What are Domestic Violence Restraining Orders?

Domestic Violence Restraining Orders protect you from harassment and abuse by a family member, spouse (or registered domestic partner), significant other (current or former), your child’s other parent, or someone you live or lived with in a capacity more than roommates. This may also apply to your current in-laws and adopted family members.

California Law states that Domestic Abuse includes:

  • Physical Abuse (hitting, kicking, pushing, hair pulling, etc…)
  • Sexual Assault
  • Emotional Abuse
  • Purposefully Scaring (throwing things, yelling, etc.)
  • Following/Stalking
  • Coercive Control (isolating, depriving of necessities, controlling or monitoring movements, forcing to engage in conduct, etc.)
  • Reproductive Coercion
  • Abduction
  • Harassing
  • Threats to do any of the above

Questions? Email or call us at (619) 500-1289

What Should I do If I’m being Domestically Abused?

 If you are being abused by a spouse, significant other, or other family member you may qualify for a Domestic Violence Restraining Order. Under the California Family Code Domestic Violence Prevention Act (Fam Code §6200-6460), “Domestic Abuse” refers to a wide range of behaviors and actions. The court DOES NOT need to find that actual physical abuse has occurred in order to issue a Domestic Violence Restraining Order. Domestic abuse can take many forms including physical, written, and verbal.

If you are being abused in any of the above ways you can complete and file a Request for Domestic Violence Restraining Orders. Completing this request will require you to write a statement and compile evidence to show the court why you need protection from this person. With your paperwork completed and your evidence collected you can file your Request for Domestic Violence Restraining Orders with the court.

The day you file your Request for Domestic Violence Restraining Orders, the court will provide you with an “ex-parte” ruling on a Temporary Restraining Order. You will be required to wait at the courthouse for a judge to review your paperwork and make a determination on whether you qualify for a Temporary Restraining Order. This may be an all-day process. Once you have a ruling on the Temporary Restraining Order, the clerks will provide you with a hearing date. If your Temporary Restraining Order is denied, you will still get hearing date and chance to argue your case for a permanent Domestic Violence Restraining Order.

Before the hearing date, normally no less than 5 days before, the person you are asking to be restrained (the “Respondent”) must be personally served with the Notice of Hearing, the Request for Domestic Violence Restraining Orders, and the Temporary Restraining Order (if ordered). This can be done by any person over the age of 18 who is not you or a party to the case. Domestic Violence Restraining Orders also qualify for free service from the San Diego Sheriff’s Department. You may contact Sheriff’s Court Services to request that a Sheriff’s Deputy personally serve the Respondent.

At your hearing, you will have another chance to provide the court with testimony and evidence as to why you need a permanent Domestic Violence Restraining Order. This may include additional evidence than what you included in your Request for Domestic Violence Restraining Orders. In order to be granted a permanent Domestic Violence Restraining Order you must convince a judge by meeting a standard of proof called “preponderance of the evidence.” Since Domestic Violence Restraining Orders tend to deal in very serious circumstances, this is a lower standard of proof than other Restraining Orders. However, it is still a higher standard than that used to determine if you qualify for a Temporary Restraining Order. If the court grants your Request for Domestic Violence Restraining Orders, a permanent Domestic Violence Restraining Order will be issued for up to five years. This duration is determined at the discretion of the judge.

If you are a victim of Domestic Violence, we can help you prepare, file, and litigate a case for a Domestic Violence Restraining Order. Email or call us at (619) 500-1289

What Should I do if I was Served with a Domestic Violence Restraining Order?

If you were served with a Request for Domestic Violence Restraining Orders and the Temporary Restraining Order was granted, you must immediately begin abiding by all the terms of the order. This may include leaving a shared residence or staying away from your children. If you own, possess, or have access to any firearms, ammunition, or firearm parts you must store, surrender, or sell them to law enforcement or an authorized gun dealer within 48 hours of being served. As of January 1, 2024, California law has been amended to include body armor as a prohibited item for restrained persons. If you own, possess, or have access to body armor it must also be stored, surrendered, or sold to law enforcement or an authorized gun dealer. For the duration of any Restraining Orders against you, you will not be able to purchase or possess any firearms, firearm parts, ammunition, or body armor.

A Respondent is not required to provide the court with a Response to Request for Domestic Violence Restraining Orders prior to the hearing. However, doing so ensures that the judge will have reviewed your statement and evidence before the hearing. You can use a Response to Request for Domestic Violence Restraining Orders to tell the court why you do or do not agree with the orders requested. This is your chance to provide the court with a written statement and aby physical evidence. If you share children with the person requesting the order (the “Petitioner) and they have requested new, or updated, custody orders with their Request for Domestic Violence Restraining Orders this also your chance to provide the court with your acceptance of these custody orders or to suggest orders you would prefer. If you choose to file a Response to Request for Domestic Violence Restraining Orders, you must serve a copy on the Petitioner by mail before the hearing. This can be done by anyone 18 years or older, who is not you and not a party to the case.

On the day of the hearing, you will have a chance to give further testimony and present your evidence to the court. After hearing from both sides, the judge will make a determination about whether a permanent Domestic Violence Restraining Order needs to be issued. The burden of proof the Petitioner must meet in this hearing is much lower than that of other Restraining Orders. However, that does not mean that Petitioner is guaranteed to win. If a Domestic Violence Restraining Order is issued against you it may last for up to five years. This duration is set at the discretion of the court. If you choose to not attend the hearing the court may issue Restraining Orders against you without your knowledge.

 If you were served with a Request for Domestic Violence Restraining Orders we can help you prepare a response to the allegations and litigate your defense. Email or call us at (619) 500-1289

Domestic Violence Restraining Orders (DVRO) Petitioner’s Frequently Asked Questions

How do I Know If My Relationship Qualifies for a DVRO?

The following relationships are considered domestic relationship for the purposes of Domestic Violence Restraining Orders:

  • Family Member (included adopted family members)
  • Spouse (or registered domestic partner)
  • Significant other (current or former, with whom you have/had a dating relationship)
  • your child’s other parent
  • Current In-Laws
  • Someone you live, or lived, with in a capacity more than roommates

If you are being abused by a partner’s parent/s, or other family members, and you are not married, your relationship with the person abusing you is civil. If you are being abused by a former partner’s family, this relationship is also civil. In this situation you should file a Request for Civil Harassment Restraining Orders.

If you are minor who has had a previous dating relationship with a person over the age of 18, your relationship is civil. California does not recognize this as a dating relationship due to the illegality of the older party’s participation in the relationship. If you are a minor being abused by a significant other over the age of 18, you should file a Request for Civil Harassment Restraining Orders.

What if I am Still Married to the Respondent?

If you are currently married to the Respondent, there are few additional orders that the court can issue to further protect you:

  1. Order Protecting Community, Quasi-Community, and Separate Property- The court can issue temporary orders that prevent Respondent from taking, destroying, or selling anything that is property of the marriage until an agreement can be made through mediation or a divorce hearing as to how to divide those assets.
  2. Order for Temporary Use of Real or Personal Property- You may be granted temporary use of certain pieces of Respondent’s property if necessary. For example, if Respondent is the sole owner of the family home, the court may grant you temporary use of the property even if it also orders Respondent removed from the shared residence.
  3. Order Preventing Changes to Insurance- If you and Respondent share an insurance plan, the court can issue a temporary order preventing Respondent from transferring, canceling, changing the terms of, changing the beneficiaries of, or borrowing against that insurance plan.

What if Respondent and I Live Together?

If you still reside with Respondent, you can ask the court for one of two orders:

  1. Order for Removal from Residence- the court can issue an order asking law enforcement to remove Respondent from a shared residence. For the duration of the Temporary Restraining Order and permanent Restraining Order, Respondent will not be allowed back in the residence. The only exception to this is that Respondent can request one-time police escort to collect any personal property left at the residence.
  2. A Short-Distance Stay Away Order- As part of the Restraining Order, Respondent will be required to stay a minimum distance away from you. Usually, this distance is 100 yards. If you do not want Respondent removed from the residence you can ask the court for a shorter distance that allows you to cohabitate while keeping Respondent away from you. An example of this would be a stay away distance of about five feet. Questions? Attorney Timothy Riley can answer all your questions and advise you of your options. Email or call us at (619) 500-1289 

What if Respondent and I have Children Together?

If you share children with Respondent and you believe they also need to be protected, you may include them as “Additional Protected Persons.” If you have an existing custody/visitation order, this may require the court to alter it. If you do not have an existing custody/visitation order you can ask the court to issue custody orders in conjunction with the Domestic Violence Restraining Order.

What if My Child is Being Abused and I’m Not?

If your child is the victim of domestic abuse, you may file a Request for Domestic Violence Restraining Orders in their name. If the child is twelve years old or younger, they must have a court appointed “guardian ad-litem” or an attorney (or both). You may apply to be your child’s guardian ad-litem at the time of filing the Request for Domestic Violence Restraining Orders. If your child is between the ages of 13 and 17, they are not required to have a guardian ad-litem or counsel. However, without a guardian ad-litem and/or counsel they will be asked to represent themselves.

Domestic Violence Restraining Orders (DVRO) Respondent’s Frequently Asked Questions

What if I was also Criminally Charged in Connection to the Alleged Domestic Violence?

As the Respondent to a Request for Domestic Violence Restraining Order, you may be facing criminal charges in relation to the same incidents in question for the Restraining Order. You have a 5th Amendment Right against self-incrimination. Law enforcement Miranda warning of “anything you say can, and will, be used against you” is serious. The testimony you give in the Restraining Order case can be used in criminal cases against you. If you are concerned about a pending or active criminal case, you may ask the court to continue the hearing until after any criminal cases have finished.

Did you know we also handle criminal cases? If you are being charged with a crime in connection to a Request for Restraining Order we can help you defend yourself against the criminal charges as well. Email or call us at (619) 500-1289

What if Petitioner and I have Children Together?

If you and Petitioner share children, the court may have issued temporary custody and visitation orders. If there are existing custody orders in place these temporary orders override the existing ones. You must abide by the temporary custody and visitation orders. At the hearing, the judge can make new custody orders, or amend your existing ones. You will have a chance to tell the court what custody orders you would prefer. If a Domestic Violence Restraining Order is issued against you it could lead to serious changes to the custody of your children.

Contact the law office of attorney Timothy Riley so we can answer all your restraining orders and criminal defense questions.