Orders of Protection

Online Portal for Completing a Petition for an Order of Protection

Coming soon and fully functional April 2026.

Read below for more information

What You Will Need

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What it is (and is not)
Are you eligible to file
Where are how to file
Before you begin
At the hearing
After the hearing
Disclaimer
Other helpful links

What it is (and is not)

An Order of Protection in Arkansas can help create a zone of protection supported by law enforcement to a person who has suffered domestic abuse by a spouse, family member, someone in their household, or someone they have dated or lived with.

You may file a Petition for an Order of Protection on behalf of yourself and a minor child or an incompetent person. When you file a petition, you are the “Petitioner” and the person you are filing against is the “Respondent.”

While an Order of Protection is not a guarantee of safety, it will find that the Respondent presents a credible threat to the physical safety of the Petitioner, or a minor or incompetent person the Petitioner filed on behalf of and can provide some or all of the following relief:

• Keep the Petitioner’s home or business address confidential;
• Prohibit the Respondent from contacting you or having someone else contact you on the Respondent’s behalf, including at your home, business, or other location;
• Prohibit the Respondent from the use, attempted use, or threatened use of physical force against the Petitioner, or a minor or incompetent person;
• Restrain the Respondent from harassing, stalking, or threatening the Petitioner and any minor or incompetent person the Petitioner files on behalf of;
• Restrain the Respondent from conduct that would place the Petitioner and any minor or incompetent person the Petitioner files on behalf of in reasonable fear of bodily injury;
• Prohibit the Respondent from possessing a firearm;
• Award the Petitioner with temporary custody of minor children and child support;
• Award the Petitioner with temporary spousal support;
• Require the Respondent to pay all fees and costs of court incurred to obtain the Order of Protection;
• Direct law enforcement to assist the Petitioner in returning to the residence and getting personal effects

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What it is not

Orders of Protection in Arkansas are specifically for domestic abuse that occurs between family members or members of the same household that puts the person seeking protection in fear of imminent harm.

Orders of Protection are often confused with other types of orders that keep individuals from contacting each other, for example:

• Domestic restraining order – Family law courts have restraining orders that prohibit each party in a divorce or custody case from contacting each other except through an attorney.
• Criminal no-contact order – A criminal court may restrain a criminal defendant from having communication or contact with the victim.

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Are you eligible to file

You may ask a court for an Order of Protection by filing a Petition. In the Petition, you are called the “Petitioner” and the alleged abuser is called the “Respondent.” The minimum requirements to file the Petition are:

• Age: You must be 18 years of age, or an emancipated minor. The Respondent must be 18 years of age, or an emancipated minor.
• Connection to Arkansas: You or the Respondent live in Arkansas, or the abuse occurred in Arkansas.
• Your Relationship to the Respondent: You and the Respondent must meet at least one of these conditions –
  • Are currently or were previously married
  • Currently date or previously dated
  • Currently live together or previously lived together
  • Have children together
  • Are family members
• Your Relationship to the Minor or Incompetent Person you are filing on behalf of (if applicable):
  • The minor must be your child, or you must have legal guardianship of the minor.
  • Similarly, you must have legal guardianship of the incompetent person.
• The abuse meets this definition:
  • Physical harm, bodily injury, assault, or the infliction of fear of imminent physical harm, bodily injury, or assault between family or household members; or
  • Any sexual conduct between family or household members, whether minors or adults, that constitutes a crime under the laws of this state.

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Where and how to file

1. Determine which county you will file the documents in and the name and address of the circuit clerk for that county. Remember, you will file in the county where you live, or where the Respondent lives, or where the abuse occurred. See Other Helpful Links below for circuit clerk contact information.

BEFORE YOU BEGIN

2. NOTE: The portal does NOT save information that you have provided while online. If you leave the portal before the process is completed, anything you have entered is deleted and you will need to start over.

Therefore, BEFORE YOU BEGIN THE PETITION, gather information that will be needed to complete the Petition.

• Your name, date of birth, home address, work address, phone number, email address
• If you are also filing on behalf of another person, their name, date of birth, home address
• The Respondent’s name, date of birth, home address, work address, phone number, physical description, driver’s license information, description of their car or truck (at the minimum name, date of birth, and home address are required).
• A description of the domestic abuse to you and any person you are filing on behalf of – including dates, locations, circumstances, and how the physical abuse, sexual abuse, or threats occurred
• Court and case number of any other legal case you and the Respondent are involved in together
• Court and case number of any previous Orders of Protection you have obtained against the Respondent
• Information on prior violent history of the Respondent

3. You may use the link below to complete the information online that is needed for filing a Petition for an Order of Protection. The Arkansas Coalition Against Domestic Violence has created this online portal to help provide a consistent, statewide method of filing a Petition for the majority of cases.

4. The portal will produce the following documents from the information that you provide online and email them to you:

• Civil Cover Sheet
• Petition for an Order of Protection
• Affidavit Accompanying Petition for an Order of Protection
• Confidential Information Sheet
• Law Enforcement information for service of process on the Respondent

5. Once you have completed the information required on the portal, the next steps are:

• Print off all the documents the portal emails to you.
• Sign the Petition and Affidavit before a notary public (most circuit clerks have a notary on site).
• Give all the paperwork the portal emails you, signed and notarized where necessary, to the circuit clerk for filing. If you have exhibits, you may provide them with the Petition or bring them to the hearing.
• The clerk will file the Petition and Affidavit and give you a copy with the date and time of filing stamped on it.
• The court will set a date for a hearing within the next 30 days.
• The judge assigned to your case can do two things: (1) find an emergency and issue a Temporary Ex Parte Order of Protection that provides immediate protection until the time of the hearing; or (2) issue a notice of the date of the hearing.
• The Sheriff will serve the Respondent with the required paperwork informing him/her of the date of the hearing and a copy of the Ex Parte Order if one is issued. The Respondent must be served within 5 days of the hearing in order for the hearing to take place.
• You are NOT RESPONSIBLE for any fees to file the Petition.

6. Not everyone will qualify to use the portal.

An attorney has reviewed this portal to help ensure that your case will meet the minimum legal requirements for requesting an Order of Protection. While using the portal, you will reach a screen that states you either qualify to file the Petition for an Order of Protection, or don’t qualify.

• If you do not qualify to use this portal, you will be provided with information about why. You will also have an opportunity to contact an attorney without charge to discuss the possible reasons for the disqualification, and what other legal options you may have.

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At the hearing

Hearings are conducted at the courthouse where you filed the Petition, and are before a judge, but not a jury. You should arrive about 30 minutes before the time the hearing starts. Any party may hire an attorney to represent them, but it is not required.

1. You must appear at the hearing on your Petition. The Respondent may appear (optional) at the hearing to argue their case. Either party may have their own attorney, but it is not required.

• If the Respondent is served and does not appear, the judge MAY go forward with the hearing and grant an Order of Protection based on the testimony of the Petitioner and evidence presented at the hearing.
• If the Respondent is served and appears at the hearing, they have the right to ask questions of you and to state their case to the judge.
• If the Respondent is not served, then the hearing cannot take place. The judge will either dismiss your Petition, or you may ask for a continuance to have more time to get the Respondent served.
• If the judge entered a Temporary Ex Parte Order of Protection, when you filed your Petition and grants a continuance for the hearing date, she or he will extend that order until the next hearing date so that the temporary protection remains during that time.
• At the hearing, you will be sworn in and will testify about the statements made in the Petition and Affidavit. You may present evidence (such as pictures, medical records, telephone records, police reports, financial documents), bring witnesses to testify, and cross-examine the Respondent and their witnesses.
• You will need to tell the judge how long you need the protection (a few days or up to 10 years).
• As mentioned above, if the Respondent appears at the hearing, they have the right to ask questions of you and to state their case to the judge. A bailiff will be present to make sure you are safe during the hearing.

2. The judge may ask you or any other witness questions.

3. The judge will make her or his decision at the hearing, and will either grant or deny your Petition for an Order of Protection.

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After the hearing

1. If the judge grants you an Order of Protection the following will happen:

• The Order of Protection goes into effect immediately and will state the date it expires.
• You will be able to get a copy of the Order of Protection from the court.
• Keep the Order of Protection handy in case you need to show it to law enforcement.
• The court will provide the Respondent with a copy of the Order of Protection.

2. If the judge denies your Petition and does not grant you an Order of Protection, then your case is over. This does not stop you from being able to file again in the future if additional abuse happens.

3. If the Respondent violates the Order of Protection, you can:

• Ask the judge that issued the Order to find the Respondent in contempt of court, which can result in a fine; or
• You can pursue criminal charges. Violation of an Order of Protection is a criminal offense, which can be a misdemeanor or felony depending on the circumstances. To pursue criminal charges:
  • First, always call law enforcement when there is a violation. Law enforcement can arrest a party who violates the Order of Protection based on probable cause.
  • Second, you can file a citizen’s complaint with the Prosecuting Attorney’s Office in your county (see Helpful Links below). The Prosecuting Attorney can issue a warning letter or a warrant for the arrest of the Respondent.

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Disclaimer

ALL PETITIONS FILED ARE SUBJECT TO THE REQUIREMENTS OF THE APPLICABLE CIRCUIT CLERK AND JUDGES OF THE CIRCUIT WHERE YOU FILE THE PETITION. NOTHING ON THIS WEBPAGE OR USE OF THIS PORTAL MEANS THAT YOU ARE REPRESENTED BY AN ATTORNEY FOR THIS PROCESS. USE OF THIS WEBSITE, PORTAL AND ANY FORMS PRODUCED BY THE INFORMATION PROVIDED ON THE PORTAL DOES NOT GUARANTEE THAT A JUDGE WILL GRANT YOU AN ORDER OF PROTECTION. 

Other helpful links

NOTE: While ACADV will attempt to keep these updated, the links and the content within are maintained by the respective websites. Broken links may be reported by email to ar.oop.portal.onlineattorney@gmail.com, but questions concerning content must be addressed to the website owner.

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