Family & Safety

An Order of Protection is a court order granted by a judge that is designed to protect a survivor of domestic violence (petitioner) against their alleged abuser (respondent) by prohibiting certain behavior. An Order of Protection is sometimes also known as a protective order.

There are three types of Orders of Protection that can be used together to protect petitioners:

• A plenary Order of Protection (POP) is an order that can be in place for up to two years. It can be granted after a hearing with the judge where the respondent is notified and given an opportunity to come to court.
• An Emergency Order of Protection (EOP) is a temporary order that can last up to three weeks. It is designed to provide immediate protection, especially in a time between when the respondent is notified of the petition for the POP and the hearing for the plenary Order of Protection. A judge can grant an EOP after a hearing where the respondent does not need to be notified or present.
• An Interim Order of Protection is a temporary order that can last up to 30 days. It is designed to provide immediate protection, especially in the time between when the respondent is notified of the petition for the POP and the hearing. A judge can grant an Interim Order of Protection after a hearing where the respondent does not need to be notified or present, so long as the petitioner shows the judge she is attempting to notify the respondent about the case.

A petitioner can file the request for both the POP and EOP at the same time. Read more about Orders of Protection.

To get an Order of Protection, the reporting party (petitioner) must file a Petition for an Order of  Protection. In their petition, the petitioner must explain to a judge why they want an Order of Protection against the alleged abuser (respondent). If the judge believes the petitioner has been abused or harassed, they must grant the Order of Protection.

After filing a Petition for an Order of Protection, the petitioner will explain to the judge in court why they are requesting the Order of Protection. The judge can then: 

• Give the petitioner an Emergency Order of Protection, which will protect the petitioner for 21 days while the respondent is notified about the case.
• Not give the petitioner an Emergency Order of Protection, but continue the case to decide whether to give the petitioner a plenary Order of Protection after hearing both sides of the story.
• Deny the request for an Order of Protection completely and dismiss the case.

The respondent must be notified of the petition and given information to attend the hearing where the plenary Order of Protection will be decided. The respondent does not need to be notified and given a hearing when the Emergency Order of Protection will be decided. Learn more about how to respond to an Order of Protection filed against someone.

If the alleged abuser (respondent) is receiving the petition asking for the Order of Protection and information regarding an upcoming court date, then the judge has not signed the plenary order yet. Learn more about how to respond to an Order of Protection filed against someone.

If a judge has already signed the Order of Protection or the Emergency Order of Protection, the order must be immediately followed by the respondent. If a respondent is convicted of a crime for violating an Order of Protection in criminal court or is found in Contempt of Court in civil or criminal court, they may face the following consequences:

• Jail time,
• Payment of restitution to the petitioner,
• Fines,
• Payment of attorney fees and court costs,
• Community Service,
• Supervision, or
• Criminal record

In Illinois, violating an Order of Protection can be a Class A misdemeanor.  A second or subsequent offense can be a Class 4 felony.

An Order of Protection can affect the alleged abuser (respondent) in many different ways. It is important for the respondent to carefully read the order and talk to a lawyer if they do not understand it. Each order has specific details, and the respondent must understand what is expected of them. If a respondent does not understand the requirements of the order, they may violate the order and face criminal charges.

The order may say how physically far away the respondent must be from the reporting party (petitioner). It will also include any other rules for no contact. These can include no:

• Phone calls,
• Speaking in person,
• Text messages,
• Letters, faxes, voicemails, and emails
• Social media posts/messages, and
• Contact through a third party, such as a friend, relative, co-worker, neighbor, etc.

A respondent may also face immigration consequences if an Order of Protection is granted against them. An Order of Protection may show up on some background checks as well. 

Yes. An Order of Protection can require an alleged abuser (respondent) to move away from the home they share with the reporting party (petitioner). The respondent may be allowed to return to the home to collect their personal things, but they will have to live somewhere else.

Yes. Once an Order of Protection order has been served against the alleged abuser (respondent), they are not allowed to have firearms or guns. The respondent cannot buy, acquire, or be in possession of firearms, ammunition, or other dangerous weapons (such as explosives). This includes collectors' items and firearms that do not belong to them. If the respondent already owns firearms, storing them in a safe inside their home is not allowed. The respondent may leave their firearms with a lawyer, an approved firearms dealer, or with local police or sheriff.  Their Firearm Owner’s Identification Card (FOID) and concealed carry license will also be removed.

On May 11, 2025, a new law called Karina’s Law goes into effect in Illinois. This new law requires that the firearms, firearm parts, FOID, and concealed carry license be turned over to law enforcement at the time the respondent is served with the Order of Protection or within 24 hours if the respondent does not have these items with them. The new law also allows the reporting party (petitioner) to ask more specifically for a search warrant in the Order of Protection so that law enforcement can take these items from the respondent and store them.  Law enforcement must then do the search and removal within 96 hours if there has been a domestic violence report made to local law enforcement in the previous 90 days. If there has not been a report, law enforcement will have 48 hours to evaluate the warrant and ask for any corrections. If changes are made, law enforcement will then have 96 hours from that change to carry out the warrant and make the removals.

Yes. An Order of Protection granted against an alleged abuser (respondent) may forbid them from seeing or contacting their children, including children they have with other people other than the reporting party (petitioner). The order may explain parenting time and decision-making power for the children.

No. An Order of Protection is a one-way action that only affects the alleged abuser’s (respondent) actions. The reporting party (petitioner) is not affected by it.

If the petitioner contacts the respondent, talks to them, or comes over to their house, the petitioner is not in violation of the order. However, if the respondent responds to the petitioner’s attempts to contact them or is closer to the petitioner than the order allows, the respondent is violating the Order of Protection. The respondent may be held in contempt of court or criminally charged.

If the alleged abuser (respondent) has been served with either a petition for Order of Protection or Emergency Order of Protection, they should keep any recorded information that may be helpful in their case, with visible date and time information. The respondent should be prepared to present this evidence to the judge at the hearing on the plenary Order of Protection. This includes:

• Phone records, voicemails, or answering machine recordings,
• Emails and letters,
• Credit card receipts,
• Photographs,
• Video recordings, and
• Social media messages or posts.

The respondent should carry a copy of the protective order with them at all times. Having the order there to tell a police officer what they are allowed to and not allowed to do under the order will help protect their rights.

A respondent can choose whether or not to appear in court for the next court date. However, if the respondent receives notice of the case and does not come to court, a plenary order may be entered against them.  Learn more about how to respond to an Order of Protection.

If a respondent receives notice that a plenary order has been entered against them after they failed to appear for court, they have 30 days to file a motion asking the judge to reconsider the plenary order. After 30 days, the respondent can still file, but it will be more difficult to remove the plenary order. Learn more about how to file a motion. 

The Illinois Department of Human Services has a Partner Abuse Intervention Program (PAIP) that may be helpful. You can apply by calling the State of Illinois Domestic Violence Helpline at: (877) TO END DV (877-863-6338) or (877) 863-6339 (TTY)
 

An alleged abuser (respondent) may want to get a lawyer if they’ve been legally served with a petition for an Order of Protection or had an Order of Protection granted against them. It’s important to understand what the order means and requires. It can affect many aspects of their life.

You can use Get Legal Help to find a free legal aid organization or private lawyer near you.