North Dakota Motion for Contempt
A private parent in North Dakota can seek only a remedial sanction, such as a compensatory payment, a daily forfeiture, or a compliance order, with any capped coercive jail left to the court; punitive fines or jail require a prosecutor to file a separate complaint.
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Introduction
North Dakota enforces a family court order through a Motion for an Order to Show Cause, filed under North Dakota Century Code chapter 27-10 in the same case as the underlying divorce, custody, or support order. North Dakota has no official or mandatory statewide contempt form for this general motion. A self-represented movant drafts a Motion for an Order to Show Cause, a Brief in Support applying chapter 27-10 to the facts, an Affidavit or Declaration in Support, and a proposed Order to Show Cause, using the generic Motion, Brief, Declaration, and Caption template shells posted at ndcourts.gov's Making a Motion self-help page. The narrow exception is unpaid child support: the Legal Self Help Center publishes a two-form self-help packet, a Request for Notice of Arrears and a Request for Contempt Citation, for pursuing arrears under North Dakota Century Code section 14-09-08.1; neither carries a form number, and the Center says plainly that its forms are not official court forms and judges are not required to accept them. Once the papers are filed, a judge who finds them sufficient signs the proposed Order to Show Cause setting a hearing, and that order and the motion papers then go to the other party. North Dakota does not require personal service for this motion: service is complete upon mailing to the other party's last known address under North Dakota Rule of Civil Procedure 5(b)(3)(C), or the papers may be handed to the person or left at their home or office. There is no fixed statutory notice period before a standard Order to Show Cause hearing. A 21-day notice period applies only if either side requests an evidentiary hearing, and the opposing party otherwise has 14 calendar days to serve and file a written Answer Brief if served in person or at their office, or 17 calendar days if served by mail, unless the hearing is set sooner. A private movant in North Dakota can only obtain a remedial sanction: a compensatory payment for loss or costs, a forfeiture of up to $2,000 for each day the contempt continues, a compliance order, or remedial imprisonment capped at 6 months or the length of the continuing contempt, whichever is shorter, and only for specific violations such as nonpayment of court-ordered money or disobeying a court order. Real punitive fines and jail as punishment, up to $1,000 and 1 year for a formal complaint or $500 and 30 days for in-court misconduct, can only be sought by a state's attorney, the attorney general, or a court-appointed special prosecutor in a separate complaint; a private family-law movant cannot obtain that directly. For unpaid child or spousal support, the existing support order is itself prima facie evidence that the other parent can pay, and the burden shifts to that parent to prove an inability to pay; outside support, the movant must show the other party clearly committed contempt with a willful and inexcusable intent. Jail is not automatic: filing this motion does not mean the other party will go to jail, because the court decides whether contempt occurred and what remedial sanction, if any, to impose. Do not withhold child support because parenting time was denied, and do not deny parenting time because support is unpaid; either one can itself be treated as contempt. If a court finds one parent intentionally interfered with the other's court-ordered parenting time, North Dakota law requires the court to order make-up parenting time at least equal to what was lost, and separately requires the court to award attorney's fees for a willful, persistent denial of parenting time. North Dakota Child Support, part of the Department of Health and Human Services, can pursue tax refund interception, credit reporting, and license suspension without a contempt filing, and a parent can ask the clerk of court to send a Notice of Arrears by mail under section 14-09-08.1 before ever filing a contempt motion. This page does not cover modifying support or parenting time; use DocDraft's child support modification and parenting plan pages for that. If there is domestic violence or a safety risk, use DocDraft's getting a restraining order guide instead of this motion. Attorney review is available before you file.
Key Things to Know
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North Dakota calls this a Motion for an Order to Show Cause under North Dakota Century Code chapter 27-10. No official or mandatory statewide contempt form exists for the general motion; you draft your own Motion, Brief in Support, and Affidavit using the generic template shells at ndcourts.gov. The only exception is a narrow, non-mandatory child-support-arrears packet, a Request for Notice of Arrears and a Request for Contempt Citation, with no form number, filed under section 14-09-08.1.
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North Dakota does not require personal service for this motion. Service is complete upon mailing the motion and signed Order to Show Cause to the other party's last known address under North Dakota Rule of Civil Procedure 5(b)(3)(C), or the papers may be handed to the person or left at their home or office.
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There is no fixed statutory notice period before a standard Order to Show Cause hearing. A 21-day notice period applies only if either side requests an evidentiary hearing, and the opposing party otherwise has 14 calendar days to answer if served in person or at their office, or 17 calendar days if served by mail.
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A private movant can only obtain a remedial sanction: a compensatory payment, a forfeiture of up to $2,000 for each day the contempt continues, a compliance order, or remedial imprisonment capped at 6 months or the length of the continuing contempt, whichever is shorter, and only for specific violations such as nonpayment of court-ordered money or disobeying a court order. Real punitive fines and jail as punishment, up to $1,000 and 1 year, or $500 and 30 days, can only be sought by a state's attorney, the attorney general, or a special prosecutor, not by a private family-law movant.
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For unpaid child or spousal support, the existing support order is prima facie evidence the other parent can pay, and the burden shifts to that parent to prove an inability to pay. Outside support, the movant must show the other party clearly committed contempt with a willful and inexcusable intent.
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Do not withhold child support because parenting time was denied, and do not deny parenting time because support is unpaid; either one can itself be treated as contempt. If a court finds intentional interference with parenting time, North Dakota law requires make-up parenting time at least equal to what was lost, and requires attorney's fees for a willful, persistent denial of parenting time.
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North Dakota Child Support can pursue tax refund interception, credit reporting, and license suspension without a contempt filing, and a parent can ask the clerk of court to send a Notice of Arrears by mail under section 14-09-08.1 before ever filing a contempt motion. This page does not cover modifying support or parenting time, and if there is domestic violence or a safety risk, use DocDraft's getting a restraining order guide instead.
Key decisions before you file
Before you file a Motion for Contempt in North Dakota, a few decisions shape the document: which option to choose and what each one means. The Motion for Contempt guide walks through them.
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North Dakota Requirements for Motion for Contempt
Motion for an Order to Show Cause, No Official Form
North Dakota enforces a family court order through a Motion for an Order to Show Cause under North Dakota Century Code chapter 27-10. No official or mandatory statewide contempt form exists for the general motion; the only exception is a narrow, non-mandatory child-support-arrears packet with no form number, filed under section 14-09-08.1.
Mail Service Permitted, No Personal Service Required
North Dakota does not require personal service for this motion. Service is complete upon mailing the motion and signed Order to Show Cause to the other party's last known address under North Dakota Rule of Civil Procedure 5(b)(3)(C), or the papers may be handed to the person or left at their home or office.
No Fixed Notice Period for a Standard Hearing
North Dakota has no fixed statutory notice period before a standard Order to Show Cause hearing. A 21-day notice period applies only if either side requests an evidentiary hearing, and the opposing party otherwise has 14 calendar days to answer if served in person or at their office, or 17 calendar days if served by mail.
Remedial Sanctions Only for a Private Movant
A private movant can only obtain a remedial sanction: a compensatory payment, a forfeiture of up to $2,000 for each day the contempt continues, a compliance order, or remedial imprisonment capped at 6 months or the length of the continuing contempt, whichever is shorter, and only for specific violations such as nonpayment of court-ordered money or disobeying a court order. Real punitive fines and jail as punishment, up to $1,000 and 1 year, or $500 and 30 days, require a state's attorney, the attorney general, or a special prosecutor to file a separate complaint.
Ability-to-Pay Burden Shifts to the Paying Parent
For unpaid child or spousal support, the existing support order is prima facie evidence the other parent can pay, and the burden shifts to that parent to prove an inability to pay the support ordered. Outside support, the movant must show the other party clearly committed contempt with a willful and inexcusable intent.
Mandatory Make-Up Parenting Time
If a court finds one parent intentionally interfered with the other's court-ordered parenting time, North Dakota law requires the court to order make-up parenting time at least equal to what was lost, and lets the court also sanction the interference as contempt.
Mandatory Attorney's Fees for Denial of Parenting Time
For a willful, persistent denial of parenting time, North Dakota law requires the court to award attorney's fees to the parent who was denied time. Outside that situation, compensating the movant for costs and fees is a discretionary remedial sanction.
Identify the Order, Violations, and Requested Relief
North Dakota has no itemized checklist, but the motion should identify each prior order violated and its date, the specific provisions violated, any amounts owed, and the specific relief requested, including an Order to Show Cause directing the respondent to appear.
Affidavit or Declaration in Support Required
A Motion for an Order to Show Cause must be accompanied by a Brief in Support and the movant's Affidavit or Declaration stating facts of first-hand knowledge; any fact argued in the brief must also appear in the affidavit or declaration.