Fails to Respond to Contempt
What happens if the other side fails to respond to my contempt citation in the state of Oklahoma? I’m Tulsa Attorney James Wirth and that’s the question that we have. It’s actually a little bit more to the question. What it actually says is, my attorney and I filed for contempt against my ex. My attorney told me that my ex and her attorney have 15 days to respond. What happens if my ex doesn’t respond to the contempt citation?
Okay, well there’s a couple things that may not be right in here. So first off, information I have is related to the state of Oklahoma. I’m licensed to practice in the state of Oklahoma. I’m not licensed to practice in any other state, nor do I do the law in any other state. So I don’t know if this person asking the question through the website is in the state of Oklahoma or not, so that may cause there to be some of the differences.
So as far as response time, generally when a petition is filed and served on someone, you’ve got 20 days to respond. Generally when a motion is filed and served on somebody, you’ve got 15 days to respond. So 20 for a petition, 15 days for a motion. However, in this case, we’re talking about a contempt citation. Well, contempt citation is quasi-criminal. You’re being accused of a crime, of violating a court order, where it has a potential of up to six months imprisonment. So it’s treated procedurally a lot like a criminal case.
Understanding the Nature of a Contempt Citation
Just like if you’re charged with a criminal case, where you have the presumption of innocence and the state is required to prove your guilt beyond a reasonable doubt, it’s similar in this. So even though it’s being filed civilly, i.e. the state is not filing it, the prosecutor is not filing it, the opposing party in the case is filing it, it is still an allegation that in order to have them confined or imprisoned for as a punitive measure, it requires proof beyond a reasonable doubt and a presumption of innocence exists.
What that presumption of innocence means is they are not required to respond. You do not have to file a response of pleading to a contempt when it’s filed against you. What you do have to do is you have to appear in court for an arraignment to be arraigned on that and to show up on your court dates.
Response vs Appearance: The Distinction
So the answer to the question is, if your question is, what if they don’t respond? Nothing, they don’t have to respond. If your question is, what if they don’t show up for court? That’s different. If they are properly, personally served with notice of the contempt citation and they don’t show up to court, then you can request that a bench warrant be issued for their arrest and that a certain bond amount, perhaps cash only, be put on that so that when they’re arrested, they’re held in custody until they pay that, depending on the type of contempt that it is. So if they fail to appear, bench warrant, but there’s no problem not filing a response, you’re not required to file a response, there is a presumption of innocence because it is quasi-criminal in nature.
Seeking Legal Advice
If you’ve got any questions about that, you’re probably gonna wanna talk to an attorney privately and confidentially to receive legal advice. To get that scheduled with an attorney at my office, you go online to MakeLawEasy.com.
