View Full Version : Can you be in contept of court
lasullins
Jul 21, 2008, 08:27 PM
Can you be in contempt of court for a court order you know nothing about or that you were not even in or have any thong to do with to begin with?
stinawords
Jul 22, 2008, 06:58 AM
Well if you have nothing to do with the court order then no but in order to give you a better answer we will need to know a few more details because I'm sure this isn't a case of my child-hood neighbor who lives 1,000 miles away has a restraining order against him for his aunts attorneys girlfriend and he violated it... can you be charged if he violates it? So if we know more about your situation I'm sure you will get plenty of good answers.
ScottGem
Jul 22, 2008, 07:24 AM
The answer is yes. A contempt of court citation is issued by a judge when an order of the court has been violated.
However, if you were ever arrested and jailed for such, then you would have grounds to fight it, that you were never properly served with notice of the court order.
George_1950
Jul 22, 2008, 08:54 AM
Can you be in contempt of court for a court order you know nothing about or that you were not even in or have any thong to do with to begin with?
You have posed at least two questions: "a court order you know nothing about or that you were not even in or have any thong to do with to begin with: "... no court can entertain a case unless the parties agree to be there or live in the state (or federal district) where the court sits, or have enough contacts with the state or district that it's fair to make them answer to that court. (Doing business in a state, owning property there or driving on its highways will usually be enough to allow the court to hear the case.)" see: jurisdiction - legal definition (http://www.nolo.com/definition.cfm/Term/A6C2874F-3EAA-43AE-93D4F1A2F10071A8/alpha/J/) You didn't indicate what relationship you may have to either side in the case, though you may not be a party.
Also, "Can you be in contempt of court"? Contempt of court may apply to witnesses, as well as attorneys and parties. See: contempt of court - legal definition (http://www.nolo.com/definition.cfm/Term/F243E099-51EF-496F-A120D08F85E66B32/alpha/C/)