Last reviewed: Checked against the current California code on this date.
California has four kinds of restraining orders, and it is not always obvious which one applies. This tool asks a few short questions, then points you to the order that most likely fits and the form number that starts it. It runs entirely on your own device. Nothing you tap is saved or sent anywhere.
This tool runs entirely on your own device. Nothing you tap is saved, stored, or sent anywhere. It gives general information to help you find the right starting point, not legal advice.
Press Esc anytime to leave this page immediately.
This quiz is general information about California restraining orders, not legal advice, and using it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Which order fits can depend on details not covered here. For help, contact your court’s self-help center or a California attorney.
Why the quiz asks about the relationship first
Almost everything above comes down to one fact: who the other person is to you. Not what they did.
California sorts its restraining orders by relationship. The same threat from an ex-boyfriend and from a neighbor goes down two different paths, on two different forms. Once that clicks, the four orders stop looking interchangeable.
The four orders, in plain terms
Domestic violence restraining order (DVRO). For someone close to you. A spouse or ex-spouse, someone you date or dated, someone you lived with as a partner, a co-parent, or a close relative.
This is the strongest of the four, and its definition of abuse goes well past hitting. Threats, stalking, constant unwanted contact, and behavior that destroys your peace can all count. The DVRO guide covers the whole thing, from form DV-100 to what happens to the other person’s guns.
Civil harassment restraining order. For everyone who is not close to you in that way. A neighbor, a coworker, an acquaintance, a stranger. It starts with form CH-100.
The name sounds like a contradiction. It isn’t. “Civil” just means the case is about protection, not about charging anyone with a crime.
Elder or dependent adult abuse restraining order. For a person 65 or older, or a dependent adult (an adult who cannot fully care for themselves), who is being abused. Form EA-100.
Workplace violence restraining order. The odd one out. The employer files this one, not the worker. The form is WV-100.
If the threat is at your job, you can ask your employer to file. Or you can file your own order, civil harassment or domestic violence, depending on who the person is.
If two could fit, file the DVRO
Some situations sit in more than one box. An ex who also works with you. A person you dated who is now just a hostile acquaintance.
My opinion, plainly: when the domestic violence order is available to you, take it. It covers the widest range of conduct and it costs nothing to file. Picking a different order because its form looks shorter is trading protection for a few saved minutes.
It also has real teeth. Once a DVRO is served, the other person has 24 hours to turn every gun over to police or a licensed dealer.
What happens after you file
The process has the same two-stage shape for all four orders.
First, a judge reads your papers and decides whether to give you a temporary order. That decision comes the same day you file. You do not testify at this stage.
Your sworn written statement is what the judge reads, so the writing matters.
Then the court sets a hearing about 3 weeks out. That hearing is where the judge listens to both sides and decides whether the order should last.
The step-by-step filing guide walks the whole path from form to hearing. The DVRO hearing guide covers the day in court itself. There is also a short guide on how to dress and act in court.
What it costs
Usually nothing. There is no filing fee for a domestic violence or elder abuse case, ever. A civil harassment case is also free to file when it is based on violence or threats of violence.
What the quiz cannot decide
The quiz takes your answers at face value. A judge does not, and some situations are genuinely blurry.
- Roommate or dating relationship. A roommate you never dated is a civil harassment case. A roommate you dated, even briefly, may qualify for the DVRO. The quiz cannot weigh a complicated history, but a judge can.
- Criminal protective orders. If the person was arrested, the criminal judge can issue a criminal protective order (it comes from the criminal case, not from anything you file). This quiz does not cover that one. Having one does not settle whether you should also file your own request.
- Anything where the facts pull in two directions. The quiz picks the most likely order. It cannot see your evidence or your history.
When you land in one of those gaps, go to the self-help center at your courthouse. The staff there cannot give you legal advice. Helping people find the right form is a large part of what they do, and it is free.
If you were served instead of filing
Some people arrive at this page holding papers, not looking to file them. If that is you, the quiz above is pointed the wrong way. The page you want is what to do if you have been served.
The temporary order in those papers is already in effect, before any hearing, and violating it is a crime.
The hearing date printed on them is your chance to tell your side. Do not skip it, and do not contact the person who filed, even to ask why. That call is itself a violation.