Recent Changes to the Family Court Act Related to Orders of Protection

Governor Paterson has recently signed a law that expands access to Civil Orders of Protection, allowing a person who is, or was, in an intimate relationship with an abuser – even though not related to that person – to seek an order of protection in Family Court. This substantially expands protections for victims, who for a variety of reasons may be unwilling to press charges in criminal court. Family Court Act §812 (1) (c) was amended to include in the list of persons who the court has jurisdiction to grant an order of protection to (1) persons formerly married to one another, “regardless of whether they still reside in the same household” and (2) persons who are not related by consanguinity or affinity. Subdivision (e) was added to Family Court Act §812 to include in the list of persons who the court has jurisdiction over for the purpose of granting an order of protection, “persons who are or have been in an intimate relationship regardless of whether such persons have lived together at any time”. For purposes of subdivision (e), neither a casual acquaintance nor ordinary fraternization between two individuals in business or social contexts shall be deemed to constitute an “intimate relationship”. Factors the court may consider in determining whether a relationship is an “intimate relationship” include, but are not limited to: the nature or type of relationship, regardless of whether the relationship is sexual in nature; the frequency of interaction between the persons; and the duration of the relationship. Laws of 2008, Ch 325, § 10, effective July 21, 2008). This significantly enlarges the number of situations where a party can obtain an order of protection from the Family Court.