Court Ordered Enforcement

An enforcement is a proceeding filed against an individual that is not in compliance with a court order.

An order can be enforced by requesting that a Court hold the violator in contempt of court. A person found to have violated the court order may be fined and/or placed in jail for violating the order. Please note, that not all terms of a court order are enforceable by contempt. Usually, most people seek enforcement related to child support, visitation, spousal maintenance, and property divisions.

A party seeking an enforcement must file a motion with the court then the matter must be set for a hearing by the Court. The law requires that the person accused of violating the court order be personally served with the motion for enforcement. The motion for enforcement will include an order to appear requiring the violator to come to court at a specified date and time. A person can be served with the motion for enforcement by a constable or authorized private process server. The person seeking the enforcement can’t serve the papers, nor can the paperwork be mailed or left at the person’s residence. The statute requires that the violator have at least ten days’ notice of the hearing and the alleged violations. If the person accused of the violations does not appear in Court as designated by the paperwork then the Court can issue a warrant for the violator’s arrest and can also grant a default judgment for the past due child support. Please note that a person must be present in court to be held in contempt of an order.