Emergency Applications

There may be occasions which require an application to the Court of Protection to get an urgent or emergency court order, for example when a person’s life or welfare is at risk and a decision has to be made without delay. An urgent order can protect the person on the same day he or she comes to seek legal advice. The protection may relate to a wide range of issues, e.g. medical issues, domestic violence, harassment, forced marriage and the welfare and safety of children.

An application can be made without giving notice to the other party where there is a genuine emergency. Our experts at Chris Alexander Solicitors can provide you with legal advice and assist with making the necessary urgent court application.

Applications for Non Molestation Order

Non Molestation Orders are a type of court order used to protect survivors of domestic violence. A Non Molestation Order can state clearly that the abuser must not:

• be violent or threaten violence towards you or any children in your family, or harass, pester or intimidate you in any different ways
• come within a certain distance of your home (if the abuser has a legal right to occupy the home then you will need to apply for an occupation order; or
• damage or dispose of your belongings.

In order to apply to court for a Non Molestation Order, you need to be an ‘associated person’, which means that you:

• are or were married or in a civil partnership;
• are or were engaged to be married or had agreed to form a civil partnership;
• are or were living together (this includes same-sex and opposite-sex couples);
• live or have lived in the same household (but not as a tenant, boarder, lodger or employee);
• are relatives, including: parents, children, grandparents, grandchildren, siblings, uncles, aunts, nieces, nephews or first cousins (whether by full-blood, half-blood, marriage, civil partnership or cohabitation);
• are parents of the same child;
• have or have had parental responsibility for the same child;
• are parties to the same family proceedings for the same child; or,
• are or were in an intimate personal relationship of significant duration.

It is a criminal offence to break a Non Molestation Order and the police have the power to arrest the perpetrator.

Applications for Occupation Order

We can assist you with applications for an Occupation Order if you have been a victim of domestic abuse. This enables you to achieve or regain occupation of your home through the exclusion of a spouse or former partner. The order will state who can live in the family home or enter the surrounding area.

We can assist with your application if:

• you own or rent the home and it is, was, or was intended to be shared with a husband or wife, civil partner, cohabitant, family member
• you do not own or rent the home but you are married or in a civil partnership with the owner and you are living in the home (known as ‘matrimonial home rights’)
• your former husband, wife or civil partner is the owner or tenant, and the home is, was, or was intended to be your shared matrimonial home
• the person you cohabit or cohabited with is the owner or tenant, and the home is, was, or was intended to be your shared home

An Occupation Order can have a Power of Arrest attached to it, allowing a Police Officer to arrest an opponent for breaking or breaching the Order.

Legal Aid or Public Funding can be available to meet your legal costs providing you are eligible and meet the financial criteria.