In family law cases, one issue that may arise is whether one party is in contempt of a court order. The case of Lamy v. Lamy deals with this issue, specifically whether Elizabeth was in contempt of a September 9, 2019 agreed order. In this blog post, we will examine the details of the case and the legal principles involved in determining contempt in family law.

What is Contempt in Family Law?

When a party is found in contempt of a court order, it means that they have disobeyed a court’s ruling. In family law cases, this can include issues such as denying the other parent custody or visitation rights, failing to provide financial information, or failing to follow other court-ordered obligations.

The law is clear that whether a party is in contempt is a question of fact that must be decided on a case-by-case basis. The chancellor has substantial discretion in deciding contempt matters because of their proximity to the litigants. Furthermore, the best interest of the child must be the main consideration.

Lamy versus Lamy Contempt Case

In this case, Phillip claimed that Elizabeth denied him periods of custody or visitation with the children between March 10, 2020 and May 20, 2020, failed to advise him that the children were receiving therapy, and failed to present a complete financial declaration at trial.

Elizabeth did not deny that she kept the children during Phillip’s periods of custody from March 2020 until May 2020. However, she claimed that she did so in an effort to focus on their education as schools were closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. There was conflicting testimony between the parties as to whether Phillip was allowed any telephonic or electronic contact with the children during that time frame.

The Guardian Ad Litem (GAL) testified that the chancery court had attempted to implement numerous schedules concerning the children, but all of those schedules led to chaos, confusion, arguments, and continued litigation. The GAL also noted the children’s observations of how the custody schedule was affecting their schoolwork, and the children reported that their grades were better when they were with their mother and that she helped with their schoolwork.

Contempt? No way

Due to the testimony and report presented by the GAL, which corroborated Elizabeth’s testimony concerning the children’s education, the chancellor did not abuse her discretion by not finding Elizabeth in contempt in this regard. Especially during this time of a global pandemic, the best interest of the child must be the main consideration and it appears that the chancery court made the right decision in this case.

What’s The Takeaway?

If there is a global pandemic and your “ex” decides to home school the kids because their school is closed, you are not going to win a contempt case. You are wasting your money.