Do I have to re-serve a petition for contempt to the respondent if I have to re-file with the court?

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Do I have to re-serve a petition for contempt to the respondent if I have to re-file with the court?

I sent in my Petition for Contempt (Failure to Follow Parenting Plan) at the courthouse. They said to go ahead and get the respondent served with a copy. I did that and 3 days later the courthouse returned my petition and did not file due to my ex-lawyers name was still on the case. He is in the process of removing himself from my case. If I am re-filing the same petition, do I need to re-serve the respondent?

Asked on July 19, 2011 under Family Law, Montana

Answers:

M.T.G., Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney

Answered 12 years ago | Contributor

Yes, unfortunately you do.  The original Petition was never actually filed with the court so service upon the respondent is really a moot issue.  There is no proceeding pending to attach the affidavit of service to at this point in time.  I would wait until such time as the attorney is no longer on the file file an affidavit of discharge of the attorney (the facts surrounding this issue are not really clear; is it a fee dispute? ).  It is a shame that you wen to all the trouble and that the court clerk did not check he papers prior to your leaving the courthouse.  Next time I would wait a few days before service is attempted and check back with the court before you do.  Good luck to you.


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