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Types of Protective Orders
Family Abuse
(parties seeking protective orders against family or household members, as defined by the Code of Virginia).
Family/Household Member
The Code of Virginia defines family or household member as
- the person's spouse, whether or not he or she resides in the same home with the person
- the person's former spouse, whether or not he or she resides in the same home with the person
- the person's parents, stepparents, children, stepchildren, brothers, sisters, half-brothers, half-sisters, grandparents and grandchildren, regardless of whether such persons reside in the same home with the person
- the person's mother-in-law, father-in-law, sons-in-law, daughters-in-law, brothers-in-law and sisters-in-law who reside in the same home with the person
- any individual who has a child in common with the person, whether or not the person and that individual have been married or have resided together at any time
- any individual who cohabits or who, within the previous 12 months, cohabited with the person, and any children of either of them then residing in the same home with the person
Petitioning the Court for Family Abuse
For a family abuse protective order, you must come to court to file.
- Report to the Court Service Unit, Intake Division, at the J&DR Courthouse, to complete your petition(s).
- You may fill out forms online through Virginia’s I-CAN system prior to reporting to Intake.
- The Court Service Unit accepts walk-in appointments at the following dates/times:
Monday-Friday
8 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
J&DR Courthouse/Court Service Unit (1st Floor)
7000 Lucy Corr Boulevard
Chesterfield, VA 23832 - Report to the Clerk’s Office to file your petition(s).
- The Court hears all protective orders at 2 p.m. in Duty Courtroom on the 2nd floor of the courthouse.
- While the court does have an internal cut-off time for processing paperwork, decisions to hear protective order requests made after 2 p.m. (but before 4:30 p.m.) will be decided on a case-by-case basis.
- If you need assistance, you may speak to a Victim/Witness or Domestic Violence advocate prior to court. Court staff can help direct you to the appropriate office.
Non-Family Abuse Protective Orders
Information for parties seeking protective orders against adults OR minors who are not related to them.
From the Code of Virginia, § 19.2-152.9: Upon the filing of a petition alleging that
- the petitioner is or has been, within a reasonable period of time, subjected to an act of violence, force, or threat, or
- a petition or warrant has been issued for the arrest of the alleged perpetrator for any criminal offense resulting from the commission of an act of violence, force, or threat, the court may issue a preliminary protective order against the alleged perpetrator in order to protect the health and safety of the petitioner or any family or household member of the petitioner.
NOTE:
- Minors cannot petition the Court directly, but must do so through the assistance of an adult.
- If you are a minor who wishes to file a protective order, please speak to an adult you trust to initiate this process.
- Adults may petition the Court to issue orders protecting them from minors.
- If the party you seek protection from is a minor (under age 18), you must come to the J&DR District Court.
- If the party is an adult (18 or older), or not a family member, you must go to the General District Court.
Petitioning the Court for Non-family Abuse
For a non-family abuse protective order, you must come to court to file.
- Report to the Court Service Unit, Intake Division, at the J&DR Courthouse, to complete your petition(s).
- You may fill out forms online through Virginia’s I-CAN system prior to reporting to Intake.
- The Court Service Unit accepts walk-in appointments at the following dates/times:
Monday-Friday
8 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
J&DR Courthouse/Court Service Unit (1st Floor)
7000 Lucy Corr Boulevard
Chesterfield, VA 23832 - Report to the Clerk’s Office to file your petition(s).
- The Court hears all protective orders at 2 p.m. in Duty Courtroom on the 2nd floor of the courthouse.
- While the court does have an internal cut-off time for processing paperwork, decisions to hear protective order requests made after 2 p.m. (but before 4:30 p.m.) will be decided on a case-by-case basis.
- If you need assistance, you may speak to a Victim/Witness prior to court. Court staff can help direct you to the appropriate office.