Restraining Orders

This section defines domestic violence for the purposes of getting a protection from abuse order. Certain forms of abuse will only qualify you for a protection from abuse order if committed by a family or household member or by a dating partner. Other forms of abuse, however, can qualify you for a protection from abuse order even if they were committed by someone who is not a family or household member or dating partner.

Maine law defines “abuse” as the occurrence of one or more of the following acts committed against you or your minor child by a family or household member or dating partner:

• attempting to cause or causing bodily injury or offensive physical contact;
• attempting to cause or causing sexual assault;
• stalking as defined by law;
• attempting to place or placing another person in fear of bodily injury by threatening, harassing or tormenting;
• forcing a person to do things that the person has a right not to do;
• forcing a person not to do things that the person has a right to do;
• substantially restricting the movements of a person without lawful authority by:
  • removing a person from his/her home, business or school without consent or lawful authority;
  • moving a person a substantial distance; or
  • confining a person;
• threatening a crime of violence that places the person in reasonable fear that the crime will be committed;
• repeatedly and without reasonable cause, following a person or being at or in the vicinity of the person’s home, school, business or place of employment;
• engaging in the unauthorized dissemination of certain private images;
• engaging in aggravated sex trafficking or sex trafficking; and
• for minors only:
  • sexual exploitation of a minor;
  • dissemination of sexually explicit material
  • harassment by telephone or electronic communication device, but only the acts in paragraphs (1)(A-1) and (1)(A-2), which deal with sending an image or video of a sexual act.¹

Maine law also defines “abuse” as the occurrence of one or more of the following acts committed by someone who is not a family or household member or dating partner:

• attempting to cause or causing sexual assault;
• stalking as defined by law;
• engaging in the unauthorized dissemination of certain private images;
• engaging in aggravated sex trafficking or sex trafficking; and
• for minors only:
  • sexual exploitation of a minor;
  • dissemination of sexually explicit material
  • harassment by telephone or electronic communication device, but only the acts in paragraphs (1)(A-1) and (1)(A-2), which deal with sending an image or video of a sexual act.¹

Note: If someone is at least 60 years of age, a “dependent adult,” or an incapacitated adult, and is being abused by an extended family member or an unpaid care provider, see our Protection from Abuse Orders (for elderly/disabled) page for more information on the additional definitions of abuse for these victims.²

If you are being harassed in a way that is not listed above, you may be eligible for a protection from harassment order. See our Protection from Harassment Orders section for more information.

¹ ME ST T. 19-A §§ 4002(1); 4005(1)
² See ME ST T. 19-A § 4005(1)

In a temporary, ex parte protection from abuse order, the judge can:

1. make an order concerning the parental rights and responsibilities relating to the minor children living in the home; and
2. can order the defendant to not:
   • restrain, threaten, assault, molest, harass, attack you or otherwise disturb your peace;
   • enter the family home or your home (if you live separately);
   • follow you or be near your home, school, business or place of employment repeatedly and without reasonable cause:
   • take, sell, destroy or damage property in which you may have a legal interest;
   • have any direct or indirect contact with you, including by social media;
   • injure or threaten to injure any animal owned, kept or held by either party or by a minor child living in the household (and the judge can make an order regarding the care/custody of the animal); and/or
   • engage in the unauthorized dissemination of certain private images;
   • destroy, transfer or tamper with your passport or other immigration documents; and
   • have or possess a firearm if certain conditions are met.¹ (For the list of conditions, read section 2-A of ME ST T. 19A § 4006).

A final protection from abuse order can do the following:

1. order the defendant to not:
   • threaten, assault, molest, harass, attack or otherwise abuse you and/or any minor children in the home;
   • use, attempt to use, or threaten to use any physical force that would reasonably be expected to cause bodily injury against you or any minor children living in the home;
   • enter your home;
   • follow you or be near your home, school, business or place of employment repeatedly and without reasonable cause;
   • stalk you;
   • have any direct or indirect contact with you, including by social media;
   • have or possess a firearm or dangerous weapon; and/or
   • take, sell, destroy or damage property in which you may have a legal interest (and the judge can order the division of personal property and household goods/furniture);
   • injure or threaten to injure any animal owned, kept or held by either party or by a minor child living in the household (and the judge can make an order regarding the care/custody of the animal);
2. order the defendant to remove, destroy or return any “private images” (as defined in the unauthorized dissemination of certain private images) and, if necessary, order the defendant to pay any costs associated with removal, destruction or return of the private images;
3. if you and the defendant jointly own or lease your home, or if one party solely owns or leases the property but s/he has a duty to support the other party or the minor children living in the home, the judge can:
   • give (or restore) possession of the home to one party, excluding the other; or
   • if both parties agree, the party who has a duty to support the other can provide suitable alternate housing;
4. order the termination of a life insurance policy that is owned by the defendant if you are the person whose life is insured;
5. award some or all temporary parental rights and responsibilities, or temporary rights of contact with regard to the minor children, or both;
6. order the defendant to pay temporary support for you and/or your child;
7. order the defendant to pay you for losses suffered as a direct result of the abuse (i.e., loss of earnings, injury to you, medical bills, damaged property or moving expenses);
8. grant custody and care of any pets in the household that are owned by you, the defendant, or a child in the home to you;
9. order the defendant to get counseling or attend a certified batterers’ intervention program;
10. order the defendant to pay your court costs and/or attorney’s fees;
11. if the defendant committed sex trafficking or aggravated sex trafficking, order him/her to pay money damages related to the return or restoration of your passport/immigration documents and any debts you have that came from the trafficking relationship (in addition to any other orders that the judge thinks are necessary or appropriate related to the trafficking); and
12. order anything else you need to stay safe.²

Note: If you file a petition that gets dismissed at a hearing where both parties are present, the judge can order you to pay court costs and/or the defendant’s attorney’s fees if the judge rules that your complaint (petition) is frivolous (without a legal basis).³

¹ME ST T. 19-A § 4006(2-A),(5),(5-A)
²ME ST T. 19-A § 4007(1)
³ME ST T. 19-A § 4007(1)(L-1)

When you and the abuser live in different states, the judge may not have “personal jurisdiction” (power) over an out-of-state abuser. This means that the court may not be able to grant an order against him/her.

There are a few ways that a court can have personal jurisdiction over an out-of-state abuser:

1. The abuser has a substantial connection to your state. Perhaps the abuser regularly travels to your state to visit you, for business, to see extended family, or the abuser lived in your state and recently fled.
2. One of the acts of abuse “happened” in your state. Perhaps the abuser sends you threatening texts or harassing phone calls from another state but you read the messages or answer the calls while you are in your state. The judge could decide that the abuse “happened” to you while you were in your state. It may also be possible that the abuser was in your state when s/he abused you s/he but has since left the state.
3. If you file your petition and the abuser gets served with the court petition while s/he is in your state, this is another way for the court to get jurisdiction.

However, even if none of the above apply to your situation, it doesn’t necessarily mean that you can’t get an order. If you file, you may be granted an order on consent or the judge may find other circumstances that allow the order to be granted.

You can read more about personal jurisdiction in our Court System Basics - Personal Jurisdiction section.

Note: If the judge in your state refuses to issue an order, you can file for an order in the courthouse in the state where the abuser lives. However, remember that you will likely need to file the petition in person and attend various court dates, which could be difficult if the abuser’s state is far away.