How to Get an Immediate Danger Order in Oregon

To get an immediate danger order in Oregon, you file an ex parte motion under ORS 107.097(3), appear in person before a judge, and submit a sworn declaration describing specific facts showing your child faces immediate danger. If the judge agrees, the order transferring temporary custody is signed that day, before the other parent is heard. The other parent is then served and can request a hearing, which the court must hold within 21 days.¹

What Counts as Immediate Danger

ORS 107.097(3) does not list categories of harm. The statute requires the requesting parent to appear in court in person and submit a sworn declaration alleging the child is in immediate danger, and the judge decides whether the facts support that finding.¹

In practice, the danger must be happening now or about to happen. A parent who was abusive five years ago but has had no concerning behavior since will not meet the standard. A parent who showed up intoxicated yesterday and threatened to take the children out of state likely will. The question the judge is weighing is proximity: how close is the child to being hurt if the court does nothing today?

Judges expect concrete facts, not conclusions. “I believe my child is in danger” accomplishes nothing. A specific incident with dates, locations, and witnesses is what moves a judge to sign the order. Police reports, medical records, photographs, text messages, and voicemails that corroborate your account are often what separates a granted order from a denied one.

Choose the Right Order Before You File

ORS 107.097 creates two different ex parte tools, and filing under the wrong one wastes time and can hurt your credibility.

The subsection (3) order is the actual immediate danger order. It transfers temporary custody or changes parenting time. Because it strips a parent’s custody rights without a prior hearing, judges expect strong factual support.¹

The subsection (2) order, called a Temporary Protective Order of Restraint, is different. It freezes the current custody arrangement. It prevents either parent from changing the child’s living situation, hiding the child, leaving the state with the child, or disrupting the child’s daily routine. It does not transfer custody; it locks the status quo until a judge can hold a full hearing.¹ If the other parent is threatening to relocate with your child but has not done anything dangerous, this is the more appropriate remedy.

If your situation involves a genuine safety emergency, ask for the subsection (3) immediate danger order. If you are worried about disruption or relocation, ask for the subsection (2) restraint order.

What to File

The Oregon Judicial Department publishes a standardized packet. The central document is the Ex Parte Motion for Order of Immediate Danger & Temporary Custody and Parenting Time & Declaration in Support.² The declaration is where you lay out your case under penalty of perjury, so every factual claim must be something you can back up.

Your declaration must also satisfy Oregon’s version of the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act. ORS 109.767 requires you to list everywhere the child has lived during the past five years and the names and current addresses of everyone the child has lived with during that period.³ This information establishes that Oregon has jurisdiction. Leaving it out can delay or derail your filing.

You will also need to complete a proposed order for the judge to sign. Before going to court, gather supporting evidence: police reports, medical records, photographs of injuries, threatening text messages, substance abuse treatment records, or school absence records. The judge may ask follow-up questions during the ex parte appearance, and having documentation ready shows the court you are not operating on speculation.

If you have children with the other parent who are 18, 19, or 20 years old, they are considered necessary parties and must be named in your filing.²

Appearing Before the Judge

You cannot get this order by dropping off paperwork. The statute requires you to appear in person before a judge.¹ You file your documents with the circuit court clerk in the county where your case is pending, and the clerk directs you to the judge handling ex parte matters. Many courthouses set aside a specific morning window for these appearances, though scheduling varies by county.

If you are filing a new case rather than adding an emergency motion to an existing one, the court will collect a filing fee of $301.⁴ If you cannot afford the fee, you can apply for a deferral or waiver.⁵ An immediate danger motion filed within an existing divorce or custody case does not trigger a new filing fee.

During the appearance, the judge reviews your declaration and may ask about the timeline of events, the nature of the threat, and what would happen if the order is not granted. If the judge finds immediate danger, the order is signed on the spot.

After the judge signs, get certified copies from the clerk. The certification fee is typically $5.00 plus 25 cents per page.⁶ You will need certified copies for service on the other parent and for your own records. You must also provide the court with phone numbers where you can be reached at any time during the day and a contact address.¹

Serving the Other Parent

The order does nothing until it is properly served. ORS 107.097(3)(c) requires that a copy of the order and the supporting declaration be served on the other parent using the same methods as serving a lawsuit summons under ORCP 7.¹

Under Oregon’s civil procedure rules, service can be accomplished by personal delivery, by leaving copies with someone 14 or older at the person’s home, by leaving copies at the person’s office during business hours, or by first-class and certified mail with return receipt requested.⁷ The person who serves the documents must be at least 18, a resident of Oregon or the state where service occurs, and not a party to the case. You cannot serve the papers yourself.

The order itself must include a specific notice telling the other parent they can request a hearing at any time while the order is in effect, and that the hearing request must explain why the parent believes the child was not in immediate danger when the order was issued.¹ Serve promptly. Until the other parent is served, enforcement becomes much harder.

The Contested Hearing

The other parent can request a hearing at any time while the order remains in effect. The request must state that the parent objects and explain why they believe the child was not in immediate danger.¹

Once the court receives that request, it must try to schedule a hearing within 14 days and is required to hold one no later than 21 days after receiving the request.¹ The court notifies both parents of the date, time, and location.

The hearing is narrowly focused. The only question is whether the child was in immediate danger at the time the order was issued. This is not a full custody trial. The judge is not deciding who should have permanent custody or evaluating each parent’s overall fitness. Both parents can present evidence and testimony, but everything should be directed at the conditions that existed when the order was granted.

Show up. If the parent who requested the order fails to appear without good cause, the court will vacate it. If the parent the order was issued against fails to appear without good cause, the court will keep the order in effect.¹

How Long It Lasts

An immediate danger order remains in effect through the date of the contested hearing.¹ At that hearing, the judge decides whether to continue, modify, or dissolve the temporary arrangement. From there, the case proceeds through the normal custody process, which eventually results in a permanent custody order as part of a divorce judgment or custody determination.

If the other parent never requests a hearing, the order does not expire on a set date. It can stay in place until the underlying case reaches final judgment or the other parent finally contests it.

If the Other Parent Will Not Hand Over the Child

A signed immediate danger order is a court order, and willful disobedience qualifies as contempt under Oregon law, with potential sanctions that include jail time, fines, and attorney fees.⁸

If the other parent refuses to turn the child over, Oregon provides a specific tool. Under ORS 107.437, a parent with a valid custody order can file an ex parte application for an order of assistance. This order directs law enforcement to use reasonable means to recover the child, including forcible entry into a specified location if necessary.⁹ Without this order of assistance, police involvement in civil custody disputes is limited. Officers responding to a call about a custody violation will often decline to intervene unless a criminal act like kidnapping has occurred. Getting the order of assistance first removes the ambiguity.

If There Is Already a Final Custody Judgment

Everything above applies when an initial custody case is pending, such as a divorce or a petition to establish parental rights. If a final custody judgment is already in place and circumstances have changed, a different statute governs. ORS 107.139 authorizes post-judgment ex parte temporary orders, but it adds requirements: the requesting parent must show they made a good faith effort to notify the other parent about the court appearance before filing, and the court applies a clear and convincing evidence standard rather than the lower standard used in pre-judgment filings.² The Oregon Judicial Department publishes a separate packet for post-judgment cases.¹⁰ Filing under the wrong statute can get your motion denied on procedural grounds.

Do Not Overstate the Danger

Because these orders bypass the normal hearing process, courts take misuse seriously. A false or exaggerated declaration filed for tactical advantage can backfire. The judge who hears the contested hearing will weigh your credibility for every future proceeding in the case. Courts can also impose sanctions, including ordering you to pay the other parent’s attorney fees.

The declaration is sworn under penalty of perjury, so deliberate fabrication exposes you to criminal liability. Even short of fabrication, consistent exaggeration erodes the trust family courts rely on. If you later need emergency relief for a legitimate reason, a prior frivolous filing will make the court skeptical.

1
Oregon Public Law Library. Oregon Code 107.097 – Ex Parte Temporary Custody or Parenting Time Orders
2
Oregon Judicial Department. Instructions – Immediate Danger Orders
3
Oregon Public Law Library. Oregon Code 109.767 – Information to Be Submitted to Court
4
Oregon State Legislature. Oregon Code 21.155 – Domestic Relations Filing Fee
5
Oregon Judicial Department. Fees
6
Oregon Judicial Department. Case File Copies
7
Oregon State Legislature. Oregon Rules of Civil Procedure
8
Oregon State Legislature. Oregon Revised Statutes Chapter 33
9
Oregon State Legislature. Oregon Revised Statutes Domestic Relations 107.437
10
Oregon Judicial Department. Instructions – Immediate Danger Orders