A Compassionate Advocate
For Arizona Families

Do you need to seek a protective order from the court?

On Behalf of | Apr 27, 2020 | Uncategorized

It is a sad fact that far too often, domestic violence is at the root of an Arizona divorce. Nobody should ever live in fear of violence within the walls of the home that should be their sanctuary. The good news is that there is help available for those who need it regarding domestic violence.

If your spouse has harmed you or even just threatened to harm you if you attempt to seek a divorce, you may need to obtain a protective order (PO) against them from the courts.

What does a protective order do?

A protective order prohibits your abuser from coming within so many feet of you, your school, home or place of business along with any other locations specified within the order. These protections and accompanying legal recourse are in place for a year after the person got served with the order.

What a protective order doesn’t do

It is a piece of paper with legal significance and consequences in the event that it gets violated. It can’t guarantee that you will be safe from an abuser intent to do you harm. If you are in the middle of a contested divorce, it will not change the child visitation or custody orders unless said child is also named in the order as one who needs protection from the one who was served with the order.

How you can get a protective order here in Arizona?

While any court in the state can issue protective orders, if the order is issued as part of a divorce, custody or paternity matter, it must be filed in Superior Court. Your Tempe family law attorney can draft the order that you will then sign. Your family law attorney will file it with the court and accompany you when you speak to the judge who must grant it.

Once signed by the judge, the order then needs to be served on your abuser. Once s/he has been served, the order is valid for a full year.

Domestic violence claims far too many lives each year and you don’t want to become a statistic. Seek the counsel of a Tempe family law attorney and confide in them that you are being abused and need to obtain a protective order from the courts.