Restraining Orders

This step will be slightly different, depending on whether or not the judge granted you a temporary order.

If you were granted a temporary PFA order, the clerk will ask a police officer or deputy sheriff to serve the complaint and temporary order and notice of hearing on the defendant.

If the defendant is not in Maine, the Court will send out your complaint and other required paperwork to the appropriate law enforcement agency for service. However, you may want to follow up to make sure it gets served. You can go to our Sheriff Departments page and enter the state where the defendant lives to find contact information for sheriffs offices.

If you were not granted a temporary PFA order, the court clerk will fill out a summons that tells the defendant the date and time that your complaint will be heard by the court. S/he will give you copies of the complaint and summons. Take two copies of each to the police department or sheriff’s office, along with the service information sheet for service on the defendant.¹

You can find more information about service of process in our Preparing for Court – By Yourself section, in the question called What is service of process and how do I accomplish it?

¹ Pine Tree Legal Assistance