Following Court Orders

Frequently in my practice, I must deal with helping a client enforce a Court Order. Visitation was denied, payments had lapsed, or a new significant other spent the night when the children were over, for example. Clients call to ask for help in making the other side play by the rules.

Violating an order may place you in contempt of court, if your violation was willful (on purpose). Courts have the ability to enforce orders by subjecting violators to fines, jail, paying the other party's attorneys fees, or by offering a purge clause which requires compliance with the order in order to avoid such sanctions.

The severity of the violation, and the justification offered for the violation, have a major impact on the severity of a sanction. A child support payment missed after job loss following catastrophic illness or injury will usually bring less punishment than the same support payment missed after a luxurious vacation. Repeated violations will usually bring stiffer sanctions each successive time.