A no contest plea is similar to a guilty plea. When defendants plead no contest, they are technically admitting that they are guilty of the crime being charged. And they face the same jail or prison sentence that they would if they pleaded guilty. 3
As with a guilty plea, a judge in a no contest case (in most jurisdictions) must:
ensure that the accused completely understands the nature and consequences of the plea,
inform the defendant that a no contest plea will be considered the same as a guilty plea, and
ensure that the defendant is entering the plea knowingly and voluntarily (as opposed to being coerced or misled into doing so).4
A judge must also inform a defendant that by pleading no contest, he/she is waiving the same rights listed above.
The main difference with a no contest plea and a guilty plea involves civil court proceedings.
When a defendant pleads no contest in a misdemeanor case, that plea cannot be used against him/her as an admission of guilt if a civil lawsuit arises out of the same conduct from which the criminal prosecution was based. So if the victim in a criminal case sues the defendant, he/she would need to prove the defendant’s liability by a preponderance of the evidence without using the defendant’s earlier “no contest” plea as evidence.
However, in felony cases in most jurisdictions, a no contest plea has the exact same effect as a guilty plea and can be used as an admission of guilt in any other legal proceeding, including civil cases.
Note that defendants do not always have the option of pleading no contest instead of pleading guilty. Sometimes prosecutors insist that the defendant plead guilty as part of a plea bargain. And judges do not always have to accept no contest pleas.