Civil contempt requires a valid order, notice, ability to pay, and willful failure. Incarceration is coercive rather than punitive, and the contemnor must hold the keys through a purge amount.
Turner requires procedural safeguards for indigent obligors.
Alternative Names:
Support Contempt|Civil Contempt (Support)
Why it Matters?
Ability to pay is an element rather than a defense in most jurisdictions, which means the moving party must establish it and an obligor genuinely unable to pay cannot be held in contempt regardless of the arrearage size. Turner v. Rogers requires procedural safeguards where incarceration is possible and the obligor is unrepresented, including notice that ability to pay is the critical issue and a form eliciting financial information.
Frequently Confused with
Related terms
Frequently asked questions
Who bears the burden on ability to pay?
What safeguards does Turner require?
