{"data":{"id":"us-wa/rcw-7.21.010","jurisdiction":"us-wa","citation":"RCW 7.21.010","heading":"Definitions.","body":"The definitions in this section apply throughout this chapter:\n(1) \"Contempt of court\" means intentional:\n(a) Disorderly, contemptuous, or insolent behavior toward the judge while holding the court, tending to impair its authority, or to interrupt the due course of a trial or other judicial proceedings;\n(b) Disobedience of any lawful judgment, decree, order, or process of the court;\n(c) Refusal as a witness to appear, be sworn, or, without lawful authority, to answer a question; or\n(d) Refusal, without lawful authority, to produce a record, document, or other object.\n(2) \"Punitive sanction\" means a sanction imposed to punish a past contempt of court for the purpose of upholding the authority of the court.\n(3) \"Remedial sanction\" means a sanction imposed for the purpose of coercing performance when the contempt consists of the omission or refusal to perform an act that is yet in the person's power to perform.","path":["Title 7","Chapter 7.21"],"source_url":"https://app.leg.wa.gov/rcw/default.aspx?cite=7.21.010","current_through":"July 15, 2026","vintage":"","retrieved_at":"2026-09-06T00:32:03Z","sha256":"bf256fc5dc4c072089d699eeda5951fb3c9411d0ff2eb5215454d5876c0c37e2","source_id":"us-wa","stale":false,"prev":"us-wa/rcw-7.16.360","next":"us-wa/rcw-7.21.020"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}