Florida Form 12.960 civil contempt/enforcement preparation checklist

Start with the free official form

Florida Courts currently publishes Form 12.960, Motion for Civil Contempt/Enforcement, dated November 2015. The official PDF is five pages: two pages of instructions followed by the three-page motion. Read all five pages before using this checklist.

Source checked September 24, 2026. Confirm the revision on the current Florida Courts forms index ↗ before starting.

Confirm that this is the motion already selected

The official instructions describe Form 12.960 as a way to ask the court to enforce a prior court order or final judgment. They also explain that the moving party has the burden at the hearing of proving that the other party did not obey the prior order, after which the other party may have an opportunity to show an inability to comply.

Those are legal and factual issues. Sun State cannot decide whether conduct is contempt, whether enforcement is the correct procedure, whether an order is enforceable, what must be proved, which evidence is needed, or what relief to request. Seek legal advice when any of those questions is unresolved.

1. Case and party information

Use the existing case documents to organize the caption information shown on the motion:

• Judicial circuit and Florida county
• Petitioner and respondent names exactly as they appear in the case
• Case number and division
• Whether the petitioner or respondent is filing the motion
• Whether the petitioner or respondent is alleged not to have complied

The labels “petitioner” and “respondent” generally remain tied to the original case caption. The software transfers the customer's selections; it does not determine how a party should be identified.

2. Identify the prior judgment or order

The motion asks for the title of the final judgment or order, the date it was entered, and the court, city, and state that entered it. It also provides a checkbox when the judgment or order is not from the court where the motion is filed and says to attach a copy in that situation.

Review the actual signed order rather than relying on memory. Sun State cannot identify the controlling order, interpret its terms, determine whether a copy or another filing is required, or decide whether the issuing court has authority over the requested enforcement.

3. State what the order required

Item 2 asks the moving party to explain what the prior order required the other party to do or not do. The form also allows the moving party to indicate that additional pages are attached.

Prepare the wording the moving party independently intends to use and compare it with the prior order. The filler does not draft allegations, select language from an order, decide which provisions matter, or review an attachment for completeness or accuracy.

4. Describe the alleged noncompliance

Item 3 states that the other party “willfully failed to comply” and asks the moving party to explain what the other party has or has not done. It also has an additional-pages selection.

Only the moving party or a licensed attorney can decide which facts to allege. Sun State does not investigate events, determine willfulness, assess credibility, organize proof, or predict how the court will evaluate the allegations.

5. Review every requested-relief choice

The motion presents 15 possible selections, from enforcing the prior order through other relief. The printed list includes monetary and cost-related remedies, several remedies that apply only if contempt is found, property-related writs, support-payment measures, employment, make-up time-sharing, and a write-in option.

No option is automatically selected or recommended. Some choices include conditions in the printed text or require an explanation. Sun State cannot decide whether any remedy is permitted, supported by the facts, compatible with the prior order, or strategically appropriate.

6. Service, hearing, and related documents

The official instructions discuss giving a copy of the motion to the other party and warn that service and notice can be technically complex. They direct readers to local court staff for the procedure to schedule a hearing and identify several possible hearing-notice forms, depending on the proceeding.

Do not treat completion of the PDF as completion of service, filing, or hearing preparation. Sun State does not select a service method, calculate a deadline, determine whether notice is adequate, schedule a hearing, choose a hearing notice, file documents, or advise what evidence or witnesses to present.

7. Certificate, oath, notarization, and contact details

The final page contains a certificate describing how a copy was provided, recipient information, the moving party's contact information, a signature under oath, and notarization or deputy-clerk fields. Complete the certificate only to reflect service that actually occurred and follow the official instructions and current court rules.

Sun State leaves the service date and method, signing date, signature, notarization, identification, and nonlawyer-assistance section blank for manual completion. Review the entire motion before signing it under oath.

Complete the motion already selected

The official blank PDF is free. Sun State's optional $39 self-service software transfers customer-supplied entries into its configured Form 12.960 and delivers editable, print, and unchanged blank PDFs with the official instructions. It does not assess the motion, select relief, prepare service, file it, or review it for legal sufficiency.

Official information and independent help