WomensLaw is not just for women. We serve and support all survivors, no matter their sex or gender.
Important: Even if courts are closed, you can still file for a protection order and other emergency relief. See our FAQ on Courts and COVID-19.
Judges generally only grant ex parte orders when there is immediate harm to the child or an immediate risk that the child will be removed from the state.
Immediate harm to the child includes, but is not limited to, having a parent who has recently or continually committed acts of domestic violence, or if the child has been recently or continually sexually abused.1
1 Ann.Cal.Fam.Code § 3064
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