A. JUDGMENT REQUIRING PERFORMANCE CONSIDERED EQUIVALENT THERETO A judgment requiring a party to make a conveyance, transfer, release, acquittance, or other like act within a period therein specified shall, if such party does not comply with the judgment, be deemed to be equivalent thereto.
Rule 78.Order or Judgment for Specific Acts
Current through June 1, 2026 · Last verified July 11, 2026
In one sentenceRule 78 lets a court treat a required conveyance, transfer, or release as done even when the party ordered to sign it refuses, and lets the court punish as contempt a party’s refusal to perform other court-ordered acts.
Full Text of Rule 78
B. ENFORCEMENT; CONTEMPT The court or judge thereof may enforce an order or judgment directing a party to perform a specific act by punishing the party refusing or neglecting to comply therewith, as for a contempt as provided in ORS 33.015 through 33.155.
C. APPLICATION Section B of this rule does not apply to an order or judgment for the payment of money, except orders and judgments for the payment of sums ordered pursuant to ORS 107.095 and 107.105 (1)(i), and money for support, maintenance, nurture, education, or attorney fees, in:
(1) Actions for dissolution or annulment of marriage or separation from bed and board.
(2) Proceedings upon support orders entered under ORS chapter 108, 109 or 110, or under ORS 25.501 to 25.556, 419B.400 [or 419C.590].
Amendment History
[CCP 12/13/80; 1985 c.610 § 1; § C amended by CCP 12/13/86; § B amended by 1991 c.724 § 31 ; § D repealed by 1991 c.724 § 32 ; § C(2) amended by 1993 c.33 § 365 11/4/93; § C amended by 1995 c.608 § 41 9/9/95; § C amended by 2003 c.14 § 14 eff. 1/1/04; § C amended by 2007 c.71 § 4 , eff. 1/1/08; § C amended by 2021 c.97, § 3 , eff. 1/1/22 and by c.597, § 76, eff. 9/25/21]
Plain-English Summary
Rule 78 addresses judgments that order a party to do something rather than pay money — transfer property, sign a release, or perform some other specific act. If the court sets a deadline for that act and the party doesn’t comply, the judgment itself stands in for the act: the conveyance or release is treated as done even though the party never carried it out. Beyond that legal fiction, the court can also enforce the order by holding the noncompliant party in contempt under Oregon’s contempt statutes.
The contempt option doesn’t reach orders to pay money, with one family-law exception: it’s available for spousal or child support, maintenance, education, or attorney-fee obligations ordered in a divorce, annulment, or separation case, or in support proceedings under the state’s support-order statutes.
Frequently Asked Questions
If a party refuses to sign a transfer or release the judgment orders, does the transfer still happen?
Yes. A judgment requiring a party to make a conveyance, transfer, release, or similar act within a specified period is treated as accomplishing that act if the party doesn’t comply, even without the party’s signature or cooperation.
Can someone be held in contempt for refusing to comply with a court order to perform an act?
Yes. The court can enforce an order or judgment directing a party to perform a specific act by punishing a party who refuses or neglects to comply as for contempt.
Can a party be held in contempt for failing to pay a money judgment?
Generally no — the contempt remedy in this rule doesn’t reach orders to pay money. The one exception is family-law obligations: support, maintenance, education, and attorney-fee awards ordered in a divorce, annulment, or separation case, or in related support proceedings, can still be enforced through contempt.
Does this rule cover judgments requiring someone to hand over property?
It covers judgments requiring a conveyance, transfer, release, acquittance, or similar act — the kind of order that transfers rights or interests through a document or formal step, rather than an order to pay money.
Source & verification. The rule text is reproduced verbatim from the
official Oregon Rules of Civil Procedure (ORCP 78). Prescribed by the Council on Court Procedures (ORS 1.735), subject to amendment, repeal, or supplementation by the Oregon Legislative Assembly. The plain-English summary is original and written by us. Last verified July 11, 2026. ·
Official source
Also known as: court order to perform an act oregoncontempt for violating a judgment oregonspecific performance enforcement oregonorder for conveyance or transfer oregonenforcing a judgment for a specific act oregon