Contempt & Enforcement FAQ

The Court will determine whether you willfully failed to follow its order based on several criteria. The law provides these criteria and the Court will assess each case individually. Some grounds that do not constitute as willfulness include; loss of a job, becoming disabled, failure to qualify for loan to refinance after several attempts, and a terminal illness.

No, you must bring a Motion before the Court in order to have the paying party held accountable.

The Court can then issue an Order to Show Cause and set a hearing to have the party explain why they have not followed the judge's order. At this time, the party can be ordered to jail if he/she fails to show or does not give cause as to why he/she has failed to comply.

You can bring an enforcement action against them where they will need to explain to the Judge why they have not complied with the court's order. The Judge can then order the sale within a certain amount of days, order a fine or penalty because of the delay, and order the non compliant party to pay attorney's fees and costs.

Unless your divorce decree allows a case to be brought in the family law court, you must file a separate law suit against the non compliant party.

Make sure you keep good records and log each time the other party fails to follow the order.

No. Only if an order exists can someone be held in contempt. At this point, it would be important to obtain a child support order to assure you receive the support consistently.