Recently updated on March 11th, 2025 at 07:55 pm

Getting a restraining order can take a variable amount of time depending on the danger to the safety of the victim. Here are common situations

• Police is called: In emergency situations in can be issued within 20 minutes 24×7 by the police who are called in such as via 9-1-1 call.
• When you file for a restraining order then a judge will review it and may issue a Temporary Restraining Order a temporary restraining order the same day (or within a day)
• In the rest of the cases, after about 3 weeks of filing there is a hearing held where the decision for an restraining order is made where the evidence from different parties will be examined.

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Domestic Violence Restraining Orders are free but Civil Harassment may have filing fee of about $435 depending the severity of the abuse.

 

Emergency Situation: Immediately

This is granted when 9-1-1 Emergency or a Police Station or Sheriff’s Office is contacted. All the paperwork is done by the law enforcement and there is no fee.

 

If there’s an emergency e.g. a husband hits his wife or there’s a high risk of harm a police officer or Sheriff can contact the judge remotely and issue what is called an Emergency Protective Order  IMMEDIATELY within a few minutes.  The idea is to provide a stop gap temporary order which is valid until the regular process for a temporary order can be pursued.

 

 

 

 

 

An EPO is issued by a judge at any time, day or night, and is usually valid for up to 7 days. This is typically used in domestic violence cases.

(Permanent) Restraining Order

The process for a Restraining Order starts when someone formally requests one by submitting a specific set of court forms at the local Superior Court either in person or online.

 

Optional Sub-step: Temporary Restraining Order 

After a clerk accepts your case documents as complete, a judge privately reviews the documents offline in the backoffice. someone formally requests the court for a permanent restraining order during office hours, depending on the circumstances again the court may issue a Temporary Restraining Order (TRO) until a hearing is scheduled where the permanent version will be issued.

A TRO is granted to provide immediate protection until a court hearing can be held. It is typically valid until the hearing date, which is usually within 20-25 days.

(Permanent) Restraining Order

This is a continuation of the process started in the previous step titled “Temporary Restraining Order”. Once a court hearing is held the judge may either deny the whole order, or grants a permanent restraining order. If granted the restraining order can last up to 5 years, depending on the judge’s decision.

To initiate the process, you must file the appropriate forms with the court, and the timeline begins from the moment the paperwork is submitted. The speed of getting a restraining order largely depends on how quickly you can get to the courthouse and complete the necessary steps.

 

Steps: How do I file a restraining order

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Step 1: Select the type of restraining order and gather evidence 

There are a few different types of restraining orders and typically only one of them may apply to your situation so it’s important to select the correct one.

 

Gather Evidence

The first step is to gather the evidence to support your case. What proof do you need for a restraining order in California. The following are examples to help you organize though anything that supports your claims can be used.

Step 2: Get a copy of court forms 

You can fill these online for free by visiting here

In order to apply for a restraining order, you need to fill and submit a specific set of official California court forms. These have questions aimed at understanding your situation and the people involved.

 

Tip: Check your county’s Superior Court website Or use LegalAtoms to get a complete and updated list of required forms.

 

 

Step 3: File with the County’s Superior Court

Filing is the process which means the following steps

1. Formally submitting the case documents at the court with the office of the clerk
2. The clerk reviews and verifies the correctness of forms and completeness of the required info
3. Clerk enters the case in the court database, stamps the documents and assigns a case #

 

County (Venue)
The proper venue for a restraining order case is the county where the abuse took place or where the restrained party lives. However, venue is a defensive motion and should be considered by the court only if the restrained party objects by filing a noticed motion for change of venue at or before the time of responding to the request.25 Improper venue is not a proper basis for the court to deny relief on its own motion (sua sponte).

Determine the County 

In California, one typically file at the Superior Court at county of your residence or where the abuse occurred. For example, if you live in San Francisco city, then the Superior Court of California, County of San Francisco.  There can be many special cases and fine print but that is the most common case. Please consult a lawyer if your situation is uncommon e.g. the abuser is overseas or you are overseas and the abuser is in California.

Determine the Correct sub-location

Within the Superior Court of a county, there may be one location such as Superior Court of San Francisco OR multiple locations such as the one in San Bernardino, and each court has it’s own system so that you must file at the correct location.

For example here are some of the locations of the Superior Courts in California at San Bernardino County which are

• Barstow District: 235 East Mountain View Street Barstow, CA 92311
• Fontana District: Fontana District: 17780 Arrow Boulevard Fontana, CA 92335
• Joshua Tree District: 6527 White Feather Road Joshua Tree, CA 92252
• Needles District: 1111 Bailey Ave Needles, CA 92363
• Rancho Cucamonga District: 8303 Haven Avenue Rancho Cucamonga, CA 91730
• Victorville District: 14455 Civic Drive Victorville, CA 92392
• San Bernardino District: 351 North Arrowhead Avenue San Bernardino CA 92415

Identify the methods of Filing

Method # 1: In Person by visiting the court house

Your court location would accept the forms to be submitted in person at the court hours.

Tip: All courts have lunch hours when they are closed for an hour

When you submit your case documents at the court, typically you take 3 copies.

The clerks reviews it, and if everything is ok, they formally enter it into the court system and put a stamp near the top of the documents. That acceptance is called filing.

The stamp may look something like this:

Method # 2: E-file online

This is the most efficient option if you have an e-mail address and some basic computer skills like registering an account, and uploading PDF files.

Some counties now have one or more online portals where you create an account for free, and then you can upload documents and hit submit.

You will be required to some online service fees.

Method # 3: Via another person 

Some counties accept filing via a friend or legal courier. These companies or individuals charge a flat or hourly fee and file the documents at the court.

 

Step 4: Judge Sets Hearing, Grant/Deny Temporary Restraining Order (TRO)

A judge reviews the case offline and then you will be notified by the court about the outcomes which are:

• Temporary Restraining Order Granted
• Temporary Restraining Order Denied

In addition the Judge would typically set a hearing. If the case doesn’t have sufficient evidence it might be dismissed without even a hearing.

The temporary order (if issued) is valid until the hearing i.e. typically about 3 weeks. If the hearing is delayed for any reason, you need to check with the court to ensure the temporary order is renewed until the hearing to provide you with legal protection.

 

Step 5: Serve a set of Stamped Case Forms including Hearing Notice to Abuser 

 

Whenever one party initiates a restraining order it needs to inform or serve the other party formally by delivering the court documents. That step is called serving the respondent

Under the California law there are multiple ways in which the other party can be served.

 

You cannot  serve your papers yourself.

 

Option 1:  Ask the Sheriff (FREE)

A sheriff or marshal can serve the opposing party for you which is a big help. This service is offered for FREE. To ask the sheriff to serve your papers, you must have an address or location for the other side (restrained person). If the other side is in jail, the sheriff can serve them. If the other side is in prison in California, prison staff, not the sheriff, will serve your papers. Follow the instructions by the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation for serving someone in prison

 

Option 2: Ask a friend, relative or any adult (FREE)

You ask someone you know to be your server

• 18 or over, and
• not part of your case

Think about safety when choosing your server. Get step-by-step instructions for how to have someone else, not the sheriff, serve your court papers.

 

Option 3: Hire a courier for legal papers (Process Server)  

You can also hire a courier called professional process server. You can search on Yelp or Google to get a list of options near you. Yelp Example . An example is ABC Legal Services.

You cannot hire regular couriers such as UPS, FedEx or US Postal Service unless in exceptional scenarios where the judge authorizes service by mail, but that’s a whole different topic altogether.

 

Step 6: Present Evidence in a Court Hearing 

Attend a hearing: The court holds a hearing within a couple of weeks where the evidence is examined. If there is sufficient supporting evidence as determined by a Judge, a full restraining order is issued. At this point it becomes a crime for the abuser to break the conditions of the restraining order.

 

 

Step 7. Collect the Final Order

After the hearing, a final order may be issued. You can take a paper copy of the order with you. The order is typically valid for five years.