Settling a Minor's Injury Claim in Michigan

When a child is hurt in a car crash, a dog attack, or a fall, the settlement doesn't work like an adult's. Michigan builds in extra protections — and extra steps — to make sure the money actually reaches the child. Here's how it works.

Parents often assume that once the insurance company agrees on a number, a check gets cut and that's the end of it. For a minor's claim in Michigan, it's not that simple. A child cannot legally sign a release, cannot control the funds, and cannot waive their own rights. The law treats a settlement of a minor's case as a matter the court has to bless — because the child can't protect themselves and a parent's interests don't always line up perfectly with the child's.

Why a Minor's Claim Is Treated Differently

Under Michigan law, anyone under 18 lacks the legal capacity to contract. A settlement is a contract. That means a parent, next friend, or guardian brings the claim on behalf of the child, but the settlement itself has to be reviewed and approved by a judge before it becomes binding. The purpose is straightforward: to confirm the amount is fair, that the attorney fees and expenses are reasonable, and that the money is protected until the child is old enough to use it responsibly.

The Statute of Limitations Gives Kids More Time

Michigan's general personal injury statute of limitations is three years from the date of injury (MCL 600.5805). For adults, missing that deadline usually ends the case. Minors get a break. Under Michigan's minority tolling rules, a child generally has until their 19th birthday — one year after turning 18 — to file many injury claims, regardless of how young they were when hurt.

Do not treat that as a reason to wait, though. Two important exceptions can erase the extra time:

• No-fault PIP benefits for medical bills and wage loss are governed by strict one-year deadlines and notice requirements that generally are not tolled for minors the way a bodily injury claim is.
• Claims against a governmental entity (a city bus, a school, a public road defect) carry short notice deadlines — sometimes as little as 60 to 120 days — that can bar a case long before a child turns 19.

Evidence also fades. Witnesses move, vehicles get repaired, and surveillance footage is overwritten. Waiting years to investigate a child's serious injury is a mistake even when the filing deadline is generous.

Court Approval: The Minor Settlement Hearing

Once the parties agree on a number, the settlement has to go before a judge. Depending on the amount and where the case is pending, that's typically a probate court or the circuit court handling the lawsuit. At the hearing, the judge looks at:

1. The nature and permanence of the child's injuries — medical records, prognosis, and any lasting scarring or disability.
2. Whether the settlement amount is fair given the injuries, liability, and available insurance.
3. Attorney fees and case costs, which the court reviews for reasonableness.
4. How the net proceeds will be protected for the child.

The parent or next friend usually testifies briefly, and the judge may want to see the child in serious-injury cases. This isn't a rubber stamp — judges do reject figures they consider too low.

Conservatorships and Larger Settlements

When a settlement exceeds a modest threshold, Michigan often requires a conservator to manage the funds. A conservator (frequently a parent, but sometimes a neutral third party) is appointed through probate court and answers to the judge, filing accountings that show the money is being handled for the child's benefit. For very large settlements involving catastrophic injury, courts may prefer structured arrangements or professional fiduciaries.

Where the Money Goes: Restricted Accounts

A child's settlement money doesn't just land in a parent's checking account. Michigan courts commonly order the funds placed in a restricted account — an interest-bearing account that cannot be touched without a further court order — until the child turns 18. Alternatively, some or all of the recovery may be placed into a structured settlement that pays out over time, often timed to release funds for college or as the child reaches adulthood.

Structured payouts can be a powerful option for a child. They spread the recovery across years, grow tax-advantaged, and prevent a lump sum from being spent quickly at 18. If your case may resolve for a large amount, it's worth understanding the trade-offs before the hearing.

What a Parent Should Do

• Get your child fully evaluated and treated — and keep every record, bill, and referral.
• Document the injury over time, especially scarring, missed school, and changes in behavior or ability.
• Don't accept an early insurance offer. The full extent of a child's injury — particularly a growth-plate fracture or head injury — may not be clear for months or years.
• Track no-fault and any government notice deadlines separately from the general limitations period.
• Ask how the settlement will be protected — restricted account, conservatorship, or structure — before you agree to anything.
• Bring the claim through a lawyer who has handled minor settlement hearings and knows what your local court expects.

Comparative Fault and Kids

Michigan uses modified comparative negligence, which can reduce a recovery by the injured person's share of fault. Courts are generally far more forgiving when the injured party is a young child who cannot be expected to appreciate danger the way an adult would. That doesn't make fault irrelevant — an insurer will still try to shift blame — but a child's age is a meaningful factor in how these arguments land.

Bottom Line

A child's injury case has extra layers — court approval, conservatorships, restricted accounts, and longer but trickier deadlines — all designed to protect the one person who can't protect themselves. Those protections are a feature, not a hassle, but they require a lawyer who knows the process. If your child was hurt in Michigan, get the claim evaluated early so nothing gets lost and every dollar ends up where it belongs.

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