Child Support Enforcement - Sarpy County Nebraska

§42-358 Attorney for minor child; appointment; powers; child or spousal support; records;
income withholding; contempt proceedings; fees; evidence; appeal
(1)…
(2) Following entry of any decree, the court having jurisdiction over the minor children of the
parties may at any time appoint an attorney, as friend of the court, to initiate contempt
proceedings for failure of any party to comply with an order of the court directing such party to
pay temporary or permanent child support. The county attorney or authorized attorney may be
appointed by the court for the purposes provided in this section, in which case the county
attorney or authorized attorney shall represent the state.
(3) … A rebuttable presumption of contempt shall be established if a prima facie showing is
made that the court-ordered child or spousal support is delinquent. … If income withholding is
not feasible and no other action is pending for the collection of support payments, the court shall
appoint an attorney to commence contempt of court proceedings. If the county attorney or
authorized attorney consents, he or she may be appointed for such purpose. The contempt
proceeding shall be instituted within ten days following appointment, and the case shall be
diligently prosecuted to completion. …
(4) If, at the hearing, the person owing child or spousal support is called for examination as an
adverse party and such person refuses to answer upon the ground that his or her testimony may
be incriminating, the court may, upon the motion of the county attorney or authorized attorney,
require the person to answer and produce the evidence. In such a case the evidence produced
shall not be admissible in any criminal case against such person nor shall any evidence obtained
because of the knowledge gained by such evidence be so admissible.
42-358.03. Permanent child support payments; failure to pay; work release program.
Any person found guilty of contempt of court for failure to pay permanent child support
payments and imprisoned therefore shall be committed to a court-supervised work release
program. Ninety percent of earnings realized from such program shall be applied to payment of
delinquencies in support payments minus appropriate deductions for the cost of work release.
Source: Laws 1975, LB 212, § 5.
Camp v. Camp, 14 Neb. App. 473 (2006)
A civil contempt is instituted to preserve and enforce the rights of private parties to a
suit, to compel obedience to orders and decrees made to enforce such rights, and to
administer the remedies to which the court has found the parties to be entitled.
A court that has jurisdiction to make a decision also has the power to enforce it by
making such orders as are necessary to carry its judgment or decree into effect.
Eliker v. Eliker, 206 Neb. 764, 295 N.W.2d 268 (1980)
Practice Tip: This is a great case to use in contempt of court proceedings!
Good discussion of distinction between civil and criminal contempt
A proceeding brought under this section [§42-358] is civil in nature.
Where a divorced husband neglects to apply for a modification of the divorce
decree, in spite of the fact that sufficient grounds exist to warrant modification, the
mere existence of such grounds with respect to payments due under the decree is
not available as a defense to proceedings for contempt for violating the
decree. See 17 Am. Jur. 2d Contempt § 40 (1964)
Issues of visitation and previous failure to enforce a child support order are not
relevant to proceedings under section 42-358, R.R.S.1943, or section 42-364.01,
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