Make Sure You Understand The Automatic Temporary Injunction

What is the Automatic Temporary Injunction?

When a new divorce Petition is filed in Oklahoma, a Summons is issued. Attached to the Summons is the Automatic Temporary Injunction. The Automatic Temporary Injunction (ATI) contains court orders that automatically take effect the moment a divorce case is filed. It is important to understand what you can and can’t do because a violation of the ATI can land you in contempt. The relevant statute is 43 O.S. § 110.

List of Prohibited Actions:

1.    Molesting or disturbing the peace of the other party or the child(ren) of the marriage.

      2.  Disrupting or withdrawing any child(ren) of this marriage from an educational facility, program, or day-care where the child(ren) historically have been enrolled.

      3.  Hiding or secreting any child(ren) of this marriage from the other party.

      4.  Removing any child(ren) of this marriage beyond the jurisdiction of the State of Oklahoma, acting directly or in concert with others, except for vacations of two (2) weeks or less duration, without the prior written consent of the other party, which shall not be unreasonably withheld.

      5.  Selling, mortgaging, encumbering, transferring, loaning, giving away, concealing or in any way disposing of, without the written consent of the other party or an order of the Court, any marital property, except:

(A)  in the usual course of operating a business;

(B)  for the purpose of retaining an attorney for the case; or

(C)  for the necessities of life.

Each party shall notify the other party of any proposed other expenditures and shall account to the court for all such expenditures made after this injunction went into effect.

      6.  Intentionally or knowingly damaging or destroying the tangible property of the parties, or either of them, including, but not limited to, any electronically stored materials, electronic communications, social network data, financial records, and document that represents or embodies anything of value.

      7.  Making a withdrawal for any purpose from any retirement, profit-sharing, pension, death, or other employee benefit plan or employee savings plan or from any individual retirement account or Keogh account.

      8.  Withdrawing or borrowing in any manner all or any part of the cash surrender value of life insurance policies on either party or their child(ren).

      9.  Changing or in any manner altering the beneficiary designation on any life insurance policies of either party or any of their children.

      10. Canceling, altering, or in any manner affecting any casualty, automobile, homeowners’, or health insurance policies insuring the parties’ property or persons.

      11. Opening or diverting mail addressed to the other party.

      12. Signing or endorsing the other party’s name on any negotiable instrument, check, or draft, such as tax refunds, insurance payments, and dividends, or attempting to negotiate any negotiable instruments payable to either party without the personal signature of the other party. 

Insurance

Each party is ordered to maintain and keep in force all presently existing health, property, vehicle, homeowners’, life and other insurance which you are presently carrying on any member of this family unit, or property or vehicle, and to cooperate as necessary in the filing and processing of claims.  Any employer provided health insurance currently in existence shall remain in full force and effect for all family members.

Financial Disclosures

Unless otherwise agreed upon in writing, each party is ordered to deliver to the other party within thirty (30) days from the earlier of either the date of service of the summons or the filing of an initial pleading by the respondent, the following documents:

(1)  the federal and state income tax returns of each party for the past two (2) years and any nonpublic, limited partnership and privately held corporate returns for any entity in which either party has an interest, together with all supporting documentation for the tax returns, including but not limited to W-2 forms, 1099 forms, K-1 forms, Schedule C and Schedule E. If a return is not completed at the time of disclosure, the parties shall provide the documents necessary to prepare the tax return of the party, to include W-2 forms, 1099 forms, K-1 forms, copies of extension requests and estimated tax payments,

(2)  two (2) months of the most recent pay stubs from each employer for whom the party worked,

(3)  statements for the past six (6) months for all bank accounts held in the name of either party individually or jointly, or in the name of another person for the benefit of either party, or held by either party for the benefit of the minor child or children of the parties,

(4)  documentation regarding the cost and nature of available health insurance coverage for the benefit of either party or the minor child or children of the parties,

(5)  documentation regarding the cost and nature of employment or educationally related child care expenses incurred for the benefit of the minor child or children of the parties, and

(6)  documentation regarding all debts in the name of either party individually or jointly, showing the most recent balance due and payment terms.

If either party is not in possession of a document required pursuant to subparagraph h of paragraph 1 of this subsection or has not been able to obtain the document in a timely fashion, the party shall state in verified writing, under the penalty of perjury, the specific document which is not available, the reasons the document is not available, and what efforts have been made to obtain the document. As more information becomes available, there is a continuing duty to supplement the disclosures.

Waiver

The provision of the ATI can be waived by agreement, but I usually do not recommend that because there are some important protections. Make sure you review the terms of the ATI periodically so it remains fresh in your mind. If you are ever unsure about something, always contact me BEFORE making any decision or taking action. This is one of those things where an ounce of prevention is worth more than a pound of cure.

Follow the Oklahoma Fathers’ Divorce and Custody Blog to receive notice of new posts.

Author:

Pete D. Louden
Attorney at Law
Louden Law, PLLC
405-919-8355
petelouden@normanlaw.com
www.normanlaw.com
Facebook

Copyright 2023 Pete D. Louden All Rights Reserved

Pete D. Louden is a family law attorney in Norman, Oklahoma. Since 1998 he has represented Oklahoma families in divorce, child custody, and child support matters with extensive experience in settlement negotiations, mediations, and complex divorce and custody trials.

Copyright 2021. Pete D. Louden. All Rights Reserved