In Minnesota, there are two civil protective orders available to victims of abuse and harassment: the Order for Protection (OFP) and the Harassment Restraining Order (HRO). Which one you can get depends on your relationship with the person threatening you and the nature of the conduct you have experienced.
Filing the wrong type, or filing without understanding the differences, can cause a person to have their request denied. This article walks through both orders, who qualifies, what the process looks like, how long it takes, and what it costs.
The Order for Protection is governed by Minnesota Statutes section 518B.01, the Domestic Abuse Act. It is available only when the parties share a qualifying domestic relationship: spouses or former spouses, people who have a child together, people who live together or have lived together as household members, people in a current or past dating relationship, and family members related by blood or marriage. The conduct it addresses is domestic abuse, defined as
The Harassment Restraining Order is governed by Minnesota Statutes section 609.748. It does not require any particular relationship between the parties. A neighbor, a coworker, a former acquaintance, and of course a former boyfriend or girlfriend, or even someone you have never met, can be the subject of an HRO.
The standard is harassment, defined as:
The practical difference actually matters significantly. If the person threatening you is a former partner with whom you share children, you probably want to try and get an OFP, not an HRO. An OFP can include provisions for temporary custody, parenting time, and exclusive use of the family home.
A HRO cannot address any of those things. On the other hand, if a coworker or neighbor is harassing you, that relationship does not qualify for an OFP, and an HRO is your best bet. After 26 years of handling these cases in Minnesota, I have seen petitioners file the wrong order type and lose many times, so it’s critical that you understand the difference.
For an OFP, you must demonstrate two things: that you are in a qualifying domestic relationship and that domestic abuse has occurred or is about to occur. The abuse does not have to involve physical contact. Terroristic threats, meaning statements made with the intent to cause fear of imminent great bodily harm or death, qualify.
Courts in Minnesota take these allegations seriously, even in the absence of a police report or visible physical injury. I have obtained OFPs for clients based solely on documented text messages that met the definition of terroristic threats.
PRO TIP: During a divorce or custody battle, be very careful if you are sending texts while you’re upset; that simple message of “I wish you were dead” can be enough to cause a world of OFP problems.
For an HRO, you need to show either a pattern of repeated incidents (courts generally require at least two) that would cause a reasonable person substantial emotional distress, or a single qualifying incident such as a physical assault or conduct that rises to the level of stalking under Minnesota Statutes section 609.749. Repeated unwanted contact, surveillance, showing up at someone’s workplace without cause, and escalating threatening messages have all been found to meet the standard in Minnesota courts.
The harder HRO cases involve repeated unwanted contact where the respondent argues the contact was innocent or even welcome. The reasonable person standard is objective, but judges can really view this differently in how they weigh the evidence, particularly when there is no single dramatic incident. If you are building an HRO petition on a pattern of conduct, documentation of every incident with specific dates, times, and the content of communications is critical to your case.
One common problem I’ve seen as a OFP/HRO lawyer is when I see is when a person says it’s unwanted, but there are texts responding in a pleasant way to the harassment. The issue here is that the counter on how many contacts are harassment really resets if you start talking to them nicely. You can’t say it was harassment if you spend a week texting pleasantly back and forth.
You can file the petition for an HRO/OFP at the district court in either the county where you live or the county where the respondent lives. The Minnesota Judicial Branch website has the petition forms for both OFPs and HROs, and they are also available at the court administrator’s office.
This may surprise you, but I actually recommend filing them out yourself if you feel comfortable. I think it’s more effective to get that emergency Ex Parte order if the court can read it in your own words and not have everything filtered through a lawyer.
For an OFP, the petition asks you to describe the domestic relationship and the specific acts of abuse. For an HRO, you describe each incident of harassment with as much detail as you can provide.
After you submit the forms, a judge reviews the petition, usually the same day. The judge can issue a temporary order, called an ex parte order, without the respondent present, based solely on your sworn petition. This is granted when the petition shows immediate danger or that notifying the respondent in advance would likely result in harm before a full hearing can be scheduled.
Once the temporary order is issued, the sheriff serves it on the respondent. The order is not enforceable against the respondent until service has occurred (usually by the sheriff), which is a point many petitioners do not realize, so it’s not instant.
If you are in Blue Earth County, the district court administrator’s office in Mankato can’t give you legal advice, but they will let a victim advocate from local support organizations (like CADA or Rochester’s Domestic Violence Center) who can assist petitioners at no charge with completing the paperwork and understanding what to expect at the hearing. Similar advocate programs operate at most southern Minnesota courthouses, including in Olmsted County in Rochester.
A temporary ex parte order can be issued the same day you file, sometimes within a few hours if you arrive early in the day and the petition is complete. If the court needs additional information or the judge is unavailable, the next business day may be required. Once the temporary order is issued, the court schedules a full hearing within 14 days after the respondent is served, for both OFPs under section 518B.01 and HROs under section 609.748.
If service on the respondent is delayed, the temporary order remains in effect and the hearing date shifts accordingly. If you are having trouble locating the respondent, you can ask the court to authorize alternative service methods. Courts are familiar with these requests and will work with you.
The full hearing itself typically runs 30 minutes to half a day, depending on how much evidence is presented and whether the case is contested. If the judge grants the final order at the hearing, it takes effect immediately. In contested cases, particularly in busier courthouses, some judges continue the hearing to a second date to allow more time for testimony. This is frustrating but not uncommon. Plan accordingly and do not assume one court date will resolve everything.
Filing an OFP petition is free. Minnesota Statutes section 518B.01 waives the filing fee for victims of domestic abuse, and there is no charge to the petitioner for sheriff service of the order.
However, filing an HRO is not automatically free. The standard filing fee at most Minnesota district courts is in the range of $300 to $350. If you cannot afford the fee, you can submit an In Forma Pauperis (IFP) application at the same time you file the petition. Courts routinely grant these for petitioners with limited income. If the HRO is sought because of a physical assault or stalking, some courts will waive the fee without a formal IFP request, though you should not rely on that outcome.
Attorney fees are separate. You do not need an attorney to file either type of order, and courts are accustomed to self-represented petitioners in protective order proceedings. Where legal representation makes the most difference is in contested cases involving children, cases where the respondent has hired counsel, and cases where the factual record is complicated or the history between the parties is long.
Hourly rates for family law attorneys in southern Minnesota generally range from $200 to $350 per hour. If cost is a barrier, Southern Minnesota Regional Legal Services provides free or low-cost legal assistance for income-qualifying individuals and is worth contacting before you decide you cannot afford a lawyer.
The hearing is your opportunity to present evidence. You can testify, call witnesses, and submit exhibits such as text messages, photographs, emails, voicemails, or police reports. The respondent has the same opportunity to contest the petition. The burden is on you to prove the allegations by a preponderance of the evidence, meaning it is more likely than not that the abuse or harassment occurred.
If you are seeking a temporary custody or parenting time provision through an OFP, you need to address that specifically in your testimony and paperwork. The court can include those provisions in an OFP, but they are not automatic. You need to make the request, explain why it is necessary, and connect it to the domestic abuse findings.
Prepare before you walk in. Write out the incidents in chronological order and know the dates. Bring organized copies of any documentary evidence. If you have text messages that contain threats, have them printed or otherwise ready to hand to the court. Judges across Minnesota’s district courts consistently respond better to petitioners who are organized and specific than to those who are understandably emotional but vague on details. Specificity directly affects credibility.
A final OFP is typically issued for up to two years and can be renewed before it expires. Under Minnesota Statutes section 518B.01, the court can also issue a permanent OFP if the respondent has previously violated an OFP or if the history of abuse is serious enough to warrant it. A permanent order does not expire, though the respondent may petition to modify or terminate it after a period of time.
A final HRO is also typically issued for up to two years and is renewable. Courts have issued longer HROs in cases involving physical assaults or felony-level stalking. If you are approaching the expiration of an existing order and the circumstances that led to it have not changed, file for renewal before it lapses. You do not want a gap in coverage.
Violating a protective order in Minnesota is a criminal offense. A first violation is typically charged as a misdemeanor, but it can be elevated to a gross misdemeanor or felony depending on the conduct and the respondent’s prior record. Call 911 immediately if the respondent contacts you, comes near your home or workplace, or otherwise breaches the terms of the order. Document the violation with screenshots, photographs, or witness information if you can do so safely, and keep a copy of the police report. Notify your attorney if you have one.
Violations do not enforce themselves. You have to report them and follow through with law enforcement. A documented violation also strengthens your position if you later seek to extend or make permanent the existing order. Courts take a history of violations seriously.
No. Self-represented petitioners file OFPs and HROs every day in Minnesota courts, and court staff can explain the procedural steps, though they cannot give legal advice. The forms are available at the courthouse or online through the Minnesota Judicial Branch. I have seen well-prepared self-represented petitioners succeed at contested hearings.
That said, having an attorney matters most in these situations: the case is contested and the respondent has counsel; there are children and you are seeking temporary custody through the OFP; the factual record is complicated; or the respondent has a history of violating orders and you anticipate a pattern of litigation. In those situations, the investment in representation is almost always worth it. If cost is the issue, contact Southern Minnesota Regional Legal Services first.
I have represented clients through every stage of this process for over years. If you have questions about which order applies to your situation, or if you want legal guidance in preparing your petition, contact our office to discuss your options.
About the author: Jason Kohlmeyer is a Minnesota family law attorney with 26 years of experience handling high-conflict divorce, domestic violence, and farm and business division cases. He practices with Kohlmeyer Hagen, Law Office Chtd., with offices in Mankato and Rochester.
