Recently updated on November 22nd, 2024 at 12:51 am

Prepare and E-File your Court Forms for Restraining Orders and Civil Protection Orders

This website provides an online guided experience for you to prepare the official court forms for every state to secure a civil protection order or restraining order.

The legal definition of restraining order varies state to state but nearly all of them are centered around a core idea: an abuser is ordered by the court to stay away from the victim or face criminal charges. 

You can also use this website to learn more about restraining orders e.g. whether your situation even qualifies and what kind of specific requests you can ask for from the court. So exploring the paperwork without filing with the court is also helpful if you're just learning about the process and your options.

Select Your State

You will be displayed restraining order types for your state

Play Video

Process Overview

This website presents a list of questions, and then at the end generates the paperwork for DVPO.

HOW THIS WEBSITE WORKS

This website provides a guided experience to people who are working themselves on preparing the court forms for a Domestic Violence Restraining Order.

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1. Take Screening

Select the specific protection order you want to file for. Then answer a few questions to determine your eligibility.

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2. Prepare Documents

Prepare the main set of your court documents by covering one topic at a time. Each topic offers questions in simple and non-legal language. Just do your best and in case you need help you can get reach out for help just with a few clicks.

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3. Consult Advocate (Optional)

Depending on your situation, we can suggest any trusted free victim advocacy non profits. The advocate can assist you with certain aspects of the case and safety planning. They can review your case documents, and talk to you directly to discuss your case.

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4. Submit to Court

Submit the paperwork to begin the legal process. You can do online depending on your local court or by printing and visiting the court in person.

FAQs

Do Protection Orders Help?

Here the outcome of a research on domestic violence from University of New Hampshire

Reduce Violence

1. Reduce Violence

Civil protective orders (such as a Domestic Violence Protection Order, an Anti-harassment Protection Order, a Sexual Assault Protection Order) are effective in reducing violence and harassment. For example, for half the women in the sample studied, a protective order stopped the violence. For the other half, the orders significantly reduced violence and abuse.

Cost Effective

2. Cost Effective

They are a relatively low-cost solution, particularly when compared with the social and personal costs of partner violence.

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3. Cities vs. Countryside

The impact of civil protective orders on reducing violence and abuse did not differ for rural (country side) and urban (cities) women. In rural areas, where resources and services for partner violence may be more limited, it is critical to reduce barriers to obtaining protective orders as research indicates they may be an effective resource. Community-level barriers to enforce civil protective orders exist for women in rural areas.