Not all parents obey custody orders. It happens all the time; special days and holidays are missed; vacations are ruined; time with one's child that is so precious is ignored—even when there is a court order requiring a particular schedule. Yet most family lawyers will agree that the contempt power of a family court to right such wrongs is very weak.
Contempt powers are weak because contempt hearings take so long to be scheduled and even when make-up time is ordered, this cannot recreate the important time that has already been lost.
However, now an alternative remedy exists. Many states now recognize the torts of interference with rights of custody, and interference with rights of visitation. This matters because with a tort comes money damages, which usually gets the attention of the parent who is behaving badly. The Maryland Court of Appeals—Maryland's Supreme Court—was one of the first courts to hold that such torts must exist. In Khalifa v. Shannon, 404 Md. 107 (2009) tortious interference with custody and visitation claims resulted in a three million dollar verdict for the father. Thus this may be a truly legitimate avenue to consider, as an alternative to contempt.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
