When a former spouse does not follow a Montana divorce decree, the answer is to go back to the court that entered it. A decree is a judgment, and the law provides several ways to enforce one: contempt for refusing to do what was ordered, execution and liens for unpaid money, and wage assignment or income withholding for support. This page is part of our Montana Divorce Guide.
Why a Decree Is Enforceable
When spouses settle, the terms of their separation agreement are ordinarily set out in the decree and the parties are ordered to perform them (MCA § 40-4-201(4)). Those terms "are enforceable by all remedies available for enforcement of a judgment, including contempt, and are enforceable as contract terms" (§ 40-4-201(5)). Terms a judge decided after a trial are orders of the court in the same way.
The first step is always to read the decree closely. Enforcement depends on what the document actually requires, by whom, and by when. Vague terms are harder to enforce than specific ones, which is a good reason to draft a marital settlement agreement with dates and amounts.
The Main Enforcement Tools
| Tool | What it does | MCA |
|---|---|---|
| Contempt of court | Asks the court to compel compliance with its order. A sanction to compel an act the person is able to perform can be incarceration, a fine of up to $500, or both, until the act is performed. | §§ 3-1-501, 3-1-520 |
| Writ of execution | Directs collection of a money judgment from the debtor's property or earnings. Available within the period for actions on judgments. | § 25-13-101 |
| Judgment lien | A docketed judgment becomes a lien on the debtor's non-exempt real property in the county, generally for 10 years. | § 25-9-301 |
| Wage assignment | The court may order the person who owes support or maintenance to assign part of periodic earnings or trust income to the person owed. | § 40-4-207 |
| Income withholding for child support | Income is subject to immediate withholding under child support orders issued after January 1, 1990, unless the court found an exception, and on delinquency under other orders. | §§ 40-5-411, 40-5-412 |
| Security for support | When support or maintenance is delinquent by an amount equal to 6 months of payments, the court may require a bond, mortgage, or other security. | § 40-4-209 |
Contempt of Court
Montana's contempt statute lists "disobedience of any lawful judgment, order, or process of the court" as a contempt (MCA § 3-1-501(1)(e)). In a divorce, that can mean failing to pay, refusing to sign a deed or title, not turning over property, or ignoring another term of the decree.
The process for a contempt that did not happen in front of the judge starts with "an affidavit of the facts constituting the contempt" presented to the court (§ 3-1-512). The court then holds a hearing. The person charged must be given a reasonable opportunity to obtain counsel and prepare a defense or explanation, and may testify and call witnesses (§ 3-1-518).
The statute distinguishes two kinds. A contempt is civil if the sanction seeks to force compliance with a court order, and criminalif the purpose is to punish a specific act (§ 3-1-501(4)). Enforcement of a decree is usually about compliance. For that purpose, § 3-1-520 allows incarceration, a fine of up to $500, or both, "until the contemnor has performed the act," and it applies to an act "that is in the power of the contemnor to perform." A person who truly cannot comply is in a different position than one who will not.
A contempt order in a family law case can be appealed only when it includes an ancillary order that affects the substantial rights of the parties (§ 3-1-523(2)). Our page on contempt in family court goes further into the procedure.
Collecting Money: Execution, Liens, and Garnishment
When the problem is an unpaid sum, such as an equalization payment or past-due maintenance, the tools are the ones any judgment creditor has.
- Writ of execution. The party in whose favor a judgment is given may have a writ of execution issued for its enforcement within the time allowed for actions on judgments (MCA § 25-13-101(1)).
- Judgment lien. From the time a judgment is docketed, it becomes a lien on the judgment debtor's real property in the county that is not exempt from execution, and the lien generally continues for 10 years (MCA § 25-9-301(2)). A transcript can be filed in another county to create a lien there (§ 25-9-302).
- Garnishment of earnings. Ordinary judgments can reach no more than 25 percent of disposable earnings. That cap does not apply to an order for the maintenance or support of any person. For those, the limit is 50 percent if the debtor supports another spouse or dependent child and 60 percent if not, rising to 55 and 65 percent for support that is more than 12 weeks overdue (MCA § 25-13-614).
Property division terms are final in a way support is not, but an unpaid property obligation can still be collected. For the bankruptcy side, see bankruptcy and divorce.
Support and Maintenance: Additional Remedies
Support orders have tools of their own in Title 40.
- Payment through the clerk. The court may order maintenance or support paid to the clerk of the district court, who keeps records of payments (MCA § 40-4-206). A payment record removes arguments about what was paid.
- Assignment of earnings. The court may order the person obligated to pay support or maintenance to assign part of periodic earnings or trust income. The assignment binds the employer 2 weeks after service of notice, and an employer may not discharge or discipline an employee because of it (MCA § 40-4-207).
- Income withholding for child support. For child support orders issued after January 1, 1990, the obligor's income is subject to immediate withholding regardless of arrears unless the court found good cause or an alternative arrangement (MCA § 40-5-411). Otherwise, withholding can begin on delinquency, which occurs 8 working days after the last day of the month in which the payment was due (MCA § 40-5-412).
- Security. If child support or maintenance is delinquent in an amount equal to 6 months of payments, the court may order the obligated person to show cause why a bond, mortgage, or other security should not be required (MCA § 40-4-209).
Montana's Child Support Services Division can also enforce child support, and in the cases it handles, maintenance owed to the custodial parent. See child support enforcement in Montana and unpaid child support and interest.
Time Limits
Enforcement rights do not last forever. The period for commencing an action on a judgment or decree of a court of record is 10 years (MCA § 27-2-201(1)), and execution and judgment liens follow the same 10-year frame. Past-due child support is treated more generously: an action to collect it may be brought within 10 years of the termination of the support obligation or within 10 years from entry of a lump-sum judgment or order for arrears, whichever is later (§ 27-2-201(3)).
How these periods apply to installment obligations that come due over many years is a question to put to a lawyer well before any deadline. Acting early also makes collection more practical.
What Not to Do
A violation by one person does not release the other from the decree. Do not withhold parenting time because support is late, do not stop paying support because parenting time was denied, and do not take or keep property the decree gave to someone else. Each of those is its own violation and can be enforced against you. If the paying spouse's circumstances have truly changed, the route is a motion to modify. See modifying or ending maintenance.
Keep a simple record: the decree, a log of payments received and missed, and copies of messages about compliance. See when your ex stops payingfor a practical walk-through. If a former spouse's conduct makes you afraid for your safety, call 911. The National Domestic Violence Hotline is 1-800-799-7233.
This page explains Montana law in general as of the 2025 Montana Code Annotated. It is not legal advice about your specific case.