Is Michigan a One-Party Consent State? Recording Law

Michigan at a glance

Phone calls: Mixed: participants may record (Court of Appeals)
The law: MCL 750.539a (definitions: eavesdrop, private place) (official source, opens in a new tab)
In-person conversations: A different rule (see below)
Criminal penalty: Eavesdropping is a felony punishable by up to 2 years in state prison, a fine of up to $2,000, or both.
Lawsuits: Any party to a conversation subjected to illegal eavesdropping may obtain an injunction, all actual damages against the person who eavesdrops, and punitive damages as determined by the court or a jury (MCL 750.539h).
Last checked: October 13, 2026

The law

The official pages this page relies on.

Penalties

As the statutes and courts state them.

Criminal: Eavesdropping is a felony punishable by up to 2 years in state prison, a fine of up to $2,000, or both. Using or divulging information known to have been obtained by eavesdropping is a felony with up to 2 years or a $2,000 fine.
Civil (lawsuits): Any party to a conversation subjected to illegal eavesdropping may obtain an injunction, all actual damages against the person who eavesdrops, and punitive damages as determined by the court or a jury (MCL 750.539h).

In-person conversations

A separate section makes it a crime to install or use a recording device in a private place without the consent of the people entitled to privacy there (MCL 750.539d). In Lewis v LeGrow the court held that positioning a device in a private place to record was prohibited by that section.

What this means for a business that records calls

For someone who is not a participant, the consent of all persons engaged in the conversation is still required (MCL 750.539a, 750.539c). A specific exception lets a public utility record customer calls requesting service or registering complaints, when the record is required for legitimate business purposes and its employees are aware of the practice (MCL 750.539g).

Callers can be in any state. The state-by-state table compares every state's rule, and the disclosure generator writes a plain notice sentence such as “This call may be recorded.” Whether a notice is enough under Michigan's law is a question for a lawyer licensed in Michigan.

Recording notices on CallFlux numbers

CallFlux plays a recording notice to callers on every tracking number that records, before the call connects.

How CallFlux call tracking works

What the official sources say

Each line is a short quote from the official page it links to, with the date we read it.

Using a device to eavesdrop on a private conversation without the consent of all parties is a felony; the section covers persons present or not present.
“Any person who is present or who is not present during a private conversation and who wilfully uses any device to eavesdrop upon the conversation”
Source: legislature.mi.gov (official source, opens in a new tab) · read October 13, 2026
The prohibition applies when done without the consent of all parties.
“without the consent of all parties thereto”
Source: legislature.mi.gov (official source, opens in a new tab) · read October 13, 2026
'Eavesdrop' is defined as overhearing or recording the private discourse 'of others' without the permission of all persons engaged in it.
“any part of the private discourse of others without the permission of all persons engaged in the discourse”
Source: legislature.mi.gov (official source, opens in a new tab) · read October 13, 2026
The Michigan Court of Appeals (published opinion) held that a participant may record a private conversation without eavesdropping, following Sullivan v Gray (1982).
“a participant in a private conversation may record it without "eavesdropping" because the conversation is not the "discourse of others."”
Source: courts.michigan.gov (official source, opens in a new tab) · read October 13, 2026
In the same case the court held that positioning a device in a private place to record sounds or events was prohibited by § 539d.
“is clearly prohibited by § 539d”
Source: courts.michigan.gov (official source, opens in a new tab) · read October 13, 2026
Section 539d bars installing or using a recording device in a private place without the consent of those entitled to privacy there.
“Install, place, or use in any private place, without the consent of the person or persons entitled to privacy in that place”
Source: legislature.mi.gov (official source, opens in a new tab) · read October 13, 2026
Eavesdropping is punishable by up to 2 years in state prison or a $2,000 fine, or both.
“punishable by imprisonment in a state prison for not more than 2 years or by a fine of not more than $2,000.00, or both”
Source: legislature.mi.gov (official source, opens in a new tab) · read October 13, 2026
Using or divulging information obtained by eavesdropping is also a felony.
“divulges any information which he knows or reasonably should know was obtained in violation of sections 539b, 539c or 539d is guilty of a felony”
Source: legislature.mi.gov (official source, opens in a new tab) · read October 13, 2026

Show 5 more facts

That offense carries up to 2 years in state prison or a fine of up to $2,000.
“punishable by imprisonment in a state prison not more than 2 years, or by a fine of not more than $2,000.00”
Source: legislature.mi.gov (official source, opens in a new tab) · read October 13, 2026
Parties to an illegally eavesdropped conversation may obtain an injunction.
“An injunction by a court of record prohibiting further eavesdropping.”
Source: legislature.mi.gov (official source, opens in a new tab) · read October 13, 2026
Actual and punitive damages are available.
“All actual damages against the person who eavesdrops. (c) Punitive damages as determined by the court or by a jury.”
Source: legislature.mi.gov (official source, opens in a new tab) · read October 13, 2026
A public utility may record customer service/complaint calls for legitimate business purposes if its employees are aware of the practice.
“The recording by a public utility of telephone communications to it requesting service or registering a complaint by a customer”
Source: legislature.mi.gov (official source, opens in a new tab) · read October 13, 2026
That utility exception requires a legitimate business purpose and employee awareness.
“required for legitimate business purposes and the agents, servants, and employees of the public utility are aware of the practice”
Source: legislature.mi.gov (official source, opens in a new tab) · read October 13, 2026

Michigan call recording questions

Is Michigan a one-party consent state?

Partly. Michigan’s law bars eavesdropping on a private conversation without the consent of all parties (MCL 750.539c), but it defines eavesdropping as listening to or recording the discourse “of others.” The Michigan Court of Appeals has held that a participant may record a private conversation without eavesdropping (Lewis v LeGrow, 2003).

What is the penalty for recording a call illegally in Michigan?

Eavesdropping is a felony punishable by up to 2 years in state prison, a fine of up to $2,000, or both. Using or divulging information known to have been obtained by eavesdropping is a felony with up to 2 years or a $2,000 fine.

What does Michigan's law say about lawsuits over recorded calls?

Any party to a conversation subjected to illegal eavesdropping may obtain an injunction, all actual damages against the person who eavesdrops, and punitive damages as determined by the court or a jury (MCL 750.539h).

Does Michigan use the same rule for in-person conversations?