Family Law / Enforcement-Contempt
Anyone who has an order from a court requiring another person to do (or refrain from doing) something particular can start a contempt of court action. Also, under certain circumstances, the court can start a contempt proceeding on its own. Some of the most common reasons for starting contempt actions are:
- failure to pay child support;
- denial of parental visitation;
- failure to appear when a subpoena is issued for you to appear at a court hearing;
- failure to answer questions during a trial; and
- failure to pay a fine and court costs.
In one contempt case, a woman spent a year in jail for refusing to advise the court about the location of the party’s child.