Who can apply for domestic violence restraining orders under the DVPA? If you are going to apply for domestic violence restraining orders under the Domestic Violence Prevention Act, you must have at least one of the following relationships with the person against whom you are seeking the restraining orders:
- You are married to the person or you are registered domestic partners.
- You used to be married to the person or you used to be registered domestic partners.
- You live together.
- You used to live together.
- You are related by blood, marriage, or adoption.
- You are dating or used to date.
- You are engaged or used to be engaged to be married.
- You are the parents together of a child or children under 18 years of age.
If none of the above relationships apply to your situation, you can still get restraining orders, but not under the DVPA. For example, if you have a dispute with your neighbor, you can apply for civil harassment orders. Civil harassment orders are beyond the scope of this website.
