Contempt Motion in Wisconsin Small Claims: What Happens When a Debtor Ignores a Court Order

Fifteen days pass after your Wisconsin small claims judgment, and the debtor has not returned the Financial Disclosure Statement. The court clerk cannot help you collect, cannot call the debtor, and cannot penalize them for ignoring the order. The next move is yours: a contempt motion.

When Contempt Becomes Available

Under Wis. Stat. § 799.27, the debtor has 15 days from judgment entry to deliver a completed Form SC-506B directly to you. When that deadline passes without a response, you have grounds to file for contempt under Chapter 785.

This is not a criminal proceeding. It is remedial contempt — designed to compel compliance rather than punish. The goal is to force the debtor to hand over the financial information you need to select the right enforcement tool.

Filing the Contempt Petition (Form SC-508)

The process starts with Form SC-508, the Petition and Order for Hearing on Contempt. In the petition, you detail the debtor's failure to comply with the court's Order for Financial Disclosure. You file it with the Clerk of Circuit Court.

The court then issues an Order to Show Cause, directing the debtor to appear on a specific date and explain why they should not be held in contempt.

Personal Service Is Required

You cannot mail the contempt petition. The Order to Show Cause and Petition must be personally served on the debtor by the county sheriff or a private process server under Wis. Stat. § 801.11. Budget for sheriff service fees (typically $33 plus mileage under § 814.70).

This is a common sticking point — judgment creditors sometimes assume they can mail everything. For a contempt motion, personal service is the only valid option.

What Happens at the Hearing

At the hearing, the judge examines whether the debtor willfully failed to comply with the order.

If the court finds willful noncompliance, it can impose remedial sanctions under Wis. Stat. § 785.04:

• Forfeitures of up to $2,000 per day until the debtor completes the disclosure
• Imprisonment of up to six months until compliance

The court does not issue automatic arrest warrants on the first finding of noncompliance. Due process requires the formal hearing and the debtor's opportunity to explain.

After the Hearing

In most cases, the threat of sanctions is enough. Debtors who ignored the initial order often appear at the contempt hearing with a completed SC-506B in hand. That disclosure is exactly what you need — it reveals the debtor's income, bank accounts, property, and vehicles so you can decide between wage garnishment, a bank levy, or property execution.

If the debtor still refuses, and the court imposes sanctions, the sanctions remain in effect until the debtor complies. You can also pursue supplementary examination under Chapter 816 as a separate discovery route.

Planning Your Enforcement Strategy

Factor in the time for personal service and the court hearing. Our Wisconsin judgment collection guide includes a Financial Disclosure Deadline Tracker that maps every milestone from the judgment date through contempt and into enforcement.

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