Restraining Order

ARE YOU IN DANGER NOW?

IF YOU NEED HELP RIGHT NOW,

CALL “911.”

Civil Harrassment Restraining Order:

Civil harassment is abuse, threats of abuse, stalking, sexual assault, or serious harassment by someone you have not dated and do not have a close relationship with.

Domestic Violence Restraining Order:

Domestic Violence is abuse, threats of abuse, violence, sexual assault, or serious harassment by someone you have dated, your relative, or someone you have a close relationship with.

Or law office can help you with both civil harassment restraining orders and domestic violence restraining orders.

Civil harassment restraining order :

Civil harassment restraining order is a court order that helps protect people from violence, stalking, serious harassment, or credible threats of violence.

You can ask for a civil harassment restraining order if:

  1. A person has abused (or threatened to abuse), sexually assaulted, stalked, or seriously harassed you, and
  2. You are scared or seriously annoyed or harrassed.

  The person you want to restrain can be:

  1. A neighbor,
  2. A roommate (as long as you never dated),
  3. A friend,
  4. A family member more than 2 degrees removed, like an aunt or uncle, a niece or nephew, cousins, and more distant relatives, or
  5. Other people you are not closely related to.

If you experience harassment from your spouse/partner or former spouse/partner, someone you dated at any point, or a close relative (parent, child, brother, sister, grandmother, grandfather, in-law) we can recommend a family lawyer who can help you file a domestic violence complaint.

If you are 65 or older or a dependent adult, you can file a civil harassment restraining order against someone you are not close to, but you can also file an elder or dependent adult abuse restraining order, which may be better for you because you may be able to get more help before, during, and after the court case.

What is a restraining order?

A restraining order is a court order, which orders a person to:

  1. Not contact you or any member of your household;
  2. Not go near you, your children, or others who live with you, no matter where you go;
  3. Stay away from your work, your school, or your children’s school; or
  4. Not have a gun.

Once the court issues (makes) a restraining order, it goes into a statewide computer system. This means that law enforcement officers across California can see there is a restraining order in place. For the person to be restrained, the consequences of having a court order against him or her can be very severe.  

  1. He or she will not be able to go to certain places or to do certain things.
  2. He or she will generally not be able to own a gun.
  3. The restraining order may affect his or her immigration status. If you are a person to be restrained we strongly suggest that you talk to an immigration attorney because your immigration status may be affected.
  4. If the person to be restrained violates the restraining order, he or she may go to jail, or pay a fine, or both.

There are several types of restraining orders:

Emergency Protective Order (EPO)

Temporary Restraining Order (TRO)

“Permanent” Restraining Order (Restraining Order After Hearing)

Criminal Protective Order or “Stay-Away” Order

When someone asks for a civil harassment restraining order in court, they have to file court forms telling the judge what orders they want and why. If the judge is convinced that you are in danger, he will issue a temporary restraining order. After that both parties should appear at a court hearing and explain to the judge in person why the restraining order should or should not be granted. At the hearing, the judge will decide to continue or cancel the temporary restraining order. If the judge decides to extend the temporary order, the “permanent” order may last for up to 3 years.

You do not need a lawyer to ask for (or respond to) a restraining order. But it is a good idea to have a lawyer. Our law office can help you obtain or defend against a restraining order.

If you are an immigrant, we strongly suggest that you contact a competent immigration attorney if a restraining order is filed against you because it may affect your immigration status.