Form 31-5

NOTICE: THIS DOCUMENT
CONTAINS SENSITIVE DATA

[Caption. See § 3 of the Introduction in volume 1 of this manual.]

Petition for Enforcement of Property Division by Contempt

1.Discovery in this case is intended to be conducted under [level 2/level 3] of rule 190 of the Texas Rules of Civil Procedure. [If level 3, see form 5-1.]

Preservation of Evidence: Respondent is put on notice to preserve and not destroy, con­ceal, or alter any evidence or potential evidence relevant to the issues in this case, including tangible documents or items in Respondent’s possession or subject to Respondent’s control and electronic documents, files, or other data generated by or stored on Respondent’s home computer, work computer, storage media, portable systems, electronic devices, online reposi­tories, or cell phone.

2.Petitioner objects to the assignment of this matter to an associate judge for a trial on the merits or presiding at a jury trial.

3.This suit is brought by [name of petitioner], Petitioner. [The last three numbers of Petitioner’s driver’s license number are [numbers]./Petitioner has not been issued a driver’s license.] [The last three numbers of Petitioner’s Social Security number are [numbers]./Petitioner has not been issued a Social Security number.]

Respondent is [name of respondent]. Process should be served [include if applicable: at [address, city, state, zip code]].

4.On [date] this Court signed [an order/a decree] that appears in the minutes of this Court and states in relevant part as follows: [quote exact language of order or decree to be enforced].

4.On [date] this Court signed [an order/a decree] that appears in the minutes of this Court, the relevant portion[s] of which [is/are] attached as Exhibit [exhibit number/letter].

Petitioner was the [petitioner/respondent] and Respondent was the [respondent/petitioner] in the prior proceedings.

5.Respondent has failed to comply with the order described above as follows:

6.Petitioner seeks an order directing Respondent to [specify conduct].

7.Petitioner requests that Respondent be held in contempt, jailed, and fined for each violation alleged above, for a period of six months on each count, to run [concurrently/consec­utively].

8.Petitioner requests that after Respondent serves [his/her] sentence for criminal contempt, Respondent be confined in the county jail for a period not to exceed eighteen months (total for civil and criminal contempt) or until Respondent complies with the order of the Court, whichever occurs first.

9.Petitioner requests that, if the Court finds that any part of the order sought to be enforced is not specific enough to be enforced by contempt, the Court enter a clarifying order more clearly specifying the duties imposed on Respondent and giving Respondent a reason­able time within which to comply.

10.Delivery of the property by Respondent is no longer an adequate remedy. Peti­tioner requests judgment for $[amount] to compensate Petitioner for the loss of the property.

11.It was necessary to secure the services of [name of attorney], a licensed attorney, to enforce and protect the rights of [name of petitioner]. Respondent should be ordered to pay reasonable attorney’s fees, expenses, and costs, and a judgment should be rendered in favor of the attorney and against Respondent and be ordered paid directly to the undersigned attorney, who may enforce the judgment in the attorney’s own name. Petitioner requests postjudgment interest as allowed by law.

Petitioner prays that citation and notice issue as required by law, that the Court render an order directing Respondent to [specify conduct] and that Respondent be held in contempt and punished as requested, that the Court clarify any part of its prior order found not to be spe­cific enough to be enforced by contempt, [include if applicable: for a judgment for $[amount],] for attorney’s fees, expenses, costs, and interest, and for all further relief authorized by law.

 

   
[Name]
Attorney for Petitioner
State Bar No.:
[Email address]
[Address]
[Telephone]
[Fax]