Protection Order & How To Apply

A Protection Order is a temporary safety order. It orders the other person not to use violence or threaten to use violence against, molest or put in fear the other party or any children in the house.

A Protection Order is an emergency application which is made in the District Court. You must exhibit a genuine fear of the other party to seek this remedy. You must also satisfy the relationship/residency requirement. You should attend immediately at your local District Court Office. The Clerk will help you to complete an ‘Information’, which is a sworn statement outlining the reason why you are in fear or feel threatened by the other party. You will then be given a Court date within a day or so, some as soon as that afternoon. You will attend Court and swear the Information before the Judge ex-parte (without the other party being notified or being present). The Court will then decide whether or not to grant the Protection Order. If it is granted, as it is only a temporary remedy, a Summons for a Safety Order will issue and you will be given a hearing date. On this date, the Judge will hear the full facts of the case.

A Protection Order and a Safety Order can be granted to the following people: spouses, cohabitants for six months, parent of an adult child, a Health Board on behalf of an entitled aggrieved person who may be an adult or a dependent person. A Protection Order and a Safety Order can also be granted to persons of full age residing in mainly non-contractual relationships.

Once A Protection Order is granted, if the applying party feels threatened, they can call the Gardai and they will immediately attend at the home. If warranted they will arrest the party for breach of a Protection Order and they may be subject to a criminal sanction.