§236.7. Order of support; stipulation by district attorney and party

            A.(1) In cases in which the responsible parent or other person owes a duty of support to a spouse or minor child, the responsible parent or other person owing such duty and the district attorney may stipulate to an order of support. The juvenile and family courts of this state shall have the power to issue an order of support under the provisions of this Section. This order shall be considered a civil order of support enforceable in the juvenile or family court of this state which rendered the order. This order may be registered in other family or juvenile courts of this state pursuant to the provisions of Children's Code Article 1301.3 et seq. This support shall be ordered payable to the spouse, to the tutor or custodian of the child, to the court-approved fiduciary of the spouse or child, or to the Department of Children and Family Services in a FITAP case or in a non-FITAP case in which the department is rendering services, whichever is applicable; hereinafter, said payee shall be referred to as the "applicable payee". The amount of support as set by the court may be increased or decreased as the circumstances may require.

            (2) The court may also require the defendant to enter into a recognizance, with or without surety, in order to ensure the payment of support. The condition of the recognizance shall be that the defendant shall make his or her personal appearance in court whenever required to do so, and shall further comply with the terms of the order or of any subsequent modification thereof.

            B.(1) If a defendant violates the terms of a court order issued pursuant to the provisions of this Section requiring him to pay child support to the Department of Children and Family Services, a representative of the child support collection agency as set forth in R.S. 46:236.1.1 et seq. may issue and serve on the defendant a summons ordering him to appear and show cause before the proper court of competent jurisdiction, on a date which shall be specified by the court, why he should not be held in constructive contempt of court. Prior to or at the hearing, the Department of Children and Family Services or the district attorney shall file with the court any summons served and a rule for contempt which shall be served in open court on the defendant, setting forth the terms of the original court order for child support and all modifications thereof, along with the grounds for contempt. If the defendant denies the allegations or offers a defense to the rule, the court may, upon motion of either party or on its own motion, continue the hearing.

            (2) In the alternative, a representative of the department may serve on the defendant a rule to show cause why he should not be held in constructive contempt for violating the previous order of the court, with the rule setting forth the same terms as in a rule for contempt, if the representative does not serve a summons on the offender. The rule shall set forth a specific time, place, and date where the offender is to show cause in answer to the rule. Hearings held on rules for contempt or rules to show cause shall be tried in a summary manner.

            (3) Any rule served on the defendant under Paragraph (1) or (2) of this Subsection shall inform the defendant that his ability to pay child support will be a critical issue in the contempt proceeding.

            (4) The court may find a defendant in contempt if the court expressly finds that the defendant is in arrears, had knowledge of the child support order, and any of the following apply:

            (a) The court is satisfied that the defendant had the capacity to pay out of currently available resources all or some portion of the amount due under the support order.

            (b) The court is satisfied that by the exercise of diligence the defendant could have obtained the capacity to pay all or some portion of the amount due under the support order and that the defendant failed or refused to do so.

            (c) The defendant has willfully failed to participate in an approved plan for parental participation of support under R.S. 46:236.12.

            C. If the defendant is held in contempt by the court, he may be punished as follows:

            (1) By imprisonment for not more than ninety days or a fine of not more than five hundred dollars, or both. The court may suspend all or any part of the sentence upon payment by the offender of the amount of the order for unpaid support, the total amount of unpaid support accruing since the date of the order, and the amount of all attendant court costs.

            (2) Upon recommendation of the district attorney or representative of the department, the court may suspend all or any part of the sentence upon payment by the offender of a portion of the amount of unpaid support due and all court costs. Payment by the offender of such portion and costs shall not relieve or extinguish his obligation to pay the remaining amount of support due.

            (3) If the defendant is ordered imprisoned under this Subsection, the court shall amend the sentence after imprisonment has begun upon payment by the defendant of the full amount of arrearages owed. The department shall notify the court upon receipt of payment. The court shall order the release of the defendant from imprisonment.

            (4) It is a defense as provided by R.S. 9:311.1 to a charge of contempt of court for failure to comply with a court order of child support if an obligor can prove that he was incarcerated during the period of noncompliance. This defense applies only to the time period of actual incarceration.

            (5) The court shall consider the defendant's present ability to comply before imposing any sentence under Paragraph (1) or (2) of this Subsection.

            D. In addition to any penalty set forth in Subsection C of this Section, the court shall render judgment in favor of the applicable payee for the amount of unpaid support due and court costs. Such judgment shall have the same force and effect as a judgment for money damages against the defendant. The judgment shall become executory upon its rendition, subject to the delays for filing a motion for new trial or appeal as provided by law, and may be registered with any state court of competent jurisdiction on petition of the district attorney or applicable payee.

            E. If the defendant has entered into a recognizance in the amount fixed by the court to ensure the payment of the support, the court may order the forfeiture of the recognizance and enforcement thereof by execution. The sum recovered shall be paid in whole or in part to the applicable payee. However, should the court order both the forfeiture of the recognizance and at the same time order the defendant to pay all unpaid support under the sentence for contempt, the amount of unpaid support plus attendant court costs and fines shall be the maximum payable.

            F. The termination of a court order issued pursuant to the provisions of R.S. 46:236.1.1 et seq. and 236.2, Children's Code Article 1301.1 et seq., or R.S. 13:4241, requiring a defendant to pay child support to the Department of Children and Family Services does not abate the power of any court or the department to collect any overdue and unpaid support or arrearage owed under the terminated support order or the power of the court to punish any person for a failure to comply with, or to pay any support as ordered in, the terminated court order.

            G. The provisions and remedies provided by this Section shall be construed as an addition to, and not in substitution for, any other remedy otherwise available to obtain or enforce an order of support. Relief under this Section shall not be denied, delayed, or otherwise affected because of the availability of other remedies, nor shall relief under any other statute be delayed or denied because of the availability of the remedies provided by this Section.

            Acts 1989, No. 741, §1; Acts 1997, No. 1155, §5; Acts 2010, No. 238, §4; Acts 2010, No. 605, §1, eff. June 25, 2010; Acts 2010, No. 877, §3, eff. July 1, 2010; Acts 2017, No. 264, §4, eff. Aug. 1, 2019; Acts 2018, No. 136, §1, eff. May 11, 2018; Acts 2018, No. 206, §5; Acts 2019, No. 277, §2; Acts 2020, No. 149, §1.