Quick Answer: If you have been served with a temporary domestic violence restraining order in California, you have a right to a hearing, which Family Code section 242 requires within 21 days of when the temporary order was granted, or 25 days if the court finds good cause. You can file a written response on form DV-120 before the hearing, and you are entitled to one continuance to prepare. Until the hearing, follow every term of the temporary order exactly, including any order to turn in firearms, and do not contact the protected person to "explain." At the hearing, the judge decides whether the requesting party has shown reasonable proof of past abuse by a preponderance of the evidence.
Being served with restraining order papers is disorienting. You may have been told to leave your home, stay away from your children, and give up firearms, all before a judge has heard a word from you. The temporary order is not a finding that you did anything wrong. It holds things in place until a hearing where both sides are heard, and how you use the time before that hearing often matters as much as the hearing itself.
What You Were Served, and What It Means
A domestic violence restraining order (DVRO) is governed by the Domestic Violence Prevention Act, which begins at Family Code section 6200. The person who asked for the order, the "petitioner," filed a request on form DV-100. If the judge granted temporary orders, you will also have a DV-110 Temporary Restraining Order and a DV-109 Notice of Court Hearing showing your hearing date. Our page on domestic violence restraining orders explains how these orders work from the petitioner's side, and our guide to the four types of restraining orders explains how a DVRO differs from civil harassment and other orders.
A judge can issue temporary orders based only on the petitioner's written statement, without hearing from you. Under Family Code section 6320, those orders can bar you from contacting, harassing, threatening, or "disturbing the peace" of the other party. The statute defines disturbing the peace broadly enough to include coercive control, which our post on coercive control as domestic violence explains. Starting January 1, 2027, AB 1657 will also bar courts from requiring a petitioner to notify you in advance before an ex parte request is decided. Read the DV-110 carefully. It tells you exactly what you cannot do right now.
Your Hearing Timeline and Continuances
Family Code section 242 requires the hearing within 21 days of when the temporary order was granted or denied, or within 25 days if the court finds good cause. Two continuance rules matter to respondents:
Under Family Code section 245(a), you are entitled to one continuance, as a matter of course, for a reasonable period to respond to the petition.
Under section 245(c), the temporary order generally stays in effect until the end of the continued hearing unless the court orders otherwise.
A continuance can give you time to gather records and witnesses or to hire counsel. The tradeoff is that the temporary restrictions usually last longer.
How to Respond, Step by Step
Step 1: Read and obey the temporary order. An intentional and knowing violation of a restraining order is a misdemeanor under Penal Code section 273.6, and it can be used against you at the hearing. Do not text, call, email, or post about the protected person, and do not ask friends or relatives to pass along messages, because indirect contact is usually prohibited too. If you share children, follow any temporary custody and visitation terms exactly.
Step 2: Deal with firearms immediately. Under Family Code section 6389(c), you must turn over firearms and ammunition right away if a law enforcement officer asks when you are served, or otherwise within 24 hours, and you must file the receipt with the court within 48 hours. Our posts on Form DV-800 and Family Code 6389 walk through the details. The order also bars you from owning, possessing, or buying body armor, and only a local police chief or sheriff can grant an exception (Penal Code section 31360).
Step 3: File a written response on form DV-120. Form DV-120, Response to Request for Domestic Violence Restraining Order, lets you agree or disagree with each requested order and tell your side in a declaration signed under penalty of perjury. A clear, factual, chronological declaration is far more persuasive than an angry one. Have someone other than you serve a copy on the petitioner, file the proof of service before the hearing, and check your court's local rules for filing deadlines.
Step 4: Gather evidence. Useful evidence often includes complete message threads rather than cropped screenshots, call logs, calendars, location data, and receipts that answer specific allegations, declarations from people with first-hand knowledge, and prior court filings, police reports, or school records about the events described. The question for the judge is narrow: did the specific acts alleged happen, and do they amount to abuse under the statute? Your evidence should answer that question directly.
Step 5: Think about criminal exposure first. If the same events are the subject of a police report or criminal charge, what you say in a declaration or on the witness stand can be used in the criminal case. Talk with counsel before you file a statement.
Step 6: Prepare for the hearing itself. DVRO hearings are short and move quickly. Bring organized copies of your exhibits for the judge, the petitioner, and yourself, and bring your witnesses. Under Family Code section 6306, the court will also review certain criminal history and firearm records before it rules.
What the Petitioner Must Prove
Under Family Code section 6300, the court may issue a protective order if the evidence shows "reasonable proof of a past act or acts of abuse," and the order can rest on the petitioner's testimony alone. Because no higher standard is specified, the preponderance of the evidence standard applies under Evidence Code section 115, meaning more likely than not. "Abuse" is defined in Family Code section 6203 and is broader than physical violence: it includes placing a person in reasonable apprehension of imminent serious bodily injury and any behavior that could be restrained under section 6320. In In re Marriage of Nadkarni (2009) 173 Cal.App.4th 1483, the Court of Appeal held that conduct destroying the mental or emotional calm of the other party can qualify even without physical violence.
That breadth cuts both ways. The allegations must be taken seriously, and the specific facts, dates, and context of each incident carry the case. Vague or inconsistent accounts can be tested at the hearing.
What Is at Stake if the Order Is Granted
Under Family Code section 6345, a restraining order after hearing can last up to five years, and it can be renewed for five or more years, or permanently, without a showing of further abuse. Other consequences include:
Custody. A finding that a parent committed domestic violence within the previous five years triggers the Family Code section 3044 presumption against awarding that parent sole or joint legal or physical custody. See our guide to rebutting the 3044 presumption.
Firearms. The restrained person cannot own, possess, purchase, or receive firearms or ammunition while the order is in effect (Family Code section 6389(a)).
Attorney's fees. Under Family Code section 6344, a prevailing petitioner who asks for fees is entitled to them, subject to the paying party's ability to pay. A prevailing respondent can recover fees only by proving the request was frivolous or solely intended to abuse, intimidate, or cause unnecessary delay.
Spousal support. A separate rule, Family Code section 4325, creates a rebuttable presumption against spousal support for a spouse convicted of misdemeanor domestic violence against the other spouse within five years before the divorce was filed or during the case.
Work and licensing. Background checks, employment, and professional licenses can be affected.
Can You Agree to Something Less?
Sometimes the parties resolve the request without a contested hearing, through a civil stay-away agreement, custody orders in the family case, or a dismissal. Be cautious. Agreeing to a restraining order, even "without admission," can still carry firearm and custody consequences. Under Family Code section 6305, a mutual restraining order requires a separate written application from each side and detailed findings that both acted as primary aggressors, so "we'll both agree to stay away" is not a shortcut. Have any settlement reviewed by counsel.
Key Takeaways
Save Every Message Now
Preserve texts, emails, and social posts with their dates before accounts are deleted or messages disappear.
Line Up Witnesses Early
Ask witnesses to attend the hearing in person so the judge can hear them and ask questions directly.
Check Your Job and Licenses
Ask a lawyer whether your employer, professional license, or security clearance requires you to report a protective order.
Bring Your Papers Everywhere
Carry the served order and your filed DV-120 to every court date and any contact with police.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I get a false restraining order dismissed? You can contest it at the hearing, and the petitioner has the burden of proof. If the evidence does not show abuse by a preponderance of the evidence, the court may deny the request and the temporary order ends. Nobody can promise a result, but preparation and organized evidence matter.
Can I contact the other person to work things out? Not if the temporary order prohibits contact, and most do. Contact through friends, family, or social media can violate the order. Communicate only through attorneys or as the order specifically allows.
Will a DVRO affect custody of my children? It can. A domestic violence finding triggers the section 3044 presumption against custody, which can be rebutted only by a preponderance of the evidence and only with the specific findings section 3044(b) requires.
What if the protected person contacts me? The order restrains you, not them. Do not respond except as the order allows, and save the messages, because they may be relevant evidence.
If you have been served with a temporary restraining order, the clock to your hearing is already running. To talk with Attorney Michael Geller about your response, call The Geller Firm at 415-840-0570 to schedule a consultation.