TITLE EIGHT — PROVISIONAL AND FINAL REMEDIES AND SPECIAL PROCEDURES
Rule 53. Civil Contempt
Nature and Purpose. Civil contempt is remedial. Its purpose is to coerce compliance with an order of the court or to compensate a party for loss occasioned by non-compliance. Civil contempt is not punishment, and a sanction imposed under this rule shall be no greater than is necessary to secure compliance or to compensate the loss. Punitive contempt is criminal contempt and proceeds under Rid. R. Crim. P. 43 or as a prosecution under R.C.C. § 1.08.
Conduct Punishable. The court may hold a person in civil contempt for:
willful disobedience of the terms, as written, of a process or order of the court;
willful resistance of a lawful court order or process;
refusal, without lawful privilege, to be sworn or to answer as a witness;
failure to comply with an order compelling discovery, in addition to the sanctions available under Rule 26.3;
failure to obey an order in aid of execution under Rule 50(7).
What Is Not Civil Contempt.
Conduct occurring in the immediate view and presence of the court and tending to interrupt its proceedings is criminal contempt and is dealt with under Rid. R. Crim. P. 43.
Initiation.
By Motion. A party, or a nonparty in whose favor an order was made under Rule 52(1), may move for an order to show cause why the person charged should not be held in civil contempt. The motion shall be supported by affidavit and shall identify the order alleged to have been violated, the date and hour of the person’s notice of it, and the specific acts or omissions constituting the violation.
On the Court’s Initiative. The court may issue an order to show cause on its own initiative.
The Order to Show Cause. The order to show cause shall:
identify the person charged by username;
recite the order alleged to have been violated, quoting the operative terms;
state with particularity the acts or omissions charged;
state whether confinement is a possible sanction;
advise the person charged of the right to be heard, to present evidence, and to cross-examine witnesses, and, where confinement is a possible sanction, of the right to counsel under subdivision (6);
fix the time and place of the hearing, which shall be not less than twenty-four (24) hours after service unless the person charged consents to a shorter time; and
state the date and hour of issuance in Coordinated Universal Time.
Service; Right to Counsel.
Service. The order to show cause is served upon a party by the electronic filing system upon the Clerk’s acceptance of the filing, and shall in addition be delivered in the proceeding communications of the case. Upon a person who is not a party, the order shall be served in the manner of a subpoena under Rule 32(3), and the movant shall demonstrate service to the court.
Counsel. Where confinement is a possible sanction, the person charged is entitled to representation, and the court shall appoint the State Public Defender or, where that office is unable to provide representation, court-appointed counsel, as provided by 3 R. Stat. §§ 161.109 and 161.202(e). No order of confinement shall be entered against a person who was not represented and did not waive representation on the record.
The Hearing.
The hearing shall be held in the proceeding communications of the case or as the court directs.
The Ridgeway Rules of Evidence apply.
The movant bears the burden of establishing, by clear and convincing evidence, that a clear and unambiguous order of the court existed, that the person charged had actual notice of it, and that the person failed to comply.
Upon that showing, the burden shifts to the person charged to establish a present inability to comply. The person charged shall state, categorically and in detail, what has been done to comply and why compliance is impossible. A bare assertion of inability is insufficient.
Good faith is not a defense to a finding of civil contempt, but is relevant to the sanction imposed.
Findings. An order finding civil contempt shall state the order violated, the facts constituting the violation, the evidentiary basis for the finding, the sanction imposed, and what the contemnor must do to purge the contempt. The Clerk shall enter the order upon the docket.
Coercive Sanctions.
Fine. The court may impose a fine payable for each day, or each shorter interval the court fixes, that the non-compliance continues. The order shall state the amount, the interval, and the date and hour from which the fine begins to run. A coercive fine ceases to accrue upon purgation and shall not be collected for any period after compliance.
Confinement. Where a fine will not coerce compliance, the court may direct the Sheriff to take the contemnor into custody until the contemnor complies or until the period the court fixes expires. A single commitment shall not exceed fifteen (15) minutes. The court may order a further commitment only upon a further hearing and a further finding of continued non-compliance and present ability to comply.
Purgation. Every coercive sanction shall be conditional. The order shall state precisely what the contemnor must do to purge the contempt, and the contemnor shall be released or the fine shall cease upon compliance. A contemnor may apply at any time for a finding of purgation, and the court shall hear the application promptly.
No Bond. No bond, bail, or security shall be levied or accepted as a condition of release from custody under this rule, as provided by 6 R. Stat. § 131.205.
In-Game Custody. An order of confinement shall be delivered to the Sheriff as process directed to the Sheriff under 9 R. Stat. § 331.202(e), and shall identify the contemnor by username.
Compensatory Sanctions. The court may order the contemnor to pay the party aggrieved the actual loss sustained by reason of the contempt, together with the reasonable expenses, including attorney’s fees, incurred in bringing the contempt to the court’s attention. A compensatory sanction is unconditional, is fixed by reference to proven loss, and survives purgation. A compensatory award is a money judgment and is enforced under Rules 50 through 50.2.
Contempt by a Nonparty. A person who is not a party may be held in civil contempt only for conduct described in subdivision (2)(a) through (2)(f), only upon actual notice of the order, and only after service under subdivision (6)(a). The court shall protect a nonparty from undue burden or expense as Rule 52(5) requires.
Contempt by Counsel. Counsel is subject to this rule. A finding of contempt against counsel shall be transmitted by the Clerk to the Ridgeway State Bar, and does not displace the sanctions available under Rule 11 or 7 R. Stat. §§ 132.301 through 132.304.
Referral for Criminal Contempt. Where the court concludes that the conduct warrants punishment rather than coercion or compensation, the court shall not impose a punitive sanction under this rule. The court shall instead refer the matter to the Attorney General for prosecution under R.C.C. § 1.08, or, where the conduct occurred in the immediate view and presence of the court, proceed under Rid. R. Crim. P. 43. A person shall not be sanctioned twice for the same conduct, once under this rule and once as criminal contempt for the same purpose.
Review. An order finding a person in civil contempt and imposing a sanction is reviewable as the Ridgeway Rules of the Supreme Court provide. The filing of a request for review does not of itself suspend a coercive sanction; the court that entered the order, or the reviewing court, may suspend it.