If your ex-spouse fails to comply with your judgment, which is most frequently the failure to pay maintenance, child support, or a property settlement, the most common way to enforce your judgment is by filing a Petition for Rule. A Petition for Rule seeks compliance with a judgment or court order and holds a non-complying party in indirect civil contempt if he or she fails to follow the court order. However, a non-complying party’s contempt may be “purged” upon payment of the support, maintenance, or property settlement. If the monetary amount is not purged, the non-complying party may be sentenced to jail until he or she has complied with the purge. Additionally, if the non-complying party is held in indirect civil contempt and his or her failure to comply with the judgment is without compelling cause or justification, the court may enter an order against the non-complying party for the attorneys’ fees and costs incurred in connection with the presentation and preparation of the Petition for Rule.
A Petition for Rule can also be filed to coerce compliance for actions such as executing a quit claim deed, refinancing a property, or effectuating a QDRO (Qualified Domestic Relations Order).
Another way to enforce the Judgment is to file a Motion to Enforce. A Motion to Enforce will result in the court entering an order requiring a party to comply with the judgment.
Madeline J. Sefton, Associate
For more information on Ms. Sefton, please visit: www.beermannlaw.com/team/madeline-j-sefton.
