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Legal Information: Texas

Restraining Orders

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Updated: 
July 28, 2023

Where do I file for a protective order for sexual assault, sexual abuse, indecent assault, stalking, or trafficking?

You can file an application for a protective order in district court, juvenile court, statutory county court, or constitutional county court. It can be filed in the county where you live, where the perpetrator lives, or any county where an element (part) of the crime occurred. Also, if there is a current family violence protective order between the same parties that would be involved in this protective order, you have the option of filing it in that court as well.1

The steps for filing for a protective order for sexual assault, sexual abuse, indecent assault, stalking, or trafficking are generally the same as the steps for a domestic violence protective order.

1 Tex. C.C.P. Art. 7B.001(b)