WomensLaw serves and supports all survivors, no matter their sex or gender.

Legal Information: Iowa

Custody

View all
Updated: 
November 3, 2023

Can I get temporary custody as part of a domestic violence protective order?

You can get a temporary custody and visitation order in a temporary or final protective order based on domestic abuse. The judge must consider your and your child’s safety when making a temporary custody and visitation order. If the judge believes you or your child will be at risk if the abuser gets unsupervised or unrestricted visitation, the judge must give supervised visitation, restrict visitation, or deny visitation entirely. The judge will also decide whether any existing custody or visitation orders need to be changed (modified).1 

1 IA ST §§ 236.4(2)-(4); 236.5(1)(b)(5)

Legal Information

© 2008–2024 WomensLaw.org is a project of the National Network to End Domestic Violence, Inc. All rights reserved. This website is funded in part through a grant from the Office for Victims of Crime, Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Department of Justice. Neither the U.S. Department of Justice nor any of its components operate, control, are responsible for, or necessarily endorse, this website (including, without limitation, its content, technical infrastructure, and policies, and any services or tools provided). NNEDV is a 501©(3) non-profit organization; EIN 52-1973408.