Abuse Prevention and Restraining Orders

The short answer is no. But it’s still a good idea to consult with an attorney before you apply for an abuse prevention order, at least in non-emergency situations.

Courts have authority to give a wide range of relief to domestic violence victims who apply for abuse prevention orders. The scope of relief can range from simply prohibiting the defendant (the abuser) from committing further abuse, to requiring him or her to move out your home and/or refrain from contacting you. If you and the abuser have children, a judge can give you custody of your children and order the abuser to pay child support.



An experienced attorney can explain what types of relief you should ask for and the advantages and disadvantages of each. I’ve represented many clients who have obtained abuse prevention orders in a variety of circumstances. I can review your situation and help you decide what type of relief you should ask for. I can also help you prepare the paperwork that you must file with the court, and give you guidance on how to present the relevant facts to a judge. If it’s advisable or if you want, I can go to the court with you.

If someone has obtained a 209A Order against you, you should retain an attorney immediately.



Most orders are issued without notice to the person accused of abuse. Since the defendant isn’t present at the initial hearing, the court only hears the accuser’s version of the events.

But Chapter 209A requires the court to hold a second hearing within 10 business days. This hearing is your chance to tell the court your side of the story. You can call witnesses to testify on your behalf. The court should also give you a chance to challenge the facts alleged by the accuser and to make legal arguments in your defense (for example, that the acts you were accused of are not sufficiently threatening to constitute abuse, or that you were not properly served with the order). You can ask the court to vacate the order and present reasons why it should not be extended. If order is extended, you can ask the court to modify the terms.

This is important – if you don’t appear at this second hearing and the victim does, the court will almost certainly extend the order if asked to do so. The extension can be for up to a year.

You should immediately retain counsel if you’ve been charged with violating an abuse prevention order. Violating a 209A Order is a crime. You could be sentenced to jail if you’re convicted.



Convictions also create collateral consequences for defendants. Besides having a criminal record, convicted defendants will be included the statewide database for domestic violence offenders. If you are ever charged with another crime, you might be required to post bail (or even denied bail) while the charges are pending. Being classified as a domestic violence offender can also hurt your future job prospects or prevent you from getting the security clearance you might need for a government job.

Unfortunately, it’s not unusual for a plaintiff to obtain a 209A Order by exaggerating facts or even making false accusations. People sometimes have other motives. I’ve had divorce cases where one party applied for an order to gain leverage in a child custody dispute. It happens.

A 2003 Appeals Court case illustrates how the process can be misused. The parents in that case were divorced. The mother had custody of their children and the father had visitation. The father took their daughter on a ski trip. When the daughter returned home from the trip, she complained to her mother about the way her father had treated her. The mother then went to court and obtained a 209A Order on behalf of the daughter. The father believed the order should not have been issued and appealed. The Appeals Court ruled in his favor and vacated the order. In its opinion, the court noted there were “distinct overtones of the use of c. 209A as a weapon in circumstances of reciprocal hostility between divorced parents.” While the court made it clear the father’s conduct was not acceptable, it stated that “c. 209A is not designed as a prod toward better parenting. Rather, the statute, as we have said, aims to prevent physical harm.”

Under Chapter 209A, the following conduct constitutes abuse and would entitle the victim to get an abuse prevention order:



• causing or attempting to cause physical harm to the victim
• placing the victim in fear of imminent serious physical harm
• forcing the victim to engage in non-consensual sexual relations

If you were the victim of domestic violence, you can apply for a 209A Order against any of the following people (see below for other types of restraining orders when one of these relationships don’t apply):

• a spouse or former spouse
• a family member related to you by blood (e.g., parents, children, siblings) or marriage (e.g., in-laws)
• a person you live with or used to live with, whether or not they are related to you
• a person with whom you have or used to have a serious dating relationship (including online dating)

Judges have the authority to grant a wide range of relief when issuing a 209A Order, including any and all of the following:

• order the abuser to immediately move out of a shared residence (if you and abuser live together)
• require the abuser to stay a certain distance away from you, your residence and your workplace
• prohibit the abuser from contacting you directly or indirectly through another person, including in person or by telephone, email or text messages
• “impound” your address so the abuser will not know where you live
• order the abuser to pay you temporary spousal support
• order the abuser to reimburse you for any costs and expenses you incurred because of the abuse, including lost wages, medical bills, replacing destroyed property and moving expenses

If you and the abuser have children, judges can also:

• order the abuser to stay away from the children, their schools and their daycare facilities
• order the abuser not to contact the children
• give you temporary custody of the children (and give the abuser visitation if appropriate)
• order the abuser to pay you temporary child support

Yes, but only under a narrow set of circumstances; specifically, when the order was obtained through fraud on the court and certain other requirements are met.

Defendants who have 209A orders issued against them are entered into the statewide domestic violence registry maintained by the Commissioner of Probation. The records remain in the system even if order is later vacated. This can create unfair collateral consequences for a defendant if the order was issued based on false accusations.



Simply vacating a fraudulent 209A order isn’t a sufficient remedy when the order was based on fraud. Consequently, a defendant can apply to the court that issued the order to instruct the Commissioner of Probation to expunge (delete) the records relating to the defendant.

You can apply for an abuse prevention order at the District Court or the Probate & Family Court for the city or town where you live (you can also apply to the Superior Court, although that’s seldom done). Your local police department can issue an emergency order if the abuse occurs on a weekend or at night when the courts are closed. There is no fee for applying.

People involved in a pending divorce case can apply to the Probate Court for an order under General Laws Chapter 208, Section 18. This statute allows judges to issue orders prohibiting one party from “imposing any restraint” on the “personal liberty” of the other party. Probate Court judges can also order one party in a divorce case to “vacate the marital home” in response to a properly drafted motion.

Courts can also issue restraining orders pursuant to Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 258E. These orders are often referred to as “civil harassment orders” or “258E orders.” Chapter 258E provides a remedy for victims of abuse when the abuser is not a person covered by Chapter 209A. Courts can issue civil harassment orders against anyone. That includes defendants who are not related to the victim or not in dating relationship with the victim.

Civil harassment orders often involve complicated legal and factual issues. There is also a tendency for judges to narrowly interpret the law’s requirements. If you are considering requesting a civil harassment order, or someone has obtained an order against you, you should retain an experienced attorney.



Lastly, Massachusetts has criminal laws that prohibit one person from “stalking” another. The relevant statute defines stalking as a “pattern of conduct or series of acts over a period of time directed at a specific person which seriously alarms or annoys that person and would cause a reasonable person to suffer substantial emotional distress, and (2) makes a threat with the intent to place the person in imminent fear of death or bodily injury.

Stalking is a serious crime. Convicted defendants can be sentenced to jail for up to 5 years.

• Massachusetts law on domestic violence
• Massachusetts Office for Victim Assistance
• Abuse and harassment orders
• National Consumer Law Center – Consumer Rights for Domestic Violence Survivors in Massachusetts