You can ask (apply) to the Local Court for a personal violence restraining order. You can ask a lawyer to help you.
A personal violence restraining order has rules that stop a person from doing certain things to another person (the protected person).
Breaking the rules of a personal violence restraining order is a criminal offence.
 Listen |
 Look |
 Read |
 Watch |
Who Can Help? (Service Providers)
 |
Helpline |
 |
TEWLS (Top End Women’s Legal Service) |
 |
KWILS (Katherine Women’s Information & Legal Service) |
 |
DVLS (Domestic Violence Legal Service) |
 |
CAWLS (Central Australian Women’s Legal Service) |
 | Read |
| Personal Violence Order
This is a short description of personal violence restraining orders and how to get one. |
Glossary: What these words mean
| Personal violence restraining order (PVRO) | A personal violence restraining order (PVRO) is a law-paper made by a judge. It tells one person the rules about contact with another person. A PVRO tries to protect people who are not in a domestic relationship (like neighbours and work mates). A PVRO can make rules like: Don’t go near the other person; don’t call or text them; don’t make any other contact with the person. |
| Local Court | The Local Court makes decisions about crimes committed by adults. It also makes decisions about some civil law cases. The Youth Justice Court makes decisions about young people (under 18 years old) who have committed crimes. |
| threaten | Saying or doing something that makes someone feel like they are going to be hurt. |
| neighbour | Your neighbour is a person living next door to or very near to your home. |
| criminal offence | When a person breaks a criminal law, that is called a criminal offence. |
| protected person | The person protected by the domestic violence order (DVO). |
| domestic relationship | Domestic relationships are relationships covered by domestic violence law:
|