Protective orders
When home isn't safe, the first step can be small
If you're in danger right now, call 911. When you can, call any of our offices. The Leave this site button at the top of the page takes you away from here at once.
A protective order is a court order telling someone to stay away from you, and sometimes to leave a shared home. A judge can grant a temporary one quickly, often the same day you ask, and then holds a hearing where both sides speak. We help you fill out the petition, prepare for that hearing and stand beside you at it. If someone has filed against you, we help you answer it carefully, because an order can affect custody, housing and work.
How we help
Asking for protection, or answering a petition
The petition
What happened, written clearly, with the dates and details a judge needs.
The hearing
Preparing what you'll say and which witnesses or messages to bring.
Children and the home
Temporary orders about who stays in the house and when children see each parent.
Answering one
If an order was filed against you, a careful response and no contact in the meantime.
Safety questions
What people ask when they're scared
Can someone see that I visited this page?
Possibly, on a shared phone or computer. Use a private browsing window, or a device the other person can't reach, and clear your history if it's safe to.
Who else can help tonight?
The National Domestic Violence Hotline answers day and night at 1-800-799-7233, and can connect you with a shelter near you.
Does a protective order cost anything to ask for?
Courts generally don't charge a filing fee for these petitions. Our fee for helping you is agreed in writing before we start.
Call when it's safe to talk
Tell whoever answers that it's about a protective order, and we'll move it to the front of the day.