DID YOU KNOW BY ATTORNEY F.M. ZAVALA
DOMESTIC VIOLENCE ORDERS
Types of Orders
[a] Protective Orders in General
The DVPA authorizes a court to issue protective orders on the application of a party.
A “protective order” is an order that includes specific restraining orders, whether issued ex parte, after notice and hearing, or in a judgment. Fam. Code § 6218; see Fam. Code § 6320 et seq.
An “emergency protective order” is a protective order issued by a judicial officer on the request of a law enforcement officer who believes an immediate and present danger of domestic violence or child abuse, as defined by the DVPA, exists. Fam. Code § 6240 et seq.
Emergency protective orders, issued on the request of a law enforcement officer, last for up to seven days and are based on information gathered by the police officer, usually at the scene of the alleged abuse and often without input from the alleged abuser. The purpose of an emergency protective order is to enable the victim to have sufficient time to file a request for domestic violence restraining orders in court. The emergency protective order expires at the end of the seven days, regardless.
Both types of temporary protective orders are granted on an ex parte basis without input from the alleged abuser, who must wait until the hearing date to be heard.