule (B)(5)(a) requires the court to resolve a motion to rescind or modify within 21 days of filing, and subrule (B)(5)(b) gives the friend of the court 14 days to resolve a dispute after an objection before a hearing is scheduled within 21 days of the motion.
When does an ex parte order take effect and how long does it last?
Subrule (B)(3) makes it effective upon entry and enforceable upon service, and subrule (B)(4) keeps it in effect until it is modified or superseded by a temporary or final order. The moving party must arrange service of a true copy on the friend of the court and the other party within 3 days of issuance.
Do temporary orders survive the final judgment?
Under subrule (C)(5) a temporary order remains in effect until modified or until the final judgment or order enters. Subrule (C)(6) vacates a temporary order that has not been satisfied unless it is specifically continued or preserved, except for support arrearages assigned to the state, which are preserved unless the final judgment or order specifically waives or reduces them.