Form DC 102cCOMPLAINT TO RECOVER POSSESSION OF PROPERTY Use this form if you want to recover possession of real property. American LegalNet, Inc. www.FormsWorkFlow.com COMPLAINT CHECKLISTUse the following checklist to make sure you have done all the steps that are needed.DID YOU . . . 1. Fill out all requested information on the form? YES 2. Attach a copy of the demand for possession and any other supporting documents? YES 3. Make all necessary copies of the form and attachments? YES 4. Prepare the top portion of the summons form (DC 104)? YES 5. File the complaint, attachments, filing fee, and summons with the clerk of the court? YES 6. Have the summons and complaint, with attachments, served on the tenant? YES 7. Keep one copy of the summons, complaint, and attachments for yourself? YES If you cannot answer 223yes224 to all the above steps, a hearing/trial on your complaint may be delayed or your complaint may be dismissed.By using this form packet you are representing yourself in a court action for eviction. In order to receive the action you seek, you must follow the instructions in this packet.If you fail to do even one of the required steps, the court may not give you the resultyou want.If you have any questions about any step in the process, refer to pages 3 through 7 of this booklet for details.PAGE 2 American LegalNet, Inc. www.FormsWorkFlow.com INSTRUCTIONS FOR USING FORM DC 102cFILING AND SERVING A COMPLAINT273273 DECIDING TO FILE A COMPLAINTIf you served a notice to quit/demand for possession for termination of tenancy and the tenant did not move out as you requested in the notice, you must file a complaint with the district court to regain possession of your rental property by evicting the tenant and, if applicable, to get a judgment for money damages against the tenant. You may file a complaint to recover possession of your property for other reasons, such as an expired lease, a lease terminated by a provision in the lease, trespass, forcible entry, etc. 273273 FILING A COMPLAINT1. Do you need an attorney? To get an order evicting the tenant from your property, you must file a complaint with the district court in the county or city where the property is located. You can hire an attorney or represent yourself. If you can follow all the steps outlined in this packet, you may not need an attorney. However, if after reading this packet you think you need assistance, you should call an attorney. If you are not the owner or sublessor of the property, an attorney must sign the complaint and appear in court. A sublessor is a tenant who has sublet his or her property to another.2. What does it cost? There is a fee for filing a complaint against a tenant for termination of tenancy. The cost to file a complaint with the district court is $45.00 plus, there is an electronic filing system fee of $10 (complaint for possession only or money damages only) or $20 (combined complaint for possession and money damages). If you are seeking money damages, you must pay an additional filing fee as follows: $25 for damage claims up to $600 $45 for damage claims from $600 to $1,750 $65 for damage claims over $1,750 to $10,000 $150 for damage claims over $10,000 to $25,000 The plaintiff (landlord) is responsible for paying the filing fee and other fees. If the judge rules in favor of the plaintiff, these fees may be added to the judgment amount against the defendant.3. Fill out the Complaint form. Fill out form DC 102c (Complaint to Recover Possession of Property) on the website or get a paper copy of the form from the court to fill out. Follow the instructions on page 8. After completing form DC 102c, print four copies. If there is more than one defendant, you will have to make extra copies for each defendant before you file your complaint. Fill out the top part of form DC 104 (Summons). You will provide the summons (form DC 104) to the court when you file the complaint (form DC 102c). After completing form DC 104, print the form. Two of the copies are for the tenant and contain a section on how to get legal help. The remaining three copies contain a section for certificate of mailing. Finally, there are two proofs of service.4. Put your packet together. After printing the completed complaint (form DC 102c) and the summons (form DC 104), put together four packets. For each packet, put the summons on top, followed by the complaint, thePAGE 3 American LegalNet, Inc. www.FormsWorkFlow.com þ notice to quit, and your lease or occupancy agreement. Staple each packet individually. All these þ documents are your complaint packet. NOTE: These instructions are written for one defendant. If þ there is more than one defendant, you will have to make an additional copy for each defendant for all þ the remaining steps. Keep for yourself the remaining summons page and the two proof of service þ pages. You will need these later. See Step 5a and Step 5b. 5. þ File the Complaint packet with the court. þ Generally, it is a good idea to file your complaint packet with the court in person because you can make þ arrangements with the court to have the summons and complaint served on the defendant. Also, if you þ have forgotten something, you can take care of that right away. To file in person, follow the instructions þ in step 5a. þ If you don't want to file with the court in person, you can mail all four complaint packets and the remaining þ summons page to the clerk of the court in the district court where your property is located. The steps þ for mailing are more inconvenient because you may have to go to the post office several times and the þ arrangements for service of the complaint packet will be more time-consuming. To file by mail, follow þ the instructions in step 5b. þ You must include payment for the filing fees when you file the complaint packet. If you can222t afford to pay þ the filing fee, ask the clerk of the court for an Affidavit and Order, Suspension of Fees/Costs (form MC þ 20, which is not included in this packet). If you are also seeking money damages, make sure you þ þ include the additional filing fee. þ Step 5a: Filing with the court in person and making arrangements for service by the court þ Filing the Summons and Complaint packet: Take to the clerk of the court in the district court where þ your property is located all four complaint packets, the fifth copy of the summons form DC 104 that you þ made in Step 4, and the two proofs of service from form DC 104. Bring your payment for the filing fee þ with you. þ Be prepared to pay for the cost of service. This includes the cost of serving two packets to the defendant, þ one by first-class mail and one by personal service or delivery as required by Michigan Court Rule þ 4.201(D). This costs $26.00 plus mileage for each defendant (tenant). þ The clerk will record the filing of your complaint, assign a case number, and write the name of the judge þ assigned to your case on all copies of the summons and complaint forms. The clerk will issue the þ summons by dating, signing, and sealing the summons. þ Serving the Summons and Complaint packet: The clerk will keep the original of the summons and þ complaint packet for the court file, will mail one copy to the defendant, will make arrangements for þ personal service or delivery, and will return the remaining packet to you. þ Step 5b: Filing with the court by mail and making arrangements for service þ Filing the Summons and Complaint packet: In deciding whether to file by mail, you should first þ þ consider how you want to handle service of the summons and complaint packet on the defendant þ (tenant). According to Michigan Court Rule 4.201(D), the summons and complaint must be served on þ the tenant by two methods, one of which is mailing by first-class mail to the defendant. PAGE 4 American LegalNet, Inc. www.FormsWorkFlow.com The court will mail the summons and complaint packet to the defendant if you provide the court with a postage-paid envelope for this purpose. For your convenience, it is recommended that you get a postage-paid envelope from the post office for this purpose because you will already be at the post office getting your complaint packet