Michigan Divorce Parenting Class: SMILE Program Requirements and What to Expect

If you're filing for divorce in Michigan and you have minor children, you'll need to complete a mandatory parenting education course before the court will finalize your case. Most Michigan counties use the SMILE program (Start Making It Livable for Everyone), though the exact name and format varies by Friend of the Court office.

Skipping this requirement — or not understanding the timeline — is one of the most common reasons final hearings get postponed.

What Is the SMILE Program?

SMILE is a court-ordered educational program designed to help divorcing parents understand how separation affects children. The curriculum covers communication strategies with your co-parent, age-appropriate ways to discuss the divorce with your children, and how to reduce conflict during transitions like custody exchanges.

The program is not therapy and is not couples counseling. You and your spouse attend separately. The content focuses on practical behavioral strategies — what to say (and not say) in front of your children, how to handle holidays and school events, and how to build a workable co-parenting relationship.

Michigan law doesn't prescribe a single statewide program. Each county's Friend of the Court office selects its own approved course and sets its own delivery format, which means the experience varies significantly depending on where you filed.

Format and Delivery Options

The delivery format depends entirely on your county's FOC office. Some common formats include:

• In-person group sessions — typically 2 to 4 hours at the courthouse or a community center
• Live Zoom sessions — many counties added this option during COVID and have kept it
• Self-paced online video courses — watch recorded modules on your own schedule

Contact your county's Friend of the Court office directly to find out which format they accept. Completing an online course from a different county or a third-party provider may not satisfy your local requirement.

Cost and Registration

Registration fees range from free to about $50 depending on the county. Some FOC offices waive the fee entirely for litigants who have been granted a fee waiver (SCAO Form MC 20) for their filing fees.

Register as early as possible after filing. Many counties have limited session availability, especially for in-person classes, and wait times of 2 to 4 weeks are common. Since you're already working within Michigan's 180-day waiting period for cases with children, early registration prevents this from becoming the bottleneck that delays your final hearing.

When You Need to Complete It

The parenting class must be completed before the court will schedule your final hearing and enter the Judgment of Divorce. There's no specific statutory deadline within the case timeline, but practically speaking, you should aim to finish it within the first 60 to 90 days of filing.

Both parents must complete the program independently. If your spouse refuses to attend or is unresponsive, document your own completion — the court can proceed with the final hearing as long as you've fulfilled the requirement. The non-compliant parent may face sanctions or contempt.

What Completion Gets You

After finishing the course, you'll receive a certificate of completion. File this certificate with the court clerk — your attorney or the FOC office can tell you whether it needs to be filed separately or whether the FOC automatically reports your completion to the judge.

Without this certificate in the court file, the judge will not sign your Judgment of Divorce, regardless of whether you and your spouse have resolved every other issue.

How It Fits Into the Bigger Picture

The parenting class is one piece of the FOC process that applies to all Michigan divorces involving minor children. You'll also attend a Facilitative and Information Gathering Conference (FIGC) — sometimes called a conciliation meeting — where the FOC helps establish temporary orders for custody, parenting time, and child support.

The Michigan Divorce Filing Process Guide walks through each of these requirements in sequence, including the SMILE registration timeline, the FOC conference process, and the 12 Best Interest factors that determine custody recommendations — so nothing falls through the cracks during the 180-day waiting period.

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