Restraining Orders

You can ask the court for an order of protection against someone who has committed or may commit an act of domestic violence if you meet a “relationship requirement.”  In other words, a judicial officer must find that you have one of the specific relationships listed below with the abuser:

• You are or were married to the abuser;
• You are related to the abuser or the abuser’s spouse by blood, marriage, or by court order in one of the following ways:
  • parent,
  • grandparent,
  • child,
  • grandchild,
  • brother or sister
  • parent-in-law,
  • grandparent-in-law,
  • step-parent,
  • step-grandparent,
  • step-child,
  • step-grandchild,
  • brother-in-law or sister-in-law;
• You have or had a romantic or sexual relationship with the abuser;
• You live, or used to live, in the same household as the abuser;
• You have a child with the abuser, or you are pregnant with the abuser’s child (or the abuser is pregnant with your child);
• You (the victim) are a minor who lives or has lived in the same household as the abuser and:
  • you are related by blood to a former spouse of the abuser (for example, the abuser is your ex-stepdad), or
  • you are related by blood to a person who resides or has resided in the same household as the abuser (for example, the abuser is your mother’s live-in boyfriend).¹

You can also file for an order of protection on behalf of someone else if:

• You are the parent, legal guardian, or person who has legal custody of a minor or an incapacitated person who is a victim; or
• The victim is either temporarily or permanently unable to request an order.²

If you are not eligible for a domestic violence order of protection, you may qualify for an injunction against harassment (IAH).

¹ A.R.S. § 13-3601(A)
² A.R.S. § 13-3602(A)