Which court hears a victim protection order case under the Special Act on Domestic Violence, and what changes where no family court sits?
General information · Not legal advice
Material to check
In a practice file we read the application for the victim protection order, the papers showing where the alleged domestic violence act took place, the perpetrator's residence or current address, and the victim's residence or current address, since the jurisdictional test turns on these places.
These are types of material to look for, not evidence already verified by PRO SE.
Where readings differ
One reading states jurisdiction by locality alone: the case goes to the family court that has jurisdiction over the place of the domestic violence perpetrator's act, residence or current location, or over the victim's residence or current location, so any one of these connecting factors may point to a competent court.
Another reading is the proviso, which changes the body only by geography: where the region has no family court established, the case goes to the district court for that region, and the provision does not say which court should hear the case where several courts each have a jurisdictional connection.
Your judgment
Where more than one court named in the provision could hear the case, what in the file should show which court was chosen and why?
PRO SE does not make this decision or keep a case record on this public site.When to reconsider
We look at this again if the provision is amended to change the jurisdictional connecting factors or the proviso, or if a court decision explains how to choose between several courts that each have a jurisdictional connection.