Glen Burnie Divorce Lawyer
Glen Burnie, Annapolis, and Anne Arundel County, Maryland
Protective Orders
A protective order is an order that allows certain victims of domestic violence protection and help from the Court. Not everyone is eligible for a protective order. You may be entitled to a protective order if you are:
a current or former spouse a cohabitant for 90 days a person related to the respondent by blood, marriage, or adoption a parent, stepparent, or stepchild (under certain circumstances) a vulnerable adult a person who has had a child with the respondent.
A petitioner files for a protective order to seek relief against abuse. For the purposes of a protective order, abuse is an act that causes serious bodily harm, an act that places the petitioner in fear of imminent serious bodily harm, an assault, a rape (or sexual offense), false imprisonment, or stalking. A person can file for a protective order in the District or Circuit Court.
An Interim Protective Order is a protective order issued by a commissioner when he has reasonable grounds to believe that the respondent has abused a person eligible for relief. If a petitioner receives an Interim Protective Order, they will be scheduled to appear before a Judge for a Temporary Protective Order hearing typically within 24 to 48 hours. Commissioners are not Judges, but can issue Interim Protective Orders during hours when Judges are not available. Typically, if you seek help during business hours, you will see a Judge and get a Temporary Protective Order, but if you seek relief in the late evening or early morning hours, you will see a Commissioner and get an Interim Order.
A temporary protective order is issued by a Judge when the Judge has reasonable grounds to believe that the respondent has abused a person eligible for relief. After a petitioner has received the temporary protective order, they appear in court the following week for the Final Protective Order hearing.
A Judge may grant a Final Protective Order to a petitioner, if the judge believes by clear and convincing evidence that the respondent abused a person eligible for relief. The Final Protective Order may be granted for a period of time up to a year.
The relief that may be granted from a Protective Order can include:’