The following people can petition for civil protection orders:
- the spouse of the respondent
- a member of the household of the respondent
- a child of either the spouse or the respondent
- a child of whom the spouse or the respondent is the legal guardian
- a child who is or has been a member of the household of the spouse or the respondent
- a dependent
- a parent or sibling — by blood — of the spouse or the respondent who is not a member of the household
- a person who has a child in common with the spouse of respondent
- a person who is or has been in a nonmarital (visiting) relationship with a member of the opposite sex for a period of 12 months — this means that it is not mandatory to be married to have a protection order granted
Yes. The Domestic Violence Act[16] provides for a protection order to prohibit the respondent from the following:
- being on the premises specified in the order, which are premises frequented by the applicant, including any residence, property, business, school or place of employment
- being in a locality specified in the order
Yes. These orders may be requested by the following:
- a police officer, probation officer or social worker or the Children's Authority
- someone with whom the child normally resides
- someone who is in loco parentis to the child[18]
There are interim orders that must not exceed 21 days in length. These can be made pending the hearing for a protection order if it appears necessary or appropriate to do so to ensure the safety and protection of the applicant.
They can be extended for another 21 days upon an application to the court, once the respondent has been summoned to a hearing.Yes, as long as the correct procedure has been followed to serve notice on the respondent that the hearing will take place and that the court is satisfied that delaying proceedings is not a sensible course of action.
The court may make an interim order whether or not the respondent is present at the proceedings or the respondent has been given notice of the proceedings.
A judge may continue with the hearing if the respondent does not appear in court and proceed to issue a protection order, provided that the notice of the court proceedings can be proven to have been issued to the respondent. It is also within their power to issue a warrant for the respondent's arrest to be brought before the court.
If the applicant is not in court but the respondent is in court, then the judge has flexibility to dismiss the case or grant an adjournment to the hearing until the applicant is available to appear or to proceed with the hearing, as long as the person providing the relevant evidence can do so by affidavit, but that person must appear in person to confirm their evidence.
Where notice has not been able to be served on the respondent, provided that it can be evidentially proven that the notice has tried to be serviced in a variety of ways, then the court may continue with the hearing and grant an order. However, in this event, the order has to be served on the respondent or he is not liable to be bound by the terms of the order.- Between 2003 and 2018, 154,288 applications for protection orders were made. The average number per year dropped from 10,286 to 8,232.[19]
- Between 2010 and 2015, there were reports of 11,441 domestic violence incidents. Around 75% of these were violence against women.[20] During this same period, there were 131 deaths attributable to domestic violence, of which 56% were female.
- Reports of domestic violence attacks doubled in February and March 2020, thought to be due to the stay-at-home orders[21] that were issued to control the spread of
COVID-19.[22] - The Trinidad and Tobago 2019 Human Rights Report shows that domestic violence is a growing problem with a known high percentage of attacks continuing to go unreported. In addition, child abuse is a growing issue.[23]
The applicant or the applicant's representative should complete Form 1 in the Second Schedule of the Domestic Violence Act.[24] This details the following:
- name and address of the applicant
- name, relationship to the applicant and address of the respondent
- details of the dates, times and descriptions of the conduct leading to the application being made
In an emergency, the court may issue an interim order that specifies the same level of protection. These are initially issued for a period of seven days; they can be extended if the date for the court proceedings cannot happen before that time.
In the Amendment Bill,[25] there is provision to insert a new section on "emergency protection orders." This section will allow for a police officer or the Children's Authority to make an emergency application when the court is not sitting to a master or judge of the family or children court for a protection order where the applicant has been injured or is deemed to be in danger of serious physical injury at the hands of the respondent.Factors that are considered when determining whether to impose a prohibition or direction under the Domestic Violence Act are listed in Section 7 of the Domestic Violence Act and they include (but are not limited to) the following:
- nature, history or pattern of the violence that has occurred
- the need to protect the applicant and any other person for whose benefit the order has been granted from further domestic violence
- the welfare of the child
- any other matter that in the circumstances of the case the court considers relevant
The judge has flexibility regarding the term for which a protection order will run, up to a maximum of three years.
The judge has discretion to include in the terms of the order financial compensation amounts to cover medical, dental, moving and reasonable legal costs. There is also the ability to order counseling or therapy sessions and for the counselor or therapist to make a report to the court.