Terms Used In Louisiana Revised Statutes 9:315.30

  • Contempt of court: means that a person has been found guilty of a direct contempt of court for a contumacious failure to comply with a subpoena, pursuant to Code of Civil Procedure Article 222(5), or a constructive contempt of court for willful disobedience of a lawful order of the court, pursuant to Code of Civil Procedure Article 224(2), in or ancillary to a child support or paternity proceeding. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 9:315.31
  • Court: means any court exercising jurisdiction over the determination of child support, paternity, or criminal neglect of family proceedings. See Louisiana Revised Statutes 9:315.31
  • Obligation: An order placed, contract awarded, service received, or similar transaction during a given period that will require payments during the same or a future period.
  • Subpoena: A command to a witness to appear and give testimony.

The legislature finds and declares that child support is a basic legal right of the state’s parents and children, that mothers and fathers have a legal obligation to provide financial support for their children, and that child support payments can have a substantial impact on child poverty and state welfare expenditures.  It is therefore the legislature’s intent to facilitate the establishment of paternity and child support orders and encourage payment of child support to decrease overall costs to the state’s taxpayers while increasing the amount of financial support collected for the state’s children.  To this end, the courts of this state are authorized to suspend certain licenses of individuals who are found to be in contempt of court for failure to comply with a subpoena or warrant in a child support or paternity proceeding or who are not in compliance with a court order of child support.

Acts 1995, No. 1078, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 1996; Acts 1997, No. 1249, §1, eff. July 1, 1997.