Massachusetts has two kinds of protective order, and picking the wrong one costs you weeks.
A 209A abuse prevention order requires a family or household relationship. A 258E harassment prevention order requires none, which is what you need against a neighbor, a coworker, a landlord, or someone online.
Both are free to file. There is no fee, and you do not pay for service.
And the definition of abuse changed on September 18, 2024 in a way most guides have not caught up with.
Which one applies to you
For a 209A you must be, or have been, in one of these relationships with the defendant:
- Married to one another
- Residing together in the same household
- Related by blood or marriage
- Having a child in common, whether or not you ever married or lived together
- In a substantive dating or engagement relationship
For a dating relationship the court weighs the length of the relationship, its type, how often you interacted, and how long ago it ended.
If none of those fit, you want a 258E. It reaches anyone.
Which courthouse
This is where a widely repeated error sends people to the wrong building. The dating-relationship carve-out excludes the Superior Court, not the Probate and Family Court.
209A: District, Boston Municipal, Probate and Family, or Superior Court. If your case is based on a dating relationship, District, Boston Municipal, or Probate and Family only. Not Juvenile Court.
258E: Superior, District, or Boston Municipal Court. Not Probate and Family. If the defendant is under 18, Juvenile Court has exclusive jurisdiction.
File where you live. If you left home to escape abuse, you may file where you live now or where you lived before, whichever you prefer.
What counts as abuse
Under c. 209A § 1, abuse is any of four things between family or household members:
- Attempting to cause or causing physical harm
- Placing another in fear of imminent serious physical harm
- Causing another to engage involuntarily in sexual relations by force, threat or duress
- Coercive control
That fourth prong is new. It took effect September 18, 2024, and it is a lower threshold than fear of imminent serious physical harm.
Coercive control means a pattern of behavior intended to threaten, intimidate, harass, isolate, control or coerce a family or household member that causes them to reasonably fear physical harm or have a reduced sense of physical safety or autonomy. The statute lists examples:
- Isolating you from friends, relatives, or other support
- Depriving you of basic needs
- Controlling or monitoring your activities, communications, movements, finances, or access to services, including through technology
- Threatening to harm a child or relative, or to abuse an animal
- Intentionally damaging property
- Threatening to publish sensitive personal information, including sexually explicit images
- Using repeated court actions the court finds unwarranted
Some acts qualify on their own, without a pattern: harming or attempting to harm a child or relative, abusing an animal, or publishing sexually explicit images.
This provision is new enough that only one appellate decision has touched it, and it left open whether coercive control reaches conduct before September 2024.
What has not been enough
Under the fear prong, an order is “not to be issued simply because it seems to be a good idea.” Courts have said generalized apprehension, nervousness, or feeling aggravated or hassled does not meet the standard.
But where actual physical harm has already occurred, you do not have to show current fear of imminent harm.
What counts as harassment
Under c. 258E, harassment is three or more acts of willful and malicious conduct aimed at you, committed with intent to cause fear, intimidation, abuse or property damage, and actually causing it. “Malicious” means characterized by cruelty, hostility or revenge.
A single act is enough if it forced you into sexual relations, or if it was one of a list of criminal offenses including stalking, indecent assault, rape, and criminal harassment.
The three-acts route is narrower than it reads, because the SJC had to narrow it to save it constitutionally. “Fear” under 258E means fear of physical harm or physical damage to property, which limits the statute to true threats and fighting words. Criticism of a public official is political speech and cannot count, and fear of economic loss, unfavorable publicity, or losing an election is not enough.
Getting an order tonight
If the court is closed, call 911 or go to a police station. The police contact the on-call judge. You do not call the judge.
Officers complete the complaint and affidavit and run record and warrant checks first. The judge then speaks with you directly, almost always by phone.
An emergency order expires at 4:00 p.m. on the next court business day, and you must appear at 9:00 a.m. that day to continue it.
The ten-day hearing
An order granted without the defendant present requires a hearing no later than ten court business days later. Court business days, not calendar days, so weekends and holidays do not count.
You must prove your case by a preponderance of the evidence. The burden is on you. The defendant has the right to testify and present evidence. There is no jury.
If the defendant does not appear, the order continues automatically without any further step.
What an order can do
A 209A can order the defendant to stop abusing you, stop contacting you, vacate and stay away from your home and workplace, give you temporary custody, pay temporary support, and pay compensation including lost earnings, medical and moving costs, replacement locks, and reasonable attorney’s fees. It can protect your children and your pets.
It cannot affect title to real property, and no court can force you into mediation.
A 258E is narrower and it matters. It can order no abuse, no contact, staying away from your household or workplace, and monetary compensation. It cannot order anyone to vacate a home, and it cannot give custody or support.
How long it lasts
Up to one year at first. If you appear on the day your order expires, the court decides whether to extend it, and a permanent order is possible under both chapters.
A protection worth knowing: the fact that no abuse occurred while the order was in place is not, by itself, a reason to deny an extension or let the order lapse.
At an extension hearing the question is whether you still reasonably fear abuse, judged on the totality of the parties’ relationship. Courts look at prior violations, ongoing litigation creating hostility, the parties’ demeanor, how likely you are to encounter each other, and any change in circumstances. A judge may not require proof of new abuse.
A permanent order cannot enter at the first hearing after notice. It requires proving your case twice.
What it means for the defendant
Firearms. On a temporary or emergency order where there is a substantial likelihood of immediate danger, the court shall order immediate suspension and surrender of any license to carry, FID card, firearms, and ammunition. Violating that carries up to $5,000 and two and a half years.
This applies under both chapters. The 258E firearms provision mirrors the 209A one almost word for word.
Violation is a crime. Every order says so on its face. Up to $5,000, up to two and a half years in a house of correction, or both, plus a $25 fine. Arrest is mandatory where police have probable cause.
On a 209A violation the court must order a certified batterer’s intervention program absent written findings of good cause, and may not substitute substance abuse or anger management treatment. Under 258E, a treatment program is discretionary.
Does it show up on a background check?
A restraining order is a civil order, and CORI is limited by statute to information recorded in criminal proceedings. The statute governing access treats CORI and the domestic violence record system as two separate categories. So the order itself does not appear on a CORI report.
Two caveats matter more than the answer. A criminal charge or conviction for violating the order does appear. And the order is visible to judges, probation, police, and child support agencies through the statewide registry regardless, which holds active, expired, and terminated orders.
Separately, where both parties are adults the court file is generally open to public inspection, including your affidavit, unless impounded. Your residential address, home phone, and workplace are confidential by statute and are not public.
Ending or fighting an order
A defendant seeking to terminate an order carries a much heavier burden than the plaintiff ever did. He must show by clear and convincing evidence that a significant change in circumstances makes it no longer equitable, because the protected person no longer reasonably fears imminent serious physical harm.
The change must be more than the passage of time. Complying with the order is not enough on its own. Losing firearms rights or facing travel screening is irrelevant. And the plaintiff carries no burden at all at that hearing, and may simply rest on the order.
So: getting an order is preponderance. Undoing one is clear and convincing.
If you are the plaintiff and want the order lifted, that is not automatic either. The statute says the absence of abuse is not itself sufficient ground for vacating. Judges will ask whether the request is truly voluntary.
Practical notes
The complaint, affidavit, and confidential information form come as a single packet. Courthouse filing hours are 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday.
Do not email an application without calling the court first. Emailed applications do not start the process.
Interpreters are free. You do not need a lawyer, and there is no filing fee, no charge for certified copies, and no charge for service.
Common questions
What is the difference between a 209A and a 258E order?
A 209A abuse prevention order requires a family or household relationship, including a substantive dating relationship. A 258E harassment prevention order requires no relationship at all and covers neighbors, coworkers, and strangers. A 209A can order someone to vacate a home and can grant custody and support; a 258E cannot.
How much does it cost to file a restraining order in Massachusetts?
Nothing. There is no filing fee under either chapter, certified copies are free to the plaintiff, and police serve the order without charge.
How do I get a restraining order at night or on a weekend?
Call 911 or go to a police station. Police contact the on-call judge and the judge speaks with you, usually by phone. The emergency order expires at 4:00 p.m. on the next court business day, and you must appear at 9:00 a.m. that day.
Is coercive control now grounds for a restraining order?
Yes. Since September 18, 2024, coercive control is a fourth definition of abuse under c. 209A, covering patterns of isolation, monitoring including by technology, financial control, and threats to publish sexually explicit images. It is a lower threshold than fear of imminent serious physical harm.
Does a restraining order show up on a CORI background check?
No. It is a civil order, and CORI covers criminal proceedings. But a criminal charge for violating the order does appear, and police and courts can see the order through the statewide registry.
Can a Massachusetts restraining order be permanent?
Yes, under both chapters, but not at the first hearing. Permanency requires proving your case at a later extension hearing.
Can I get a harassment order for one incident?
Usually you need three or more acts. A single act is enough only if it forced you into sexual relations or amounted to one of the listed crimes such as stalking or criminal harassment.
Do you lose your gun license if a restraining order issues?
Yes, where the court finds a substantial likelihood of immediate danger. Suspension and surrender of licenses, firearms, and ammunition is mandatory, and this applies to harassment prevention orders as well.
How does a defendant get an order terminated?
By showing clear and convincing evidence of a significant change in circumstances making the order no longer equitable. The passage of time is not enough, and compliance alone is not enough.
Statutory text quoted from G.L. c. 209A §§ 1, 3, 3B, 4, 5, 7 and 8, as amended by St. 2024, c. 118, § 4, effective September 18, 2024, and G.L. c. 258E §§ 1, 2, 3, 4A, 6, 9 and 10. Case law from Frizado v. Frizado, 420 Mass. 592 (1995); O’Brien v. Borowski, 461 Mass. 415 (2012); Iamele v. Asselin, 444 Mass. 734 (2005); MacDonald v. Caruso, 467 Mass. 382 (2014); Crenshaw v. Macklin, 430 Mass. 633 (2000); Van Liew v. Stansfield, 474 Mass. 31 (2016); Vittone v. Clairmont, 64 Mass. App. Ct. 479 (2005); and Callahan v. Callahan, 85 Mass. App. Ct. 369 (2014). Procedure from the Guidelines for Judicial Practice for both chapters, revised October 2025. Law current as of September 5, 2026. The coercive control provision is recent and its application to conduct before September 18, 2024 has not been decided. General information, not legal advice. If you are in immediate danger, call 911.