What is a Domestic Violence Order?  

A DVO is an official document that is issued by the court to stop threats or acts of domestic violence. In most cases, a DVO sets out rules that the ‘respondent’ (the person who has been violent) must follow. It is carefully designed to keep the ‘aggrieved (the person who has been a victim of the violence) safe, by making it illegal for the respondent to act or behave in certain ways.  

A domestic and family violence protection order (DVO) will help protect you, you family and other people named on the order from someone that has been violent toward you.  

A DVO will not appear on the respondent’s criminal record, as it is a civil court order. However, if the DVO is disobeyed, then the respondent will face charges which will appear on their criminal history.  

Types of DVOs 

In Australia, there are two types of DVOs including (1) a protection order and (2) a temporary protection order.  

(1) Protection Order  

This type of domestic violence order is made by a magistrate in court to protect people in domestic and family violence situations. Protection orders can last for up to five years, however it can be extended or shortened if the court feels it is appropriate.  

(2) Temporary Protection Order 

If you need urgent protection, the aggrieved, or the police can apply for a temporary protection order, which will be given priority consideration by a magistrate. Temporary protection orders are similar to protection orders, but are only valid up until the date that a magistrate can make a full protection order.  

Conditions of DVOs:  

Every DVO that is issued in Australia has a standard condition that the respondent must be of good behaviour and not commit any acts of domestic violence against the aggrieved, or any other person that is named on the order.  

In addition to this condition, the court will decide upon specific rules that must be obeyed by the individual person who has committed the violence.  

For example, if the respondent has a weapons license, they are not allowed to own guns and their licence will be suspended or cancelled and they are not able to hold another license for up to five years.  

Listed below are further examples of conditions that may be included in a DVO:  

  • The DVO may stop the respondent from approaching the aggrieved at work or at home.  
  • The DVO may stop the respondent from staying in a home they both share, or have previously shared (even if the house is rented or owned in the respondent’s name).  
  • The DVO may stop the respondent from approaching relatives or friends if they are named on the order.  
  • The DVO may stop the respondent from going to their child’s school or day care centre.  

When applying for your DVO, you can list any extra conditions that you may want in addition to the standard condition. You can apply to vary order conditions if circumstances change. 

How do I apply for a Domestic Violence order? 

You can apply for a domestic violence order yourself, or you can get a lawyer, authorised person friend, family member, or community worker) or a police officer to apply for you.  

Before applying for a domestic violence order, it is recommended that you seek legal advice.  

The court will make an order if it accepts the following:  

  • That there has in fact been an act of domestic violence,  
  • That you and the respondent are in one of the relationships covered by law,  
  • And that the court believes a domestic violence order is necessary or desirable in your situation.  

What do I need to prove the order?  

You must be in a family or domestic relationship and prove the following:  

  • That the respondent has committed an act of family or domestic violence, and  
  • That the protection order is necessary or desirable to protect you from domestic violence.  

Preparing for your court appearance:  

  • Make sure you arrive half an hour early.  
  • If you need additional support, you can request for a domestic violence prevention worker to come into court with you to support you.  
  • You can bring your own support person; however, your support person is not permitted to speak for you unless they made the application on your behalf.  
  • Public are not allowed to attend your hearing, as it will be completed in a closed court.  
  • You can ask the court to provide an interpreter before your hearing.  
  • You will need to bring someone to supervise your children, if you need to bring them to court with you.  

 

Paperwork & Evidence:  

You will need a copy of your ‘Application for a protection order (form DV01).  

Prior to attending your court hearing, make sure you:  

  • Complete an Affidavit (form DV25) and lodge it before your hearing.  
  • Get legal advice about how to subpoena witnesses, so that the witnesses in your case are ordered to appear and give evidence at your hearing.  
  • Let your witnesses know that they must attend court in person and give evidence during the hearing. They cannot provide evidence through a letter or statement.  

Chronology of incidents of family or domestic violence:  

  • You must provide a chronology of incidents that have happened, which include the most recent violence, abuse, threats or intimidation that have occurred.  
  • If you want to include other people (family, friends, colleagues) in your protection order, you must prepare a chronology for them as well.  

For each incident, make sure you write down the time, date and place of the incident and describe in detail what happened, who witnessed the event and include any additional evidence you might have that you can use in court. Extra evidence could include:  

  • Reports from doctors who have treated you.  
  • Photos of injuries, showing the date that the photo was taken.  
  • Police information certificate, (respondent’s criminal record) – this will need to be subpoenaed.  
  • Printouts of emails, conversations, social media posts, comments or messages.  
  • Telephone records including SMS messages, images sent and phone call logs.  
  • Photos of any damage to your property.  

If you have electronic evidence that you want to play in court, make sure you ring the court prior to your hearing to ensure the court has suitable equipment needed to play your evidence. You may even want to bring your own equipment with you.  

Getting legal advice:  

It is important to seek legal advice before trying to represent yourself in court for the hearing of your domestic and family violence application.   

Difficulties in giving evidence  

Victims of family violence may face difficulties when disclosing and providing evidence of family violence to Australian Courts or other service providers. Furthermore, there may be a lack of understanding by the courts, service providers and the wider community in relation to what constitutes family violence.  

Victims of family violence may not disclose instances of family violence due to feelings of shame, low self-esteem and a sense that the victim is somehow responsible. The victim may also have difficulty providing evidence as they may think they will not be believed, or they could potentially think that violence is a normal part of relationships. Victims of family violence may experience feelings of powerlessness and an inability to trust others, for fear of further violence.  

“Any one ‘incident’ is in actuality just a small part of a complex pattern of control and cannot be adequately understood not its gravity measured in isolation from that background. At the centre of disempowerment and degradation.”  – states Professor Patricia Easteal in her submission.  

Upon disclosing family violence, the victim may need to provide evidence of the violence to the court. Giving evidence can be one of the most intimidating and stressful aspects of the legal system for people who have been subject to family violence. This is due to the fact that victims must provide evidence of traumatic and personal events to the public and in the presence of the person who has committed this violence.  

Domestic violence, by nature, is also a very challenging incident to prove and corroborate. According to an Exploratory Moloney study (2007) which investigated allegations of family violence, “…obtaining corroborative evidence is likely to be very difficult when the violence has occurred over an extended period of time, potential sources of proof may be lost, witnesses (where there were any) may no longer be available, injuries may have faded and the non-physical symptoms of trauma may not be obvious.”  

Although in some cases there may be evidence of family violence incidents, including police reports or medical records, in most cases there may be little to no evidence available. Difficulties in providing evidence can be compounded where family violence has taken place in the way of coercive or controlling emotional or economical abuse, instead of through physical abuse.  

According to the Moloney study (2007), most cases of domestic violence that go before the court are accompanied by little to no supporting evidence.  

If you are experiencing domestic or family violence, you are able to ask the court for a domestic and family violence protection order to help stop the violence.  

If you need assistance or advice with your visa application, Results Migration are the best in the field, with a team of experienced Immigration Lawyers and Registered Migration Agents that are available to guide you through this complex area of law. Call Results Migration on 1800 808 717 or email us on [email protected] and book your free consultation today!