Dockets, filings, and court records
Order to Show Cause
An order to show cause directs a party to explain, by a deadline, why the court should not take a specific action.
It flips the usual burden. Instead of someone filing a motion asking for relief, the judge announces a tentative outcome and requires the party to justify a different one. Courts use it for missed deadlines, apparent jurisdictional defects, failure to serve a defendant, and possible sanctions.
Ignoring one is expensive. Because the order already states what will happen absent a response, silence usually produces exactly that result, whether dismissal, default, or a sanction.
It is also used to launch contempt proceedings. When a party has violated an existing order, the court can require them to appear and explain why they should not be held in contempt, which is a far more serious posture than an ordinary motion.
How it appears on a docket
ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE why this action should not be dismissed for failure to prosecute. Plaintiff shall respond in writing by 12/15/2025.
Related terms
- Order — An order is a written direction from the judge deciding something in the case, from a one-line scheduling change to a ruling that ends the lawsuit.
- Sanctions — Sanctions are penalties a court imposes on a party or lawyer for filing something baseless, violating an order, or abusing the litigation process.
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