Rule 13.Bench warrants

Rule 13 covers the family court bench warrant from creation to service.

Procedure

Subject to the approval of the Chief Justice, the Office of Court Administration establishes the procedures for processing and maintaining bench warrants. The rule itself sets no steps — it says who sets them.

Form and signature

Bench warrants shall be in the form prescribed by the Supreme Court, and require either the signature of the trial judge or the signature of the respective clerk of court at the direction of the trial judge.

The second alternative is the practical one. A clerk may sign, but only on the judge's direction — so the decision remains judicial while the paperwork does not have to wait for the judge to be at the courthouse.

Service is a continuing duty

Subsection (c) is the substantive heart of the rule. It is the continuing duty of the sheriff, and of other appropriate law enforcement agencies in the county, to promptly serve bench warrants and to make periodic reports to the court concerning the status of unserved warrants.

Two things follow. The duty does not lapse if the first attempt fails — it continues. And the court is meant to know what remains outstanding, because unserved warrants must be reported back periodically rather than sitting unremarked in a drawer.

Where a bench warrant fits

Family court bench warrants most often follow a contempt proceeding. Rule 14 governs the rule to show cause that begins one; Rule 24 has the clerk issue a rule to show cause automatically when a support account falls into arrears; and Rule 27 does the same for denied visitation.