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Legal Information: Delaware

Restraining Orders

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Updated: 
September 13, 2023

Do I have to register my out-of-state protection order in Delaware in order to get it enforced?

You do not have to register a protection order that was issued in another state, a U.S. territory, or in Canada in order for it to be enforced.

Delaware courts can enforce an out-of-state protection order as long as:

  • the order contains the your name and the abuser’s name;
  • it appears to be currently valid (not expired);
  • the court that granted the order had the proper authority (jurisdiction) to issue it; and
  • the abuser received notice of the order and had an opportunity to go to court to tell his/her side of the story. In the case of ex parte temporary and emergency orders, the abuser must receive notice and have an opportunity to go to court to tell his/her side of the story at a hearing that is scheduled before the temporary order expires.1

Delaware law enforcement can enforce an out-of-state protection order as long as there is good reason (“probable cause”) to believe that:

  • the protection order is a valid, current order; and
  • the order has been violated.2

The order does not have to be entered into the state or federal registry in order to be enforced by a Delaware law enforcement officer.2

1 10 Del. Code §§ 1049B(d)-(f); 1049J(c)​
2 10 Del. Code §§ 1049C; ​1049I