An Order to Show Cause is a court action filed in the District Court in an effort to gain compliance and enforce the Court Order. The person that is disobeying the court order is served with an Order to Show Cause and ordered to appear before the Court to show cause as to why (s)he should not be held in contempt of the court for willfully disobeying the court's order to pay child support. If the judge finds that person is in contempt, the judge will sentence that person to a jail sentence; but will allow him/her a chance to be released from jail by following a purge plan. A purge plan gives the person an opportunity to come into compliance with the court order.
A contempt action may be ended by the person coming into compliance with the court order by one of the following: paying the past due child support balance in full, paying consistently for a period of time, or a finding by the District Court. Due to the possibility of up to 6 months in jail, per case, the non-payor may be eligible for a court appointed attorney if (s)he cannot afford to hire an attorney.