Getting Your Attorney Fees in Family Law Matters in Lehi (Updated)
One of the most frustrating parts of a family law case is the cost of enforcing rights that should already be protected by court order. Whether the issue involves divorce, child custody, parent-time, child support, alimony, property division, or enforcement of a decree, attorney fees can become a major concern for families in Lehi and throughout Utah County.
Many clients assume that each party must always pay their own attorney fees. That is not always correct. Utah law allows attorney fees in several family law situations, including divorce and custody litigation, enforcement of existing court orders, bad-faith litigation, and discovery violations.
At Rifleman Law & Mediation’s Lehi divorce and child custody page, we help clients evaluate whether attorney fees may be available and how those requests should be presented to the court.
Utah Code § 81-1-203: Attorney Fees in Domestic Relations Cases
The primary attorney fee statute in Utah family law cases is Utah Code § 81-1-203. This statute applies to domestic relations cases, including divorce, custody, parent-time, child support, alimony, protective order-related proceedings, and division of property.
Under Utah Code § 81-1-203(1), the court may order one party to pay the attorney fees, costs, and witness fees of the other party to enable that party to prosecute or defend the case. This is the traditional attorney fee provision used in divorce and custody litigation.
In practical terms, this means that if one spouse or parent has substantially greater access to financial resources, the court may consider whether the other party needs assistance with attorney fees in order to participate meaningfully in the case.
Need-Based Attorney Fees in Divorce and Custody Cases
In an initial divorce or custody case, attorney fees are often analyzed based on financial need, ability to pay, and reasonableness of the fees requested. This type of request may arise when one spouse earns significantly more than the other, controls the marital finances, owns a business, or has access to resources that the other spouse cannot access.
These attorney fee requests are common in contested divorce, child custody disputes, child support litigation, alimony disputes, property division cases, and temporary order proceedings. The purpose is not necessarily to punish either party. The purpose is to ensure that both sides have a fair opportunity to present their case.
For more information about divorce and custody litigation in Lehi, visit our Lehi divorce lawyer and child custody attorney page.
Enforcement of Court Orders Is Different
Attorney fees in enforcement cases are different from ordinary need-based attorney fee requests. Once a court enters an order, the parties are expected to follow it. A divorce decree, custody order, parent-time order, child support order, alimony order, or property division order is not optional.
When one party violates an existing order, the other party may be forced to return to court to seek enforcement. Common enforcement issues include denied parent-time, failure to follow custody orders, unpaid child support, unpaid alimony, refusal to transfer property, failure to divide retirement accounts, failure to refinance debt, and violations of a divorce decree.
Under Utah Code § 81-1-203(2), in an action to enforce an order of custody, parent-time, child support, alimony, or division of property in a domestic case, the court may award attorney fees and costs if the party substantially prevailed on the claim or defense.
This provision is important because a party should not automatically bear the full cost of forcing the other party to comply with an order that already exists.
For more information about enforcement remedies, visit our Lehi divorce enforcement lawyer page.
Enforcement Attorney Fees Are Not the Same as Need-Based Fees
The most important distinction is that enforcement-based attorney fees are not analyzed the same way as traditional need-based attorney fees.
Before the change, Utah Code § 81-1-203(2) said the court “may award” fees in enforcement actions if the party “substantially prevailed.” The 2026 amendment changed that to “shall award reasonable attorney fees and costs” when the party “prevailed” on the claim or defense. Enforcement attorney fees are no longer merely discretionary in the same way. In actions to enforce custody, parent-time, child support, alimony, or property division orders, Utah Code § 81-1-203 now directs the court to award reasonable attorney fees and costs to the prevailing party, subject to the statute’s limited exceptions.
In a divorce or custody case under Utah Code § 81-1-203(1), courts generally consider financial need, ability to pay, and the reasonableness of the fees requested.
In an enforcement action under Utah Code § 81-1-203(2), the focus shifts. The central issues are whether a valid order existed, whether enforcement became necessary, and whether the moving party substantially prevailed.
This means the party seeking enforcement is not required to prove the same type of financial need that would ordinarily be required in a traditional divorce or custody fee request. The enforcement provision is tied to compliance with an existing court order.
The statute still gives the court discretion in appropriate circumstances. The court may award no fees or limited fees if the court finds that a party is indigent or otherwise places the reason for limiting fees on the record. But the enforcement fee analysis is not the same as the need-based analysis used in the original divorce or custody case.
Attorney Fees for Parent-Time Violations in Lehi
Parent-time violations are one of the most common reasons a parent may need to seek enforcement. A parent may deny weekend parent-time, interfere with holidays, refuse summer parent-time, change exchange locations, fail to produce the children, or repeatedly create conflict around the court-ordered schedule.
When parent-time is denied, the affected parent may seek enforcement of the custody and parent-time order. Attorney fees may also be requested under Utah Code § 81-1-203 if the parent substantially prevails in the enforcement action.
Depending on the facts, the court may also consider make-up parent-time, transportation expenses, child-care costs, lost wages, counseling-related remedies, and other appropriate relief.
For more information about custody and parent-time issues, visit our Lehi child custody lawyer page and our article on child custody and parenting plans in Lehi.
Attorney Fees for Enforcement of Divorce Decrees in Lehi
Enforcement issues are not limited to custody and parent-time. Former spouses frequently return to court because a divorce decree has not been followed.
Common decree enforcement issues include failure to pay alimony, failure to pay child support, refusal to transfer real property, failure to divide retirement accounts, failure to refinance debt, refusal to sell property, or failure to comply with provisions of a settlement agreement incorporated into the decree.
Utah Code § 81-1-203(2) specifically includes enforcement of orders involving custody, parent-time, child support, alimony, and division of property. That means attorney fees may become a significant remedy when a former spouse refuses to comply with the decree.
If you are dealing with violations of a decree, visit our Lehi divorce enforcement lawyer page.
Attorney Fees in Modification Cases
Attorney fees may also become relevant in modification cases. After a divorce or custody order is entered, a party may seek to modify custody, parent-time, child support, or alimony based on changed circumstances.
Some modification requests are legitimate and necessary. Others are filed without sufficient factual or legal support. In appropriate cases, a party may request attorney fees where modification litigation is pursued in bad faith, lacks merit, or is being used to harass the other party.
For more information about post-decree changes, visit our Lehi divorce modification lawyer page.
Bad Faith Litigation and Utah Code § 78B-5-825
Attorney fees may also be available when a party engages in frivolous or abusive litigation conduct. Utah Code § 78B-5-825 allows a court to award attorney fees to a prevailing party in a civil action if the court determines that the action or defense was without merit and not brought or asserted in good faith.
In family law cases, this issue may arise where a party files unsupported claims, brings repeated meritless motions, uses litigation to harass the other party, or takes positions that have no reasonable basis in law or fact.
Courts do not award attorney fees simply because a case is emotional or contentious. Family law disputes are often difficult. But when conduct crosses the line into bad faith, attorney fees may become part of the remedy.
Discovery Violations and Rule 37 Attorney Fees
Attorney fees may also be awarded when a party fails to comply with discovery obligations. Rule 37 of the Utah Rules of Civil Procedure allows courts to address discovery disputes, discovery abuse, and failures to provide required information.
In family law cases, discovery violations may involve failure to provide financial documents, refusal to answer discovery, failure to disclose evidence, failure to provide records, or failure to comply with a court order compelling discovery.
When discovery misconduct causes the other party to incur unnecessary attorney fees, the court may award fees and impose other appropriate remedies. In serious cases, discovery violations may also affect what evidence a party is allowed to present.
Documentation Is Critical When Requesting Attorney Fees
A request for attorney fees must be supported. It is not enough to simply ask the judge to make the other party pay. The request should identify the legal basis for the award, explain why fees are justified, and provide documentation showing the work performed, the hourly rate, the time spent, and why the fees are reasonable.
In an enforcement case, the evidence should clearly identify the order, the violation, the efforts to obtain compliance, and the fees incurred because enforcement became necessary.
In a need-based fee request, the evidence may include financial declarations, income information, monthly expenses, debts, assets, and documentation showing why one party needs assistance and why the other party has the ability to contribute.
Why Attorney Fees Matter for Lehi Families
Attorney fees matter because court orders must mean something. If one party can repeatedly violate parent-time, ignore support obligations, refuse to divide property, or disregard a decree without consequence, the court order loses practical force.
Utah law provides attorney fee remedies so that, in appropriate cases, the burden of enforcement does not fall entirely on the party who was trying to follow the order.
For Lehi families, this can be particularly important in high-conflict custody cases, post-divorce enforcement disputes, and cases where one party is using delay or noncompliance as leverage.
Speak With a Lehi Family Law Attorney About Attorney Fees
If you are dealing with divorce, child custody, denied parent-time, unpaid child support, unpaid alimony, property division problems, decree violations, or post-decree modification issues, attorney fees may be an important part of your case strategy.
Rifleman Law & Mediation represents clients in Lehi, Saratoga Springs, Eagle Mountain, American Fork, Pleasant Grove, and throughout Utah County in divorce, custody, enforcement, modification, mediation, and related family law matters.
To learn more, visit our Lehi family law page, our Lehi enforcement page, or our Lehi modification page.
