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Family and Divorce law in South Africa - A Comprehensive Guide
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How to get a Protection order

How to obtain a Protection Order


Step 1: Gather information and documentation
  • Take note of all the occurrences of domestic violence committed against you or your children on paper. Be clear with dates and times.
  • Obtain all the relevant details of the person whom you want to be protected against, including his/her home and work addresses, telephone numbers and identity number.
  • Ensure you have your identity document.
 
You don’t have to, but it will help if you also have:
  • Photos of the physical abuse. If you can, take photos so you can show how you were hurt and give the magistrate a better idea of how you have suffered.
  • A photo of the abuser. It can be a photocopy of a photo. This is useful so that the police can recognise the abuser when they serve him/her with the protection order.
  • Papers showing who bought the items. If your goods or property were damaged.
  • Photos of the violence. If any goods or property were damaged, photos will show the magistrate exactly what was done.
  • Confirmation letters confirming the fact that you have been abused. You can get letters from social workers, doctors, etc.
  • Statements/affidavits. From people who witnessed the abuse.
  • A J88 form completed by a doctor. The J88 form has drawings of the human body on it. After examining you, the doctor marks your injuries (bruises, wounds, etc.) on the drawings. This is powerful evidence for the court. You can obtain a J88 form from your nearest police station. If you have an interim protection order, take that along with you. If the police say they don’t have any J88 forms, ask to speak to the station commissioner. If you still can’t obtain a J88 form, report it to the clerk where you got your protection order. Take the J88 form to a doctor at a hospital or to a district surgeon. The doctor will examine your injuries and fill it out for you. Make two copies of the filled-out J88 form and return one of them to the police station to be put into your file. Keep the other copy.
 
Step 2: Seek assistance

Any member of the SAPS must assist you in every way necessary, including:

  • giving you information about your rights;
  • explaining the contents of the notice that sets out your rights. This explanation must include the remedies that you have in terms of the Domestic Violence Act and your right to lay a criminal charge, if the act committed has an element of violence;
  • finding a safe place for you to stay or helping you make arrangements to find a place; and
  • getting you medical treatment if required.
 
The following persons can apply for an interim protection order with your written consent, unless you are a minor, a mentally retarded person, unconscious or if the court is satisfied that you are unable to give the required consent:
  • counsellors
  • health workers
  • police officers
  • social workers
  • teachers
 
Step 3: Apply for the interim protection order

Every magistrate’s court or High Court is a domestic violence court. To obtain the interim protection order, you need to go to the magistrate’s court in the area where you live or in which the respondent lives or where the abuse took place. Your application for the order will be made by way of a written statement (affidavit), outlining:

  • the facts on which the application is based;
  • the nature of the order; and
  • the name of the police station where you are likely to report any breach of the order.
 
Where the application is brought on your behalf by another person, the affidavit must state:
​
  • the grounds on which they have a material interest in your wellbeing;
  • their occupation and the capacity in which they bring the application;
  • your written consent, except in cases as outlined above.
 
Once at the court, the following steps will be taken:
​
  1. You fill in an application form for a protection order and write out a statement (affidavit) about the abuse.
  2. You make a sworn statement to the clerk that what you have written is true and you sign the application form.
  3. The clerk signs and stamps your application form, opens a file for you and puts your papers into your file.
  4. The clerk gives your file to the magistrate who reads through your application. The magistrate can either:
  1. dismiss your application if there is no evidence that domestic violence is taking place;
  2. grant an interim (temporary) protection order in your favour, to be finalised on a date provided by the court where the respondent will have a chance to give his/her side of the story; or
  3. postpone the matter without granting an interim protection order and provide a date when the respondent will get a chance to give his/her side of the story.
 
Step 4: Serve the interim protection order

If the magistrate grants you an interim protection order, the following will happen:

  1. The clerk notifies you of the return date, when you will need to go back to court, and gives you a case number.
  2. The magistrate then issues a notice to appear in court and the respondent is informed that an application for an interim protection order was granted and that he/she must appear on the return date to give his/her side of the story.
  3. The clerk files the original application and interim protection order forms into your file and hands you three copies. Two of the copies are for the sheriff or the police, depending on who will serve the interim protection order on the respondent. The clerk will also give you a return of service form to take to the police or sheriff.
  4. You get the police or sheriff to serve the interim protection order. Please note that when the police serve the order it is done at no charge, however, when the sheriff serves the order, you will have to pay.
  5. The police or sheriff visits the address that you have put on your form and serves a copy of the interim protection order on the respondent. It is crucial that the respondent is informed personally of the application and return date.
  6. The police or sheriff fills in the return of service form and returns it to the court when the interim protection order has been served on the respondent.
 
It is important to note that an interim protection order has no force until it is served on the respondent. Once the interim protection order is granted and served on the respondent, you will be able to have the respondent arrested if he/she disobeys it. Breaching any of the conditions set out in the order can result in the respondent receiving either a fine or a prison sentence, or both.
When the court grants an interim protection order, it simultaneously issues a warrant of arrest against the respondent. The warrant of arrest is suspended subject to compliance with any condition, prohibition or obligation in terms of the interim protection order.
 
Step 5: Make the order final

If the respondent does not appear in court on the day of the hearing, the protection order will be made final. If the respondent does appear, the court will hear evidence from you, the respondent and any other witnesses that may have been called. The court will then consider all the evidence put before it in order to make a decision.

In terms of the Domestic Violence Act, these proceedings are held in private. The only people that may be present are the parties involved, their legal representatives, anyone who has brought an application on your behalf, witnesses and the officers of court. You may also bring three people to provide you with support. The court has the power to exclude anyone from the proceedings. The Act also prohibits the publication of any information that may directly or indirectly reveal the identity of any party to the proceedings. When the magistrate has heard all the evidence, he/she will decide whether or not to issue the protection order.

THE NEW DOMESTIC VIOLANCE ACT 

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Contact Details

​MAURICE PHILLIPS WISENBERG
20th Floor, 2 Long  Street, Cape Town, 8001, South Africa
Telephone: +27 21 419 7115
Email: familylaw(@)mpw.co.za​


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Email: familylaw@mpw.co.za
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  • Home
  • Divorce
    • The Reasons for Divorce
    • The Divorce Process in South Africa
    • Rule 41A Mediation
    • The Marital Property Regimes >
      • Marriage out of Community of Property, new case
      • Marriage in Community of Property
      • Marriage out of community without accrual >
        • Understanding Post-1984 Marriages
      • Marriage out of community with the inclusion of the accrual
      • Anti-Dissipation Interdicts Divorce
      • Universal Partnerships
      • Antenuptial Contracts
      • Register Antenuptial Contract Online
      • Changing your matrimonial regime.
      • Postnuptial Contracts
    • Division of Assets at Divorce >
      • Forfeiture of Assets in a Divorce
    • Evicting your spouse divorce
    • Retirement Funds and Divorce
    • Living Annuities
    • Hiding Assets in a Divorce
    • Trusts and Divorce >
      • Can I hide assets in Trust?
    • Divorce a Missing Spouse
    • Adultery and Suing a Third Party
    • Domicile in Divorce Cases
    • International Divorces in South Africa
    • Expat South African Divorce
    • International Jurisdiction
    • Spousal Visas
    • International Divorce Law >
      • UK Divorce Laws
    • Choosing a Divorce Attorney
    • On-line Divorce
    • Lawyer Fees and Costs
    • Important Aspects of a Divorce
    • Divorcing a Narcistic Spouse
    • Dealing with Emotions During Divorce and Separation
    • Divorce Statistics
    • Divorce Therapy and Counselling >
      • Marriage and Relationship Therapists
    • Rebuilding Your Financial Life
    • Divorce Attorney Cape Town
    • Ingredients of a successful relationship
    • What are the elements of a successful marriage?
    • Uncontested Divorce
    • Uncontested Divorce - What Happens on the Court Day?
  • Maintenance
    • Spousal maintenance
    • How to calculate Child Maintenance?
    • Maintenance Defaulters
    • What Happens if you don't pay child maintenance
    • Child Maintenance Frequently Asked Questions
    • Rule 43 Interim Maintenance Pending Divorce >
      • Can I appeal a Rule 43 Order
      • Apply for Costs in Rule 43
      • Financial Disclosure Rule 43
      • Rule 43 Maintenance
    • The Maintenance Manual
    • Grand Parents and Maintenance
    • Variation of Maintenance due to loss of employment
    • Contempt of Court Maintenance
  • Children
    • Section 28 of the Children's Act
    • Relocation and Child Abduction >
      • Frequently Asked Questions about Child Relocation
      • Child Relocation to New Zealand
    • The Hague Convention >
      • Child Participation in South African Family Law and the Hague Convention
      • International Child Custody Law South Africa
      • Hague Applications and Domestic Violence
      • Mirror Orders and the Hague Convention
      • Tips on international child custody
    • Unmarried Parents and the Law
    • Unmarried Fathers Rights
    • Parenting Plans >
      • Parenting Plan
      • Conflict and dispute-resolution mechanisms
    • The non-custodian parent and contact
    • Appointing a Guardian in a Will
    • Introducing a new partner to your child
    • Refusal of Contact
    • Suspending Parental Rights
    • The Law on Grandparents Rights over Children
    • Parental Alienation >
      • Alienating Children
      • Parental Alienation Imprisonment
      • What is the effect of Parental Alienation on children?
    • Living Arrangements
    • What effect does divorce have on children?
    • The Voice of the Child in Divorce
    • Facilitation
    • Joint decisions about your child
    • Paternity Disputes
    • The Family Advocate
    • Parenting during separartion
    • Children's Act 38 of 2005
  • Abuse
    • Domestic Violence Legislation and Case Law
    • The New Domestic Violence Act 14 of 2021
    • Gender Based Violence in South Africa
    • Domestic Abuse Forms
    • Evicting a Spouse
    • Being married to a Narcissist.
    • Divorcing an Abusive Spouse
    • What is Coercive Control?
    • What is Emotional Abuse
    • What is Sexual Abuse
    • What is Financial Abuse >
      • Economic Abuse
    • What is Stalking
    • What is Verbal Abuse
    • What is Spiritual Abuse
    • What is Social Abuse
    • Revenge Porn
    • Interdict Intimate photos
    • Steps to obtain a Protection Order
    • Domestic Violence eBook
    • The Protection Order
    • Who Qualifies for a Protection Order
    • Breaching a Protection Order
    • Questions on Domestic Abuse
    • Signs of an Abusive Relationship
    • Domestic Violence Information
    • Harassment >
      • Harassment Forms
  • Cohabitation
    • Universal Partnerships in South African Cohabitation
    • Maintenance and Cohabitation
    • Interim Maintenance and Cohabitation
    • Sample Cohabitation Agreement
    • Engagement and the law
  • Formalities for marriage in south africa
    • South Africa's New Marriage Bill: A Step Towards Equality and Inclusion
    • Same Sex
  • Family Law eBooks
  • Family Law Links
    • The South African Court System
    • Court Rolls
    • Family Law Legislation
    • Family Law Blog
    • New Family Law Cases
    • Register for the Online Family Law Course
  • About the Author
  • Contact
  • Charities