Montana Restraining Orders

For the purposes of getting an order of protection, domestic violence is defined as:

1. when you are reasonably afraid of bodily injury from a partner or family member; or
2. when a partner or family member commits one of the following crimes against you:

• assault
• aggravated assault
• intimidation
• partner or family member assault
• criminal endangerment
• negligent endangerment
• assault on a minor
• assault with a weapon
• strangulation of a partner or family member
• unlawful restraint
• kidnapping
• aggravated kidnapping
• arson
• stalking.¹ Note: Victims of sexual assault or incest are also eligible - see next paragraph.²

In addition to victims of domestic violence, you can file for an order of protection against anyone who commits one of the following crimes against you, regardless of your relationship to the offender:

• assault;
• aggravated assault;
• assault on a minor;
• stalking;
• incest;
• sexual assault;
• sexual intercourse without consent;
• sexual abuse of children;
• human trafficking; or
• a partner or family member of a victim of deliberate homicide or mitigated deliberate homicide.²

Note: In addition, a parent or guardian can seek an order on behalf of a child under age 16 against an adult who has no legal supervision/control over the child if the parent believes that contact between them is not in the child’s best interests even if there is no domestic violence or crime committed.³ For more information, see Can a minor get an order of protection?

¹ Mont. Code § 40-15-102(1)​
² Mont. Code § 40-15-102(2)​
³ Mont. Code § 45-5-622(4)

A temporary or final order of protection can:

• order the abuser to:
  • stop committing or threatening to commit acts of violence against you or your family members;
  • stop harassing, annoying, disturbing the peace of, contacting, or otherwise communicating directly or indirectly with you, your family members, or any witness to the abuse;
  • not remove your child from the state (“jurisdiction of the court”);
  • leave and stay 1,500 feet away from you, your home, school, work, or another specific place;
  • be removed (“excluded”) from your home regardless of who owns the home;
  • not transfer, hide, or get rid of any property except as would normally be done in the “usual course of business”;
  • give you possession and use of the home, a car, and other essential property, no matter who owns any of these things, and order law enforcement to accompany you to the home to get these items;
  • complete violence counseling, and, if necessary, drug counseling or treatment;
  • not possess or use a firearm if s/he used one in an assault against you; and
• grant any other relief that is necessary to provide for the safety and welfare of you or your family members.¹

Whether a judge orders any or all of the above depends on the facts of your case.

¹ Mont. Code §§ 40-15-201(2); 40-15-204(3)

When you and the abuser live in different states, the judge may not have “personal jurisdiction” (power) over an out-of-state abuser. This means that the court may not be able to grant an order against him/her.

There are a few ways that a court can have personal jurisdiction over an out-of-state abuser:

1. The abuser has a substantial connection to your state. Perhaps the abuser regularly travels to your state to visit you, for business, to see extended family, or the abuser lived in your state and recently fled.
2. One of the acts of abuse “happened” in your state. Perhaps the abuser sends you threatening texts or harassing phone calls from another state but you read the messages or answer the calls while you are in your state. The judge could decide that the abuse “happened” to you while you were in your state. It may also be possible that the abuser was in your state when s/he abused you s/he but has since left the state.
3. If you file your petition and the abuser gets served with the court petition while s/he is in your state, this is another way for the court to get jurisdiction.

However, even if none of the above apply to your situation, it doesn’t necessarily mean that you can’t get an order. If you file, you may be granted an order on consent or the judge may find other circumstances that allow the order to be granted.

You can read more about personal jurisdiction in our Court System Basics - Personal Jurisdiction section.

Note: If the judge in your state refuses to issue an order, you can file for an order in the courthouse in the state where the abuser lives. However, remember that you will likely need to file the petition in person and attend various court dates, which could be difficult if the abuser’s state is far away.