About a Restraining Order
Restraining orders are court orders that command a party to act or not act in a certain way; these orders are also known as injunctions. Those who have been enjoined, or wish to seek an injunction, should seek legal advice.
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Injunction
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An injunction is an equitable remedy, meaning that only courts of equity may issue an injunction. Injunctions are appropriate when a plaintiff believes that she has suffered, or will suffer, injury from a defendant, but no remedy offered under the law would prevent or redress that injury. Injunctions can generally be divided into two groups: prohibitory injunctions, which order the defendant not to act, and affirmative injunctions, which compel the defendant to act in a certain manner.
Preliminary Injunction
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Preliminary injunctions enjoin a defendant's behavior until the court can complete further legal proceedings. Courts must hold hearings before granting preliminary injunctions, and the defendant must receive notice of the hearing so that he can attend. Courts generally grant preliminary injunctions in order to keep things as they are while some sort of legal issue is decided. For instance: Tom is a drummer, and he plays his drums until 3 a.m. every night. Lynn, his neighbor, can't get any sleep, and claims that Tom is violating a noise ordinance by late-night drumming. Lynn may apply to the court for a preliminary injunction, which would stop Tom from playing his drums every night until the court decides whether he has the right to play that late.
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Temporary Restraining Order
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Temporary restraining orders (TROs) are appropriate when the plaintiff faces some sort of harm that would be so irreparable if it occurs that no legal action would be able to undo that harm after the fact. This harm must also be so imminent that there's no time to hold a hearing. In such a case, the court may issue a TRO, which immediately enjoins the defendant from taking the action that would cause the potential injury. Because TROs lack many procedural protections for the defendant, they must be of short duration. Most TROs only last ten days, although some jurisdictions will allow a court to add an extra ten days with a showing of good cause. TROs, like preliminary injunctions, are generally a starting point; judicial proceedings will usually follow, in order to resolve the underlying legal issue in the case.
Permanent Injunction
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Once the court has held a full judicial proceeding, the preliminary injunction may either cease to operate or may become permanent, depending on the court's decision. For instance, in the example above, if the court finds that Tom's drumming at night was indeed a noise ordinance violation, the court may then issue a permanent injunction against Tom, enjoining him from drumming at night. Permanent injunctions generally remain in effect until some new legal proceedings commence to modify them.
Contempt of Court
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Contempt of court is disobedience of any court order. Violation of an injunction will effectively place the defendant in contempt. Contempt allows a court to fine the defendant, or even imprison him in certain cases. Moreover, should the defendant violate a preliminary injunction or TRO, the court may take his lack of compliance into account as a reason to issue a permanent injunction.
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References
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- Photo Credit gavel image by Cora Reed from Fotolia.com
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Comments
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Gabby Orth
Feb 14, 2011
Restraining orders are a joke! This whole article was a joke! The cops in this local town are useless... We currently have a R.O. in place for our minor daughter and her legal age boyfriend. They have both broken it numerous times and yet they are still out an about without suffering ANY consequences. The cops reason... it's a civil order and there is nothing they can do! Again let me state R.O.'s are a complete waste of a tree!
