Domestic Violence

Any harassment should in first instance be reported to the police so that they can take action under the harassment laws. If this protection is not effective, the County Court can be asked to make the following orders:

a) Non-molestation order. Molestation covers a wide range of activities, including persistent telephone calls and abusive letters as well as the more obvious such as violence and threats of violence. A Court will look at all the circumstances of the case in order to assess the balance of harm that will be caused if the order is not made. This will include looking at the health, safety and well being of yourself and any child you may have. The judge may persuade both parties to settle the matter instead by undertaking, which is a legally binding promise to the court, provided the judge is satisfied there has been no physical violence. If the terms of the undertaking are breached, an application can be made to the court for the offender to be punished and even to be committed to prison.

b) Occupation order. This will deal with the parties’ rights to occupy the family home. An order could be made to either prohibit one party occupying the property or restrict their occupation or alternatively allow a party to return to the property and make a declaration confirming their right to occupy. An occupation order is only a temporary measure that is imposed by the court until a transfer of the property can take place. The court will have to weigh up the balance of harm as between yourself and your partner when considering whether or not to make such an order. Further orders can be made with regard to payment of the mortgage and other outgoings on the property. Please however bear in mind my advice that to oust a party from their property is a draconian measure and in the majority of cases the Court will, in the first instance, see whether it is possible to divide the property and protect the Applicant by also granting a Non-Molestation Order.

You should note that if the police are looking to prosecute, it is unlikely that you would be able to get Public Funding (Legal Aid) to apply to the County Court. If an application for Public Funding is to be made to cover the costs of the Injunction proceedings then, unless the case requires an ex-parte application, in the majority of cases the Legal Services Commission will require that a letter before action is sent before Public Funding will be issued.