A domestic violence injunction — what most people call a restraining order — is a civil court order, separate from any criminal case that may also be happening. Filing one, and responding to one, both move on specific statutory timelines under F.S. 741.30. Here’s what the process actually involves.
Who Can File
Florida’s domestic violence injunction statute applies to a specific category of relationships. F.S. 741.30(3)(b) defines an eligible petitioner as someone who is “the spouse or former spouse of the petitioner or is any other person related by blood or marriage… or is any other person who is or was residing within a single dwelling unit with the petitioner, as if a family, or is a person with whom the petitioner has a child in common.” The underlying conduct has to meet the statutory definition of domestic violence in F.S. 741.28, which covers “any assault, aggravated assault, battery, aggravated battery, sexual assault, sexual battery, stalking, aggravated stalking, kidnapping, false imprisonment, or any criminal offense resulting in physical injury or death of one family or household member by another.”
The Temporary Injunction: Fast, But Time-Limited
A petitioner can ask for an immediate, ex parte temporary injunction — meaning it can be granted before the other party is notified or has a chance to respond. F.S. 741.30(4) requires that once the petition is filed, “the court shall set a hearing to be held at the earliest possible time.” If a temporary injunction is granted on that ex parte basis, F.S. 741.30(5)(c) limits how long it lasts on its own: it “shall be effective for a fixed period not to exceed 15 days.”
The Full Hearing
The temporary injunction is designed to bridge the gap until both sides can be heard. At the full hearing, F.S. 741.30(6)(a) allows the court, upon finding that the petitioner is a victim of domestic violence or has reasonable cause to believe they are in imminent danger of becoming one, to “grant such relief as the court deems proper,” which can include a longer injunction along with specific protective conditions — among them, provisions addressing contact, proximity, and, where children are involved, timesharing and support, depending on the facts of the case.
Violating an Injunction Is Its Own Criminal Charge
An injunction isn’t just a civil order with no teeth — violating one is a separate criminal offense under F.S. 741.31(4)(a). A first violation “commits a misdemeanor of the first degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083.” Repeat violations escalate: under F.S. 741.31(4)(c), someone “who has two or more prior convictions for violation of an injunction… and who subsequently commits a violation… commits a felony of the third degree.” This is on top of, not instead of, whatever criminal charges may already exist from the underlying incident that led to the injunction.
What This Process Actually Looks Like End to End
In practice, the timeline runs: a petition is filed; a judge can grant immediate, temporary protection the same day without the other party present; that temporary order lasts at most 15 days; and a full hearing, where both sides can appear, follows “at the earliest possible time” to decide whether longer-term protection is warranted. Once any injunction is in place, violating its specific terms carries its own separate criminal exposure, regardless of how the underlying incident is otherwise being handled.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who qualifies to file for a domestic violence injunction in Florida?
F.S. 741.30 covers spouses and former spouses, people related by blood or marriage, people who currently or formerly lived together as a family, and people who share a child in common.
How long does a temporary domestic violence injunction last?
An ex parte temporary injunction is effective for a fixed period not to exceed 15 days, under F.S. 741.30(5)(c), pending a full hearing.
How quickly does the court act after a petition is filed?
F.S. 741.30(4) requires the court to set a hearing “at the earliest possible time” once a petition is filed.
What happens if someone violates a domestic violence injunction?
A first violation is a first-degree misdemeanor under F.S. 741.31(4)(a). A person with two or more prior violation convictions who violates an injunction again commits a third-degree felony under F.S. 741.31(4)(c).