Hey, Dad.

So you’ve got court orders, and Mom's not following them. What are you going to do about that? Well, you could just complain about how bad the system is, how Mom gets away with everything, and how judges never make her do anything. That’s true—you could probably just go ahead and do that. Or you could file for contempt and hold her in contempt.

Here’s the thing: you’re going to need to do that multiple times. You’ll have to go back to court two, three, or four times to show that Mom is in contempt. Why do you have to do that? Because the judge is likely to say, “Yes, Mom's in contempt, and I’m going to tell her not to do it.” However, the judge may not want to put Mom in jail, because if that happens, who will take care of the child? If you’re not available to care for the child, they may have to go to another family member, which could disrupt their life. Is that really in the child’s best interest?

So, what I want to emphasize is that if you're going to file for contempt, part of your preamble should state that you are fully ready, able, and willing to take custody of the child. Your apartment or home should already be set up for the child, and they should be comfortable with you, especially since you have an ongoing custody order.

If you want to learn more about how to actually file for contempt, just go to Contempt101.com. I have a course on it because it can be pretty technical, but I break it down in a way that should be easy for most people to understand. If you have questions about the rules in your state, feel free to email me, because that’s the kind of person I am. You can DM me here or just shoot an email to [email protected].

Hope that helps! Have a great day, and remember, I think you’re fucking awesome!