Intervention orders provide legal protection to people who have experienced violence or are at risk, by prohibiting adults from contacting, assaulting, harassing, or stalking the protected individual.

Application for an intervention order lawyer may involve numerous court hearings and can take time. Intervention orders have different names depending on your circumstance.

AVOs

An AVO (APVO in New South Wales) is an order issued by a Court to protect individuals from violence and threats of violence, both directly or via police intervention. Individuals can apply for AVOs themselves or through police intervention.

Under special circumstances, police can bypass the usual application process and issue an AVO (Automatic Voluntary Order) immediately to provide immediate protection. AVOs typically last from several months up to two years in some instances before becoming permanent orders.

An AVO can prevent individuals from travelling to certain locations, staying within a specified radius from the protected person's home or workplace and communicating with them by phone, text, email or social media. Any violations could lead to arrest and penalties being applied accordingly.

Defense against an AVO can be a complex process and should be undertaken with legal representation. A defendant has two options when responding to an AVO - they can either agree on its terms without admissions, or oppose it outright.

APVOs

People often apply for APVOs without good reason, with fears often unjustified or exaggerated. Before agreeing to an APVO agreement, it is crucial that legal advice be sought as any breaches may lead to criminal records and impact future job applications and visa applications for travel overseas.

A Lawyer will attempt to resolve your matter through mediation or court representation as appropriate, while protecting your legal rights, helping build an effective defence and helping explain the legal process.

Provisional and Interim Advance Protective Voluntary Orders are two forms of Advance Protection Voluntary Orders (APVOs). Police usually apply immediately for Provisional Orders until a court can review them at a later time, while Interim APVOs can often be found against neighbors, co-workers or strangers; an Interim APVO may be challenged if it believes they do not present risk of violence or stalking, though this process involves providing evidence and cross-examining witnesses.

Defending an AVO

Defense against an intervention order is vitally important as it can greatly impede your rights regarding care and contact with your children. Depending on the circumstances and evidence presented to the court, an order could prevent you from seeing them, visiting their home, or coming within close proximity of places they frequent like work or school.

On the day of your hearing in court, the "protected person" will provide a written statement and you cannot use any evidence presented until given permission by the judge on that same date.

Employing legal representation will assist in crafting the best defense possible against allegations from protected persons, such as providing witness statements and counter evidence that dispute any allegations made by them. You may even convince the court that your behavior does not meet legal criteria for an AVO.

Defending a APVO

As the defendant in an intervention order hearing, you may feel concerned that an intervention order is unjust or unreasonable and will prevent you from communicating with your former partner and their family. A qualified and experienced lawyer can build an effective defense on your behalf and ensure your legal rights are safeguarded through every stage of this process as they represent you in court proceedings.

Intervention Order applications may be submitted either through police or non-police channels and can either be interim or final orders. Intervention Orders are used to restrict your movements and communication with those named in them as well as their children. They also prohibit you from being near locations they frequently frequent such as their home, workplace and your child's school.

Intervention Orders differ from criminal matters by having a lower standard of proof - the Magistrate must be satisfied on a balance of probabilities that violence likely occurred and often include a restraining clause to keep people apart.