Court requires landlords to verify filings follow law
The Michigan Supreme Court has adopted an order to support compliance with the ongoing federal moratorium on evictions and foreclosures where the tenant is in a covered housing program or the mortgage is federally backed.
The order requires that there be a clear verification that any eviction or foreclosure filing is in compliance with the federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act), which imposed the 120-day moratorium.
“By providing clear guidance to trial courts, this administrative order will help ensure that federal law regarding evictions is followed and everyone is treated fairly,” said Chief Justice Bridget M. McCormack. “Clarity will help courts handle cases consistently, help landlords understand the law, and help tenants be protected as the federal law intended.”
For example, the CARES Act imposes a moratorium, until July 25, 2020, on the filing of summary proceeding actions to recover possession of premises for nonpayment of rent that meet certain parameters.
If an action is filed prior to July 25, 2020, under MCR 4.201 for possession of premises for nonpayment of rent, a complainant must submit verification on an approved SCAO form indicating whether the property is exempt from the moratorium.
Federally-backed mortgages include those financed or purchased by FHA, VA, USDA, Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, among other agencies.
Covered housing programs include supportive housing for the elderly, the Section 8 Housing Voucher program that allows low income tenants to rent private dwellings at affordable rates, and a wide range of other programs.
UP prosecutor not opposed to motorboats during virus crisis
L’ANSE (AP) — You probably would need warm clothes and a lot of gas to get there. But a prosecutor in Upper Michigan said he has no problem with people fishing in a motorboat in his county under certain conditions.
Baraga County prosecutor Joseph O'Leary said there’s nothing in Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s order that specifically bans riding in a motorboat during the coronavirus outbreak. But that’s not how the order has been explained by the governor's office. Critics are suing.
The order says kayaking and canoeing are “outdoor physical activities” that are allowed.
“In my opinion, fishing is an outdoor physical activity with or without a motor attached,” O'Leary said on the county’s website.
He said two people from different households sitting at opposite ends of a boat “are very unlikely to have a problem with my office.”
But O'Leary warned against people sitting side-by-side and sharing a bottle, or a group of people in boats tied up with other boats. He said “common sense” should apply.
The prosecutor also warned that others in law enforcement have a different opinion, especially the Department of Natural Resources.
Violations are misdemeanors that carry fines.
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