Tag Archives: contempt

Hattiesburg’s Most Wanted

06/30/2025 BowTieLawyer 1 Comment

Attorney, Corey Ferraez is being pursued by law enforcement and has a warrant for his arrest for Civil Contempt. This is circulating the blogosphere in Hattiesburg and the Jackson area.

This all stemmed from a wrongful death matter and the corresponding estate matter. See Weatherford, Stephen Ray “Fuzzy” 56CH1:22-pr-00021-SM

Ferraez was the attorney for the estate and settled the wrongful death claim for $450,000.00. These sums were to be held in trust until the Court approved the settlement, attorney fees, disbursement and liens were handled.

Delays for various reasons caused the matter to drag on. Eventually the Court set a hearing and required Ferraez to attend. He did not.

Thereafter, the Court entered a Show Cause Order requiring Ferraez to attend, explain why he should not be held in contempt and to tender all of the $450,000.00 into the registry of the Court.

Ferraez did not attend this hearing and did not pay any sums by the date of the hearing.

In a surprising turn of events however, he did file a response with the Court, indicated he had been ill, and eventually tendered about $215,000.00 of the $450,000.00, claiming the difference in the value was due to attorneys fees and liens (or loans) that the client took out against the settlement. This was surprising because the attorney filed a response with the Court despite not appearing.

It also came to light that he had previously written a $25,000.00 check to the client that bounced for insufficient funds.

Regardless of anything else, this does not end well for Mr. Ferraez.

He will have to answer to the Court for the handling of the proceeds, the Mississippi Bar about concerns of unethical conduct and very likely criminal ramifications…Mr. Ferraez should turn himself in as time is not on his side.

*In criminal courts a defendant enjoys a presumption of innocence. Civil Courts have a differing standard. Refusal to appear, answer, cooperate can and will be used against you.

All lawyers that handle “unearned fees” are required to have Trust accounts with banks. These Trust account records are relatively easy to obtain and determine when monies came in, when they went out, where they went and what is left, if anything…

Matthew Thompson is a family law/civil law attorney in Mississippi and acknowledges unethical and illegal conduct when it needs to be; whether it’s a Judge, a party or a lawyer.

Child Custody, Child Support, Visitation

How Do I Recover Back CHild Support?

03/26/2019 BowTieLawyer Leave a comment

Below is a short clip from my most recent appearance on Law Call with Rocky Wilkins of Morgan & Morgan. The caller wanted to know about recovering unpaid child support and her facts allowed for a few more opportunities to educate the public on Mississippi Law.

Matthew Thompson is a Child Custody and Child Support Lawyer in Mississippi and reminds you that in Family Law, you can never go wrong if you do what is Right!

(601)850-8000 Matthew@bowtielawyer.ms

Child Custody, Child Support, Crime, General Legal, Opinion

Prison for NOT Paying Child Support? YES

02/14/2017 BowTieLawyer Leave a comment

You have seen the recent news about a local man being arrested and jailed for his refusal to pay Court Ordered Child Support. Now, this is only done after one is initially ordered to pay, doesn’t pay, then is formally requested to pay, given notice, given an opportunity to pay or prove their inability to pay with specificity, and then and only then, jailed as a last resort. In these circumstances, knowing the layers of review, the opportunities afforded by the Court and the fact that everyone had a lawyer (actually multiple lawyers), my sympathy is nil. This is Contempt of Court and ultimately the wrong-doer has the keys to the jail. All you have to do is pay what you owe and you are free to go.

However, if you still don’t pay, your troubles can multiply.

TITLE 97. CRIMES
CHAPTER 5. OFFENSES AFFECTING CHILDREN
Miss. Code Ann. § 97-5-3 (2016)
§ 97-5-3. Desertion or nonsupport of child under age eighteen

Any parent who shall desert or wilfully neglect or refuse to provide for the support and maintenance of his or her…children…while said…children are under the age of eighteen (18) years shall be guilty of a felony and, on conviction thereof, shall be punished for a first offense by a fine of not less than One Hundred Dollars ($ 100.00) nor more than Five Hundred Dollars ($ 500.00), or by commitment to the custody of the Department of Corrections not more than five (5) years, or both; and for a second or subsequent offense, by a fine of not less than One Thousand Dollars ($ 1,000.00) nor more than Ten Thousand Dollars ($ 10,000.00), or by commitment to the custody of the Department of Corrections not less than two (2) years nor more than five (5) years, or both, in the discretion of the court.

Prison for not paying child support? Yes. It’s the law.

Matthew Thompson is a Child Custody and Child Support Attorney in Mississippi.

Child Custody, Divorce, General Legal, humor, Opinion, Visitation

5 Ways NOT to introduce your new BF/GF to the Kids…

03/02/2016 BowTieLawyer Leave a comment

It’s going to happen at some point. You will get to (or have to) introduce your new soulmate to the children. But, do you have to make it awkward?

awkward-5-660

These are the TOP 5 ways NOT to introduce your new beauty or beau.

5. At the Traditional Family Holiday Dinner. It should preferably be on an occasion prior to this and more casual.

4. At the pick-up/drop-off exchange. Sure, at some point you will all be a big, happy, blended family, but a slower introduction is usually better.

3. On an Overnight Trip. Could be contempt, could make for a long weekend.

2. The day the Divorce is final. This is too soon.

1. At the Wedding. It needs to be sooner, if possible.

Matthew Thompson is a Child Custody attorney in Mississippi and next up will be 5 ways to positively introduce that new soulmate…

Follow the blog: BowTieLawyer Visit the website: Thompson Law Firm

You may also contact Matthew with your family law case at (601) 850-8000 or Matthew@BowTieLawyer.ms

alienation, Child Custody, Divorce, Visitation

New Year, Same Bad Conduct.

01/29/2016 BowTieLawyer Leave a comment

Happy New Year? Rubbish…

gallery-thumbnails — vectorolie /freedigitalphotos.net

Oftentimes we think a new year is a new beginning, or at least it should be. But, alas, people will constantly disappoint you…

More Bad Parenting:

Refusing to allow the other parent to SPEAK to the child. Literally interfering with phone calls, turning the phone off and lying about not knowing why they “don’t ever call.”

Calling when you know they are unavailable. Well, at least you called, right? We know when they are at work, or driving through the dead zone between here and Mobile. Call then, don’t leave a message.

Waiting until you find out the plans the other parent made and then making your own to conflict with them being able to pick-up or drop-off and still keep their plans. How clever.

The Other parent finding out the child is on an out-of-town trip with another family after the child has left. Pay no attention to Joint Legal custody requirements. It’s all about your convenience. It was a free trip. Last minute even. Who has the time to inform the other parent?

Not giving them gifts from the other parent. They took the time, effort and thought to provide a present and you forgot it in the trunk and, well, that’s not your problem…

Not listing the Other parent on school and medical forms. That will show them. They are not a “real” parent.

Read about Terrible parenting here, being Terrible in general here and Rotten parenting here.

Matthew Thompson is a Child Custody attorney and warns that Judge’s don’t appreciate this garbage.

Follow the blog: #BowTieLawyer #Thompson Law Firm. You may also contact Matthew with your family law case, question or concern at (601) 850- 8000 or Matthew@bowtielawyer.ms

Child Support, Divorce, General Legal, Opinion

The #1 Way to Make Things Better? STOP making the same bad decisions…

12/08/2015 BowTieLawyer Leave a comment

Albert Einstein is credited with saying that Insanity is “doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.”

Whether he said it or not, the premise holds true in family law. If you keep making the same bad decisions you will continue to get the same bad results.

Illegal substance use or alcohol abuse, not paying your Court-Ordered obligations, and ignoring legal proceedings all lead to more trouble, more expenses and bad results.

So what can you do? STOP.

Stop using illegal drugs. Stop drinking alcohol. Get help. It’s out there and worth it. Start paying your Court-Ordered support. At least pay something. Stop ignoring your lawyer. Stop ignoring the legal process. Judges love a comeback story.

Matthew Thompson is a Mississippi Divorce Attorney and advises you to stop making bad decisions.

Follow the blog:#BowTieLawyer Visit the website: #Thompson Law Firm You may also contact Matthew with your family law matter or question at (601) 850-8000 or Matthew@bowtielawyer.ms

Child Support, Modifications, Visitation

Changing Your Papers WITHOUT the Court; Danger, danger, danger

09/16/2015 BowTieLawyer 1 Comment

Mom and Dad get a divorce. Things go okay. A few years later they decide we can make some changes. Dad gets a little more time, Mom “agrees” to a little less money…

The Court process takes too long. Attorneys cost too much. Plus, Mom and Dad agreed! They switch to a week-on, week-off custody arrangement. The kids are older, it works. Dad starts paying support directly for the benefit of the kids. He pays for the child’s car and insurance, and picks up health insurance which was previously mom’s responsibility. Dad does not pay mom directly. It’s about the same money, probably. What could go wrong?

Court Orders may only be modified by other Court Orders. Once an Order is issued and in place the parties are bound to follow it. This is so ironclad that the Court has a mechanism in place to enforce its Orders that can result in the breaching party having to pay fines and/or go to jail. This process is called Contempt. If you are not following the Order in your case, you are subject to a Contempt Petition being filed by the other party.

But if we agreed what’s the big deal? The big deal is that the new Agreement is not worth the paper it’s not written on, if not approved by the Judge.

At some point in the future, and it never fails, Mom and Dad have a falling out, again. Mom goes to an attorney and tells him that Dad has not paid child support in two years. Mom sues Dad for Contempt for all of the “back” support and then “un-agrees” to the custody change and goes back to an every other weekend schedule for visitation. Dad counter sues for a custody modification seeking custody now due to mom’s change and contempt over the health insurance issue. The only sure thing now is that each may well be in contempt and the Court is left to sort it out.

If you modify your Order/Agreement do it in writing, signed and approved by the Court. It’s the only way to guaranty that the Agreement is enforceable and for protection from being subject to Contempt for not doing what was in the prior Order.

Matthew Thompson is a Family Law Attorney in Mississippi that handles Modification of Custody and Contempt actions for failure to pay child support and reminds you to pay your support early, often and keep good records!

Follow the blog: BowTieLawyer

Visit the website: Thompson Law Firm

You may also contact Matthew with your family law case, question or concern at:

(601) 850-8000 or Matthew@bowtielawyer.ms

Divorce, General Legal

Getting STUNG in Court!

11/03/2014 BowTieLawyer Leave a comment

Seldom in Court does everything go in one party’s favor, but there are times where the party-in-the-wrong get’s STUNG by the Court.

How do you know if you got Stung in Court? Oh, you know.

You may have been dressed down by the Judge.
He may have stated that your conduct was petty or silly.
A finding that your lawsuit was frivolous.
Perhaps your claim was dismissed in its entirety.
When the other side is preparing the Order and it was not an “Agreed” judgment, that too can be a sign of a win or loss.
If you were held in contempt.

But there is also another sign of getting Stung. Are you paying your opponent’s attorneys fees?