Served With a Domestic Violence Restraining Order in California? What to Do Next
Being served with a request for a domestic violence restraining order can be overwhelming. The papers may contain serious allegations, a court date only weeks away, and temporary orders affecting access to your home, your children, and your ability to communicate with the other party.
A temporary restraining order is not a final determination that the allegations are true. It does, however, create orders that are enforceable by law enforcement and must be followed unless and until the court modifies or terminates them.
1. Read and Follow the Temporary Orders
Carefully review the Request for Domestic Violence Restraining Order, the Notice of Court Hearing, and, most importantly, the Temporary Restraining Order (DV-110) signed by the judge.
The orders may address:
Contact with the protected person
Stay-away distances
Access to your home
Child custody and visitation
Control of property
Firearms and ammunition
Protection of pets
Some requests may have been granted, while others may have been denied or reserved for the hearing. The signed order—not simply what the petitioner requested—determines what you must follow.
Comply with every order, even if you believe the allegations are false or misleading. A violation can result in arrest, criminal charges, and additional consequences in the upcoming proceeding.
Compliance is not an admission. It is following a court order while preparing your response.
2. Preserve Relevant Evidence
Begin preserving evidence immediately. This may include:
Complete text-message and email threads
Voicemails and call logs
Photographs and videos
Social-media communications
Location, travel, or calendar information
Police, medical, school, or financial records
Communications from a co-parenting application
Witnesses with firsthand knowledge
Context matters. Preserve original evidence whenever possible, including dates, times, and available metadata. Do not delete or edit potentially relevant materials.
3. Be Careful About Communication
Do not post about the case on social media or ask other people to deliver messages on your behalf. Do not respond to communications from the petitioner if doing so would violate the order.
In some cases, the court may permit limited, peaceful written communication concerning court-ordered visitation or another specific issue. Carefully review the signed order to determine whether any such exception applies.
4. Understand Your Right to a Continuance
Under California Family Code section 245, a respondent is entitled to one reasonable continuance to prepare a response. Additional continuances may be granted upon a showing of good cause.
A continuance can provide necessary time to retain counsel, gather evidence, prepare witnesses, and respond fully to the allegations.
5. Understand the Importance of the Initial Hearing
Requesting additional time does not necessarily mean every temporary order must remain unchanged.
If the orders affect custody or visitation, access to your home, support, possession of property, or another urgent issue, you may ask the court to modify or terminate those temporary orders at the initial hearing while continuing the final DVRO hearing.
This distinction can be critical when an order restricts access to your home or children. A respondent should not assume that requesting adequate preparation time requires accepting every temporary order unchanged until the final hearing.
6. Consult an Experienced Family Law Attorney
Although a DVRO proceeding is civil, the allegations may be related to an existing or potential criminal investigation. Statements made in a written response or during testimony can affect both proceedings.
It is important to consult a family law attorney experienced in domestic violence matters. Coordination with criminal-defense counsel may also be necessary before submitting a response or testifying.
7. Consider the Child-Custody Consequences
When children are involved, the consequences can extend beyond the restraining order. Temporary orders may immediately change custody or visitation.
A final finding of domestic violence may also trigger the rebuttable presumption under California Family Code section 3044 against awarding sole or joint custody to the person found to have committed domestic violence.
Early preparation matters.
Holian Law, P.C. represents respondents in contested California DVRO proceedings involving complex allegations, credibility disputes, coercive control, child custody, and related family-law issues.
To schedule a confidential consultation, contact Holian Law, P.C. through our Contact page.
This article provides general information about California law and is not legal advice. Reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship.