If a parent fails to follow the court’s child custody order, the other party may file a motion for contempt to bring the issue before the court.

A motion for contempt—as the name implies—is based on the uncooperative party’s contempt for the judge/court’s order. Ignoring the court’s order will have serious potential consequences, including loss of custody and payment of the other parent’s attorney fees and costs in filing the motion for contempt (coercive civil contempt).

And in some cases of repeated failures to comply with the custody order, the court may punish the uncooperative parent with jail time (criminal contempt).

In West Virginia, if a parent does not adhere to the court's child custody order, the other parent has the right to file a motion for contempt to address the violation with the court. This motion is predicated on the non-compliant parent's disregard for the court's mandate. The consequences of such non-compliance can be significant. They may include a modification of custody arrangements, the imposition of fines, and the requirement for the non-compliant parent to cover the attorney fees and costs incurred by the other parent in bringing the motion for contempt. This is known as coercive civil contempt, which aims to compel compliance with the court's order. In instances where there is a pattern of persistent non-compliance, the court may escalate the matter to criminal contempt, which carries the possibility of jail time as a punitive measure to enforce the court's authority and ensure adherence to the custody arrangement.