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STATE OF MICHIGAN
COURT OF APPEALS


JOELLE MARIE KING, Plaintiff-Appellant, v RONALD RAY REDMOND, Defendant-Appellee.

UNPUBLISHED September 13, 2007

No. 273106 Clinton Circuit Court LC No. 02-016020-DS

Before: Fort Hood, P.J., and White and Borrello, JJ. PER CURIAM. Plaintiff appeals as of right from an order granting joint legal custody of the parties' minor child and granting primary physical custody of the child to defendant. We affirm. Plaintiff claims that the trial court's findings of fact supporting the custody decision at issue were against the great weight of the evidence. We disagree. This Court reviews trial court custody "findings of fact to determine whether they are against the great weight of the evidence, the court's discretionary rulings for a palpable abuse of discretion, and questions of law for clear legal error." Mogle v Scriver, 241 Mich App 192, 196; 614 NW2d 696 (2000); see also MCL 722.28. "Under the `great weight of the evidence' standard, a trial court's findings should be affirmed unless the evidence clearly preponderates in the opposite direction." Mogle, supra. A modification of the established custodial environment of a child requires clear and convincing evidence that the change is in the best interests of the child. MCL 722.27(1)(c); Mason v Simmons, 267 Mich App 188, 195; 704 NW2d 104 (2005). When an established custodial environment does not exist, the trial court may change custody if it finds, by a preponderance of evidence, that the change is in the child's best interests. LaFleche v Ybarra, 242 Mich App 692, 696; 619 NW2d 738 (2000). Initially, the trial court stated that there was a written order in place governing child custody. However, the trial court noted that the manner in which the parties were raising the minor child and sharing responsibility created a "joint established custodial environment" regardless of the language of any order. The trial court found that there was clear and convincing evidence of a change in circumstances. The change in circumstances was based on: (1) the separation between the parties; (2) the subsequent personal protection orders between the parties; (3) altercations between the parties; and (4) criminal and child protective service charges

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involving the parties. The trial court also noted that "both parties agreed during their closing arguments that there was proper change of circumstance to review the custody order." "To determine the best interests of children in custody cases, the trial court must consider the . . . factors of

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