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Legal Information: California

Restraining Orders

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Laws current as of April 1, 2025

Step 1: Get the “Request for Domestic Violence Restraining Order.”

The petition is called a Request for Domestic Violence Restraining Order. You can get it from the court clerk in the county where you choose to file. To find the courthouse in your county, go to our California Courthouse Locations page. You may be able to file your petition electronically over the internet instead of going to the courthouse.1 You may want to call the court clerk to ask if this is an option and how to do it.

1  Cal. Fam. Code § 6306.5(a)(1)

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