How to get a Restraining Order
A restraining order is an order issued by a court of law with the main purpose of protecting persons from particular individuals whom they believe may put them at risk of violence or danger. By filing for a restraining order, you are given added protection by making it a criminal offence for the person being filed against, to come within a certain distance of you.
You do not need an attorney in order to file a restraining order. You can ask the court to issue a restraining order by following the steps below.
Complete all forms
Most states have an online database with forms that are currently used in day to day court business. If you don’t know exactly where to find such database, search online for “county clerk of the court” replacing “county” with your actual county. If the forms are not online with your county, do a generic search on the internet for “restraining order form”. A lot of sites have theses forms for free along with a list of states in which the particular form will work.
Take the forms to the court
Once you find the proper forms and have them filled out, take the forms to the court. You want to file the forms with the clerk of the court. You do not walk into the court and hand the forms to a judge. The clerk will handle that for you.
Once the judge looks at your restraining order he will decide whether to allow it or not. The judge may issue the restraining order on the spot. It is more likely that the judge will sign the order and set a hearing date for the case.
Serve your Restrainee
You will need to notify your local sheriff or find a local process server to serve the other party with the paperwork. The other party must be served with papers so they know to appear in court on the hearing date. Be sure to have these papers sent quickly. The sheriff may be backlogged and take a couple of weeks to get around to it.
Show up at the hearing
Make sure you show up at the hearing. In fact, show up early to prepare yourself to go before the judge. Once in front of the judge, present your case calmly and collectively. The judge will rule in one of three ways; grant the restraining order, extend the restraining order, deny the restraining order. It is going to be up to how well you present your case.
After this, your restraining order should be in place. They usually last for 180 days with the possibility of being extended if need be. If the other party disobeys the order make sure you contact the police. They can be arrested for violating the order.