Motion for Contempt

A Motion for Contempt is necessary when the judgment debtor does not comply with the judge’s order.

At that point we will file a motion and ask a judge to hold the debtor in contempt.

The motion for contempt asks the court to hold the debtor in contempt of court. The judge has many options, including committing the defendant into the custody of the sheriff for up to 180 days. As a result, the hearing is said to be “quasi-criminal” since the defendant’s liberty is at risk. The debtor can normally avoid all of this just by answering the questions.

For many judgment debtors this is the point at which the situation becomes real to them. We are very likely to resolve the entire matter at this point. It seems many judgment debtors give up at this point. They are quite convinced you are serious about your debt and won’t give up. They no longer want to face the threat of jail time. So we frequently resolve matters at the motion for contempt stage.