§ 491.160.Failure to Appear By Person Served By Sheriff, Marshal Or Court Appointed Person; Improper Service
Title 6.5. Attachment · Chapter 11. Attaching Plaintiff's Miscellaneous Remedies · Article 1. Examination of Third Person · Last amended 2007 · Last verified July 28, 2026
In one sentenceSection 491.160 lets a court arrest or hold in contempt a person who was properly served with an examination order and fails to appear, awards the plaintiff attorney's fees if the failure was without good cause, and makes it a misdemeanor to willfully misuse improper service to trigger such an arrest.
(a)If an order requiring a person to appear for an examination was served by a sheriff, marshal, a person specially appointed by the court in the order, or a registered process server, and the person fails to appear:
(1)The court may do either of the following:
(A)Pursuant to a warrant, have the person brought before the court to answer for the failure to appear and may punish the person for contempt.
(B)Issue a warrant for the arrest of the person who failed to appear as required by the court order, pursuant to Section 1993.
(2)If the person's failure to appear is without good cause, the plaintiff shall be awarded reasonable attorney's fees incurred in the examination proceeding.
(b)A person who willfully makes an improper service of an order for an examination which subsequently results in the arrest pursuant to subdivision (a) of the person who fails to appear is guilty of a misdemeanor.
Plain-English Summary
An examination order backed by no enforcement mechanism would be easy to ignore, so § 491.160(a) gives the court two options when a properly served person -- served by a sheriff, marshal, court-appointed person, or registered process server -- fails to appear. The court can bring the person in under a warrant to answer for the failure and punish them for contempt, or issue an arrest warrant under § 1993.
If the failure to appear was without good cause, subdivision (a)(2) requires the plaintiff to be awarded reasonable attorney's fees incurred in the examination proceeding -- putting the cost of the no-show back on the person who skipped it.
Subdivision (b) guards against abuse of this arrest power in the other direction: someone who willfully makes improper service of an examination order, and that improper service later leads to the served person's arrest, is guilty of a misdemeanor.
Frequently Asked Questions
What happens if a person served with an examination order just doesn't show up?
Section 491.160(a) lets the court bring the person in under a warrant to answer and punish them for contempt, or issue an arrest warrant under § 1993.
Can the plaintiff recover attorney's fees if the person fails to appear?
Yes, if there was no good cause for the failure. Section 491.160(a)(2) requires the plaintiff to be awarded reasonable attorney's fees for the examination proceeding in that situation.
Is there a penalty for improperly serving an examination order?
Yes. Section 491.160(b) makes it a misdemeanor to willfully make improper service of an examination order that later results in the served person's arrest.
Amendment History
Amended by Stats 2006 ch 277 (AB 2369),s 1, eff. 1/1/2007.
Source & verification. Section text is reproduced verbatim from
the Deering's California Codes Annotated / vLex. Enacted by the California Legislature.
Last verified July 28, 2026.
· Official source
Also known as:failure to appear examination attachment californiaarrest warrant debtor examinationimproper service examination order misdemeanor