WHAT ARE COURT ORDERS?

Most women who look for legal protection from domestic abuse use the Domestic Violence Act 1996. Under this law, the Courts can grant specific Orders to ensure that applicants have legal measures in place to protect them.

There are two different orders that can be applied for at the District Court that can provide long-term protection:

  1. Barring OrderA barring order obliges the perpetrator if he is residing with the client to leave the place.  If the perpetrator is not residing with the client it prohibits him from entering that place until such time as the Court shall specify. A BARRING ORDER may be granted for up to 3 years in the District Court.
  2. Safety OrderA safety order provides the same protection as a Protection Order in that it prohibits the perpetrator from further violence or threats of violence, from molesting or putting the woman in fear.  It DOES NOT OBLIGE the perpetrator to leave the family home. A SAFETY ORDER may be granted for up to 5 YEARS in the District Court. 

When your application for either of the above orders has been accepted by the court, you will be given a date for a court hearing. The waiting time varies in different parts of the country.

While you are waiting for your court hearing, the court will protect you with a Protection Order or Interim Barring Order that only lasts until the date of the hearing.  Once the date for the safety or Barring Order is reached, then the Protection Order or Interim Barring Order ceases to exist.

  1. Protection Order A Protection Order is a pre summons for a Safety Order, and may be made ‘ex parte’. The order states that the perpetrator ‘shall not use or threaten to use violence against, molest, or put in fear the applicant (client). If the perpetrator is residing at a place other than the place where the client is living he shall not “watch or beset where she lives.” A Protection Order can not be applied for on its own. A Protection Order ceases to have effect on the determination by the Court of the application for the Safety Order / Barring order.
  2. Interim Barring Order On an application for a Barring Order and where the Court is of the opinion that there are reasonable grounds for believing that there is an immediate risk of ‘significant harm’ to the client, the Court may “direct the perpetrator, if he is residing with the client, to leave the place, or, where he is not living with the client, he is prohibited from entering that place until further order of the Court or such time as the Court shall specify”.  An Interim Barring order shall have effect for a period, ‘no longer than 8 working days’.


ALL COURT ORDERS:

All Court Orders “shall take effect on notification of its making being given to the perpetrator”.  If he is present as Court for the hearing it is taken that he has notice of the Order being made.
If he is not in Court, the woman may choose to tell the perpetrator herself, the Gardaí may tell him, or he may not get notice of the Order until he receives a copy of the order which will be sent to him by the court clerk.
Source: Domestic Violence Act 1996.  Domestic Violence (Amendment) Act 2002

Practical Issues:

For any of the Legal Orders, any evidence of abuse you can provide will help your case, so visits to the hospital/doctor/photographs of injuries and names of Gardai who have attended your home is extremely important information. This is why it is so important to record incidents of abuse in case you decide to take legal action in the future. It is really helpful to bring this evidence with you when you are initially applying for an order. For non-physical abuse (mental, sexual), it is more difficult to collect evidence. If you have witnesses, ask them for a statement and be clear about why you want the order. For example, your doctor may be aware of the effect the mental abuse is having on you and may agree to attend court as a witness.

A woman can make a written statement of the incident/ incidents of abuse up to six months after the Allegedly Abusive / violent incident occurred.

What happens if any of these Orders are breached?

It is an offence to breach a Protection, Safety, Barring or Interim Barring Order under the Domestic Violence Act. Gardai can arrest the offender without a warrant. The offender is brought back to court for breach of the specific Order. Sentencing can vary from a fine to a prison term.

This guide is not an interpretation of the law.  If you are considering legal action, contact a solicitor.