If you are experiencing domestic abuse the courts can protect you and your children from the perpetrator of the domestic abuse immediately. The following Protection Orders are available to victims of domestic abuse.
Non-Molestation Orders
This Protection Order is where a party is ordered not to molest, harass or intimidate a named person or child. Molestation can include threats or other indirect approaches – it need not be confined to physical violence. This Protection Order can also prohibit certain actions, such as coming within a certain distance of a person or child.
Occupation Orders
An Occupation Order deals with the occupation of the home. It can, for example, define occupation rights in the home including exclusion of the perpetrator of domestic abuse not only from the home but also from an area surrounding it. The court may also make Orders as to the payment of the rent or mortgage in relation to furniture and other contents and the security of the house and content.
Civil Injunction under the Prevention from Harassment Act
This is the “stalking” injunction. This prohibits a course of action that amounts to harassment. It can include alarming or causing distress. Almost any form of activity that annoys another can be construed as harassment.
The court can have the authority in certain circumstances to make the above Orders ex parte i.e. without notice to the other side. The court also can attach a Power of Arrest to the above Orders if there has been violence or the threat of violence against the Applicant or a child. If the perpetrator does not abide by the Order he or she can be arrested by the police and possibly jailed for contempt of court, if a Power of Arrest is included in the Order. The Court will decide the duration of the Orders, and it may make Orders it deems appropriate in terms of for example contact with children during the term of the Order.
