Flint Township View

New director of Friend of the Court announced


FLINT — The Genesee County Circuit Court Chief Judge Duncan M. Beagle has appointed Anthony McDowell as the Director of the Friend of the Court.

McDowell will take over the Friend of the Court Director position recently vacated by John Battles, who has held the role for the last 15 years.

Before becoming the Friend of the Court, McDowell has been the Friend of the Court Deputy Director for the last five years and an additional five years with the 7th Circuit Court as an attorney.

He was born in Flint, attended Michigan State University and University of Toledo College of Law, and is a Genesee County resident.

During his time with the 7th Circuit Court, Anthony has been involved in many efforts to make the court system more accessible for families through specialty courts and building community partnerships.

McDowell plans to lead the Friend of the Court office in creating new and different ways to engage with the community, assist families through education to make it easier to navigate the child support program, and take an extra focus on new parenting services to support families.

“We look forward to the new heights Tony will be able to lead the Friend of the Court to in the future. Tony cares about this office, this community, and the impact the Friend of the Court has on families. He strives to ensure that every person who works with the Friend of the Court is treated with dignity and respect,” said Beagle.

The Friend of the Court office is responsible for the administration and enforcement of domestic relations orders of the 7th Judicial Circuit Court Family Division. The Genesee County Friend of the Court has approximately 48,000 cases and collected $70,433,510 in child support in 2020. — G.G.