Massachusetts Protective Orders: Filing, Hearings, and Violations

Massachusetts protective orders are court orders you can get the same day you walk into a courthouse, at no cost, to stop someone from abusing, harassing, stalking, or sexually assaulting you. Which order you file depends on your relationship with the other person: an Abuse Prevention Order under Chapter 209A covers domestic relationships, and a Harassment Prevention Order under Chapter 258E covers everyone else.¹²

Which Order Fits Your Situation

Start with the relationship. A 209A order is for someone you have a domestic connection to: a current or former spouse, a current or former household member, a relative by blood or marriage, the other parent of your child, or a current or former serious dating or engagement partner. For dating relationships, the judge considers how long it lasted, how often you interacted, and whether it has ended.¹

To qualify under 209A, you have to show the person caused you physical harm, attempted to, placed you in fear of imminent serious physical injury, or forced sexual contact. No police report or criminal charge is required.

If the person doesn’t fit any of those relationship categories (a neighbor, a coworker, a stranger, an ex from a casual relationship), you file under Chapter 258E instead. A common misunderstanding is that 258E always requires three incidents. It doesn’t. The statute covers three different situations:³

Civil harassment: three or more separate acts of deliberate, malicious conduct aimed at you, intended to cause fear, intimidation, or property damage, and that actually did.
A single act of sexual violence: one incident of forced sexual contact, rape, indecent assault, or distribution of intimate images without consent.⁴
Stalking or criminal harassment: a knowing pattern of conduct on at least three occasions that seriously alarms you and would cause a reasonable person substantial emotional distress.

The single-incident path matters. If someone sexually assaulted you or shared intimate images of you, you don’t have to wait for a pattern before going to court.

How to File

Go to the clerk’s office at a District Court, Boston Municipal Court, Probate and Family Court, or Superior Court. Filing is free for both types of orders.

You’ll fill out a packet: the Complaint for Protection, a sworn Affidavit, a Plaintiff Confidential Information Form, and a Defendant Information Form.⁵ The forms are available at any Trial Court clerk’s office or on Mass.gov.

The Affidavit is the document the judge reads most closely. Write what happened in your own words, in order, with dates, locations, and the specific things the person did or said. Concrete details carry more weight than general statements of fear.

Bring the defendant’s full name and, if you can, their home and work addresses. That helps law enforcement serve the order. If you don’t have an address, tell the clerk; the court can still move forward, though service may take longer.

If You Need Protection After Hours

If the courthouse is closed, go to any local police department. Officers will help you fill out the complaint and affidavit, then call a judge on the Judicial Response System. If the judge finds a substantial likelihood of immediate danger, the order can be issued over the phone and recorded by the officer on an official form.⁶

This emergency order is temporary. You have to appear in court the next business day to file a formal complaint. Miss that appearance and the order expires.

What Happens in Court

When you file during court hours, the clerk brings you before a judge the same day for an ex parte hearing. The defendant isn’t there and hasn’t been notified yet.⁷ The judge reads your affidavit, may ask questions, and if there’s a substantial likelihood of immediate danger of abuse, issues a temporary order on the spot.

That order sets a return date, usually within ten business days, for a full hearing. The defendant gets served with the order and complaint by law enforcement and can show up at the ten-day hearing, with or without a lawyer, to argue against it.⁸ Both sides can present evidence and testimony.

After hearing from both parties, the judge either lifts the temporary order or extends it. A 209A order extended at the ten-day hearing lasts up to one year. If the defendant was properly served but doesn’t appear, the judge can still grant the order for the full period.⁹ You need to show up on the return date. If you don’t, the temporary order lapses.

What the Judge Can Order

Under Chapter 209A, the judge has broad authority to shape the order to your situation. Possible protections include:¹⁰

No abuse: the defendant is prohibited from abusing you.
No contact: no communication by any channel, including phone, text, email, social media, or messages passed through other people.¹¹
Stay away: the defendant must remain a specified distance from your home, workplace, or school. The judge writes the exact distance into the order.
Vacate: the defendant must leave your shared home immediately, regardless of who owns or leases it. The court looks at your safety, not property rights.¹²
Temporary custody of minor children. If the court finds a pattern or serious incident of abuse, there is a legal presumption against sole or shared custody for the abusive parent.
Temporary support, calculated under the state’s child support guidelines, if the defendant has a legal obligation to support you or the children.
Compensation for losses caused by the abuse, such as lost wages, medical expenses, moving costs, lock replacements, and reasonable attorney’s fees.
Protection for your children or any children in your care from abuse or contact.

Massachusetts law also lets the judge give you possession, care, and control of any pet in the household and bar the defendant from harming, threatening, taking, hiding, or disposing of the animal.¹³ If you have pets, ask the judge to include them.

Firearm Surrender

When the court finds a substantial likelihood of immediate danger of abuse under 209A, it must order the defendant to surrender all firearms, ammunition, firearms licenses, and firearms identification cards to law enforcement.¹⁴ The statute says “shall,” not “may.” Officers take possession when they serve the order. The defendant can request review of the surrender, which must be heard within ten business days, and can get an expedited hearing within two business days on firearms needed for work.

If the Order Is Violated

Violating a protective order is a crime. If police witness a violation or have probable cause to believe one occurred, they are required to arrest the defendant. The arrest is mandatory, not discretionary.⁹

A conviction carries a fine of up to $5,000, up to two and a half years in a house of correction, or both, plus a mandatory $25 surcharge.¹⁵

Once the judge signs your order, the clerk transmits certified copies to the appropriate law enforcement agency, which serves the defendant in person with the order and complaint and informs them of the contents and the penalties.⁸ You don’t have to hire a process server. The order is entered the same day into the Statewide Domestic Violence Record Keeping System maintained by the Office of the Commissioner of Probation, so any officer in Massachusetts can confirm it exists during an encounter.¹⁶ Still, keep a copy on you. If something happens, having the paper in hand lets officers act faster.

Extending or Changing the Order

A 209A order does not renew on its own. Before it expires, go back to the court on the expiration date listed on the order and ask for an extension. You don’t need to file a new complaint, but submit a supplemental affidavit explaining why you still need protection.¹⁷

You do not need a new incident of abuse to get an extension. The judge looks at the totality of the circumstances: the defendant’s history, any pattern of violating orders, ongoing custody disputes, whether you’re likely to cross paths, and changes in either side’s situation. The order can be extended another year, for a longer period, or made permanent. Miss the expiration date and the order simply lapses.

If the defendant wants to modify or terminate the order, they have to file a written motion in the issuing court. You must receive a copy of the motion and the hearing date at least ten days before the hearing.¹⁸ Only the court can change the terms. An informal agreement between you and the defendant does not override the order.

1
General Court of Massachusetts. Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 209A – Abuse Prevention
2
Mass.gov. Harassment Prevention Orders
3
General Court of Massachusetts. Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 258E – Harassment Prevention Orders
4
Mass.gov. 258E Guideline 3:05 – Standard and Burden of Proof for c. 258E Order
5
Mass.gov. Restraining Order/Abuse Prevention Order Court Forms
6
Mass.gov. Instructions for Police Departments After Court Hours (G.L. c. 209A)
7
Massachusetts Legal Help. How to Get a 209A Restraining Order
8
General Court of Massachusetts. Massachusetts Code Chapter 209A – Section 7
9
Mass.gov. What Happens If the Defendant Violates an Abuse Prevention Order
10
General Court of Massachusetts. Massachusetts Code Chapter 209A – Section 3
11
Mass.gov. Find Out How Abuse Prevention Orders Work
12
Mass.gov. 209A Guideline 4:02 – Ex Parte Orders to Vacate
13
Animal Law Info. List of States that Include Pets in Protection Orders
14
General Court of Massachusetts. Massachusetts Code Chapter 209A – Section 3B
15
General Court of Massachusetts. Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 209A – Section 7
16
Massachusetts Legal Help. 209A Restraining Orders – An Overview
17
Mass.gov. 209A Guideline 6:08 – Further Extending an Order After Notice on Its Expiration Date
18
Mass.gov. Defendant’s Motion to Modify or Terminate Abuse Prevention Order