Our organisation has conducted the analysis of case law regarding restraining orders. We looked into the cases in Lviv region during January-June 2019. See the full report attached below (available only in Ukrainian).

About restraining orders

A restraining order is a temporary measure that restricts the rights or imposes duties on a perpetrator of domestic violence and aims at the victim’s safety. These measures may include:

• prohibition of staying in the common place of residence with the victim;
• prohibition of getting close to the victim’s place of residence, place of study or work;
• prohibition of contacting the victim in any way.

A restraining order can be issued by the court for 1 to 6 months.

Restraining orders case law

In January-June 2019 the courts of Lviv region issued 19 decisions regarding restraining orders. Most of them concerned issuing a restraining order for the first time, but there were also two about the continuation of a previously issued order. Overall, in 11 decisions the court granted the application (either in full or in part) and issued a restraining order.

Overview of the case law

The Lviv region case law regarding restraining orders is not uniform. Some courts need proof that the perpetrator was held accountable for the administrative offence or the crime of domestic violence in order for the restraining order to be issued. Other courts do not need such a proof.

Sometimes the courts justify refusing the restraining order application since the perpetrator has property rights over the common place of residence with the victim. On the other hand, the Lviv court of appeal stresses that the victim’s rights to life, health, safety and housing should have priority in this case.