There are three types of protective orders:

Emergency Temporary Restraining Orders: If you are in need of emergency protection outside of regular court hours, the court may grant you an emergency temporary restraining order if there is an “immediate and present danger of abuse.” The judge must consider any and all past history of abuse, or threats of abuse, in determining whether or not there is an immediate and present danger of abuse. (There is no requirement that the abuse itself be recent, immediate, or present.)  If you are issued this order, it will only be good until the close of the next business day that the court is open. For the protection to remain in effect, you must go to court before the close of the next business day to request a temporary restraining order and/or a protective order.¹

Temporary Restraining Orders: When you go to court to file for a long-term protective order, you can also ask for a temporary restraining order (TRO). The court may issue you a TRO during an ex parte hearing without the abuser present if there is an “immediate and present danger of abuse.” The judge must consider any and all past history of abuse, or threats of abuse, in determining whether or not there is an immediate and present danger of abuse. (There is no requirement that the abuse itself be recent, immediate, or present.)  As soon as a TRO is issued, the abuser will be notified that you have an order against him/her. The court will give you a date, usually within 21 days, for a full court hearing where you and the abuser each have a chance to be present and tell your sides of the story.²

Long-term Protective Orders: A long-term protective order can be issued only after a court hearing where you and the abuser both have the opportunity to tell your sides of the story to a judge. You must attend that hearing.  If you do not go to the hearing, your TRO may expire and you will have to start the process over.  A long-term order will last for up to 18 months, unless otherwise stated.³  However, the part of the order that says the abuser should not ”abuse, harass, or interfere with the petitioner or his/her employment; should not go near the residence or place of employment of the petitioner, the minor children, or any person on whose behalf a the petition was filed” can last for an indefinite period of time.⁴  Orders may also be extended.  See How do I change, extend, or cancel my protective order?

¹ LA R.S. 46:2135(A),(F)
² LA R.S. 46:2135(A)
³ LA R.S. 46:2136(F)(1)
⁴ LA R.S. 46:2136(F)(2)(a); see also LA R.S. 46:2135(A)(1)

You can file for a protective order in the parish where:

• the marital home is located if you are married; 
• the home you shared with the abuser is located if you are unmarried; 
• where you live; 
• where the abuser lives;
• where the abuse occurred; or
• where divorce or annulment proceedings could be filed.¹

¹ LA R.S. 46:2133(B)

In Louisiana, you may apply for a protective order against a current or former same-sex partner as long as the relationship meets the requirements listed in Who can get a protective order?  You must also be the victim of an act of domestic abuse, which is explained here What is the legal definition of domestic abuse in Louisiana?

You can find information about LGBTQIA victims of abuse and what types of barriers they may face on our LGBTQIA Victims page.

There are no filing fees and court costs for this process.¹ For other questions about filing, you can find contact information for courthouses on the LA Courthouse Locations page.

Although you do not need a lawyer to file for a protective order, it may be to your advantage to seek legal counsel, especially if the abuser has a lawyer.  If you cannot afford a lawyer but want one to help you with your case, you can find contact information for lawyers on our LA Finding a Lawyer page.  

If you are going to be in court without a lawyer, our Preparing for Court – By Yourself section may be useful to you.

¹ LA R.S. 46:2134(F)

To start your case, you will need to fill out the necessary forms from the courthouse or you can download the forms first from our LA Download Court Forms page and fill them out at home.

On the forms, you are the “petitioner” and the abuser is the “defendant.”  Read the petition carefully and ask questions of the court clerk if you don’t understand something. Write about the most recent incidents of violence, using descriptive language, such as slapping, hitting, grabbing, choking, threatening, etc., that fits your situation. Be specific. Include details and dates, if possible.

A domestic violence organization may be able to provide you with help or support as you fill out the forms. See LA Advocates and Shelters for an organization near you.

Do not sign the application until you have shown it to a clerk. The form may need to be notarized or signed in the presence of court personnel, which will likely require you to have photo identification.

The clerk will give a copy of the petition and the TRO to the sheriff’s office to serve the abuser. Remember, your protective order is not valid until the abuser has been served with it. The abuser must be notified and have the opportunity to be present in court on the date and time of the hearing and informed of any temporary or emergency orders that a judge has granted you.

Usually the court will send copies of the order and notice of hearing to the police or sheriff, but in some areas you may have to bring the papers to the sheriff or police yourself. You may want to ask the court clerk or a domestic violence organization for more information about serving the abuser. By the end of the next business day, the clerk will also get the order entered into the Louisiana Protective Order Registry and send a copy of it to the chief law enforcement officer of the parish where you live.¹

Do not try and serve the abuser in person with the papers yourself.

You can find more information about service of process in our Preparing for Court – By Yourself section, in the question called What is service of process and how do I accomplish it?

¹ LA R.S. 46:2136(H)

Review the protective order before you leave the courthouse.  If something is wrong or missing, you might be able to ask the clerk how to get it corrected.  Here are some things that you may want to do when leaving the courthouse:

• Keep a copy of the protective order with you at all times.
• Leave copies of the order at your workplace, at your home, at the children’s school or daycare, in your car, with a sympathetic neighbor, and so on.
• Give a copy to the security guard or person at the front desk where you live and/or work along with a photo of the abuser.
• Give a copy of the order to anyone who is named in and protected by the order.
• If the court has not given you an extra copy for your local law enforcement agency, you may want to take one of your extra copies and deliver it to them.
• You may wish to consider changing your locks and your phone number if permitted by law.
• Be aware of your safety while leaving the courthouse.  If you are concerned that the abuser may try to approach you, contact a court officer to see if you can be accompanied to your car.

Ongoing safety planning is important after receiving the protective order.  People can do a number of things to increase their safety during violent incidents, when preparing to leave an abusive relationship, and when they are at home, work, and school.  Many abusers obey protective orders, but some do not and it is important to build on the things you have already been doing to keep yourself safe.  View our Safety Planning page for some suggestions.  Advocates at local resource centers can assist you in designing a safety plan and can provide other forms of support.  For a list of domestic violence organizations, see our LA Advocates and Shelters page.

If the abuser violates the protective order, you can call 911 immediately. The law says that if a law enforcement officer has reason to believe that a family or household member or dating partner has been abused in violation of a temporary or final restraining order/protective order, the officer is supposed to immediately arrest the abuser.¹ It is also considered a violation of protective order if the abuser has a firearm in his/her possession or if s/he is carrying a concealed weapon in violation of the law that prohibits firearm possession when certain long-term orders are in effect.²

Make sure a police report is filled out, even if no arrest is made. Even if the police do not arrest at the scene, law enforcement officers are supposed to at least issue a summons to the abuser if there is probable cause that the order was violated.³ It is a good idea to write down the name of the responding officer(s) and their badge number in case you want to follow up on your case.

If the abuser is arrested, and found guilty of a violation, s/he can be forced to pay a fine and/or go to jail. The penalties can vary, depending on whether or not it is his/her first conviction for violation of a protective order or not. The penalty increases for a second, third, fourth, etc., conviction as well as the penalty can be more severe if the violation involves battery or any crime of violence.⁴ To read about the penalties, go to our Selected Louisiana Statutes page.

Through the Civil Court System (Civil): You may file for civil contempt for a violation of the order. The abuser can be held in “civil contempt” if s/he does anything that your protective order orders him/her not to do.⁵

¹ LA R.S. 46:2140(A)
² LA R.S. 14:79(A)(4)
³ LA R.S. 14:79(E)
⁴ LA R.S. 14:79(B)
⁵ See, for example, LA ST Ch.C. Art. 1571

Your civil protection order is enforceable in all U.S. states and territories. The law requires that all other states give “full faith and credit” to the order, meaning that it will be enforced just like it would be in Louisiana. However, each state has its own laws and procedures.

Any person with a valid protection order, which means an order that has not expired, who relocates to another state may want to inquire at a court or law enforcement agency for instructions on the registration and enforcement of orders in that state. For more information, see our Moving to Another State with a Domestic Violence Protective Order page.

Similar to a protective order for domestic abuse, a sexual assault protective order is a court order that can protect you from an abuser if you are the victim of nonconsensual sexual contact.¹ Unlike the protective order for domestic abuse, you do not need to have a specific relationship with the abuser to get a sexual assault protective order.²

¹ LA R.S. § 46:2184
² LA R.S. § 46:2183(A)

There are two types of sexual assault protective orders: temporary restraining orders and protective orders.

The judge may issue you a temporary restraining order without the abuser present (ex parte) if there is “good cause” to do so. Proving that you are the victim of sexual assault is considered to be “good cause” to grant this ex parte order.¹

If the judge does grant you a temporary restraining order, the abuser will be notified that you have an order against him/her and the court will give you a date, usually within 21 days, for a hearing. If the judge does not grant you a temporary restraining order on the day that you file your petition, the judge should set the matter down for a hearing within ten days of the abuser being served with the petition. The hearing is referred to as “the hearing on the rule to show cause,” where you and the abuser each have a chance to be present and tell your sides of the story.²

After the hearing, a judge can issue a protective order that lasts up to 18 months, and can later be renewed after a hearing in front of a judge.³ The parts of the protective order that tell the abuser to not abuse, harass, or interfere with you can last forever.⁴

¹ LA R.S. § 46:2183(B)
² LA R.S. § 46:2135(B), (D)
³ LA R.S. § 46:2136(F)(1)
⁴ LA R.S. § 46:2136(F)(2)(A)

The law says that a victim of sexual assault can get all of the same protections in his/her protective order as a victim of domestic violence can get.¹ So, in a temporary restraining order, a judge may order the abuser to:

• stop threatening, harassing, or hurting you;
• not contact or interfere with you or your children – and give you temporary custody;
• stay away from your home, work, school, etc.;
• not give away, sell, or destroy any mutually-owned property;
• move out of the residence if you live together; Note: If the abuser solely owns or leases the home, s/he will not be asked to move out unless s/he has a legal duty to support you or your children;
• return your personal property to you;
• stop abusing your pet; and
• give you possession of your pet.²

In a long-term protective order, a judge may:

• order all of the relief listed above; and
• include the following additional terms:
  • establish temporary visitation;
  • order the abuser to pay temporary child support if you have children with the abuser;
  • order the abuser to pay temporary spousal support if you are married to the abuser;
  • give you possession of a shared home, even if the abuser owns it, if you are the abuser’s spouse or have custody of your and the abuser’s minor children;
  • order a medical or mental health evaluation, or both, of the abuser to be conducted by an independent court-appointed evaluator who qualifies as an expert in the field of domestic abuse and who has no family, financial, or prior medical or mental health relationship with the abuser or his/her attorney of record; and
  • order the abuser to attend counseling.²

In addition, the law says that the abuser must (“shall”) pay for all of your court costs, attorney fees, costs of enforcing or modifying the order, costs of appeals, evaluation fees, and expert witness fees based on filing or defending any proceeding concerning a domestic abuse protection order. The abuser must also pay for all costs of medical and psychological care for you or for your children when the care is needed due to the domestic violence.³

Note: Louisiana law prohibits abuser from possessing a firearm or carrying a concealed weapon while the long-term protective order is in effect if:

• the order includes a finding that s/he represents a believable (credible) threat to the physical safety of a family member, household member, or dating partner; and
• the order includes a notice about this law and about the federal firearm law.⁴

¹ LA R.S. § 46:2183(A)
² LA R.S. §§ 46:2135; 46:2136
³ LA R.S. § 46:2136.1
⁴ LA R.S. § 46:2136.3

The steps to get a sexual assault protective order are similar to the steps to get a protective order for domestic abuse, but you may fill out different paperwork.  If you have questions, you can call the clerk of court or talk to a lawyer.  You can find the contact information for local courthouses on the LA Courthouse Locations page and for lawyers on the LA Finding a Lawyer page.

Louisiana law says that an advocate from a sexual assault center that is “established and accredited in accordance with the standards set by the Louisiana Foundation Against Sexual Assault” cannot share the information you tell them; any communications that an advocate has with you while s/he is providing you with services are considered “privileged.” When a communication is privileged, that means that there is generally not a requirement to reveal it in court through testimony or to produce any records or documents related to that privileged communication in a civil or criminal proceeding.¹  

If the offender’s lawyer tries to get information from the advocate by sending a subpoena, both you and the advocate have the right to tell the judge the information is “privileged” and should not be revealed. It is often best to have a lawyer when trying to fight against (“quash”) a subpoena.  For legal referrals, go to our LA Finding a Lawyer page.

¹ LA R.S. § 46:2187(A)(1), (A)(2), (B)

A protective order is good anywhere in the United States as long as:

• It was issued to prevent violent or threatening acts, harassing behavior, sexual violence, or it was issued to prevent another person from coming near you or contacting you.¹
• The court that issued the order had jurisdiction over the people and case. (In other words, the court had the authority to hear the case.)
• The abuser received notice of the order and had an opportunity to go to court to tell his/her side of the story.
  • In the case of ex parte temporary and emergency orders, the abuser must receive notice and have an opportunity to go to court to tell his/her side of the story at a hearing that is scheduled before the temporary order expires.²

Note: For information on enforcing a military protective order (MPO) off the military installation, or enforcing a civil protection order (CPO) on a military installation, please see our Military Protective Orders page.

¹ 18 U.S.C. § 2266(5)
² 18 U.S.C. § 2265(a) & (b)

It may be helpful to have a certified copy of your protective order. A certified copy says that it is a “true and correct” copy. The copy you originally received should have been a certified copy. If your copy is not a certified copy, go to the court that gave you the order and ask the clerk’s office for a certified copy. 

It might be a good idea to give the court a current address so that you can be notified of any actions that are taken regarding your protective order. If you provide your new address to the court, you can ask that it be kept confidential.¹ You can also give the court an address of a trusted friend or P.O. box if you feel unsafe giving out your street address.

¹ LA R.S. § 46:2134(B)

Whether or not you can take your kids out of state may depend on the exact wording of the custody provision in your protective order. You may have to first seek the permission of the court before leaving. If the abuser was granted visitation rights with your children, then you may have to have the order changed, or show the court that there is a fair and realistic alternative to the current visitation schedule.

If you are unsure about whether or not you can take your kids out of the state, it is important to talk to a lawyer who understands domestic violence and custody laws, and can help you make the safest decision for you and your children. You can find contact information for lawyers on our LA Finding a Lawyer page.

Your protection order can be enforced in Louisiana as long as:

• It was issued to prevent violent or threatening acts, harassing behavior, sexual violence, or it was issued to prevent another person from coming near you or contacting you.¹
• The court that issued the order had jurisdiction over the people and case. (In other words, the court had the authority to hear the case.)
• The abuser received notice of the order and had an opportunity to go to court to tell his/her side of the story.
  • In the case of ex parte temporary and emergency orders, the abuser must receive notice and have an opportunity to go to court to tell his/her side of the story at a hearing that is scheduled before the temporary order expires.²

Note: For information on enforcing a military protective order (MPO) off the military installation, or enforcing a civil protection order (CPO) on a military installation, please see our Military Protective Orders page.

¹ 18 U.S.C. § 2266(5)
² 18 U.S.C. § 2265(a) & (b)

As long as the child custody provision complies with certain federal laws,¹ Louisiana can enforce a temporary custody order that is a part of a protection order.

To have someone read over your order and tell you if it meets these standards, contact a lawyer in your area. To find a lawyer in your area click here LA Finding a Lawyer.

¹ The federal laws are the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction Act (UCCJA) or the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act (UCCJEA), and the Parental Kidnapping Prevention Act of 1980.

The National Crime Information Center Registry (NCIC) is a nationwide, electronic database that contains protective order information that is used by law enforcement agencies in the U.S, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It is managed by the FBI and state law enforcement officials.

Before moving to Louisiana, the state that issued your protection order may already have entered your order into the NCIC. If not, your order may be entered into the NCIC once your order is registered in Louisiana.

All law enforcement officials have access to it, but the information is encrypted so outsiders cannot access it.

Under federal law, you do not have to register your protection order to have it enforced.¹  Although Louisiana allows you to register your order (make it “executory”) in a Louisiana court, you are not required to do this in order to have it enforced.  For more information, see How do I register my protection order in Louisiana?

¹ 18 U.S.C. § 2265(d)(2)

Since neither federal nor state law requires that you register your protective order, it should not be more difficult to have your protective order enforced even if you decide not to register it in Louisiana. However, if your order is not registered, it will not be entered into the Louisiana Protective Order Registry, which means it might take more time for a Louisiana police officer to verify that it is a valid order.

If you are unsure about whether registering your order is the right decision for you, you may want to contact a local domestic violence organization in your area.  An advocate there can help you decide what the safest plan of action is for you in Louisiana. To see a list of local domestic violence organizations, go to our LA Advocates and Shelters page.