AVO Lawyer Blacktown | Apprehended Domestic Violence Order

apprehended domestic and personal violence orders

AVOs are serious matters with significant consequences

Apprehended violence orders can cause significant problems in your life. AVO applications should not be ignored or simply consented to without careful consideration of the problems that will follow. If you have children with the person seeking an AVO, you may be prevented from spending time with them. You may also be ordered to leave your house and to have no contact with members of your family. An AVO may also negatively impact family law proceedings. For all these reasons, you should obtain competent legal advice before making any decision on whether to contest or consent to an application for an apprehended violence order.

AVO lawyers Blacktown

Types of apprehended domestic violence orders

There are two different types of AVO:

Apprehended Domestic Violence Orders (ADVO) - where the parties involved are related or have been involved in a domestic or intimate relationship. "Domestic relationship" includes parties who are siblings and those in a parent-child relationship.

Apprehended Personal Violence Orders (APVO) - where the parties involved are not related and have never had a domestic or intimate relationship.

Apprehended Violence Orders made by consent

If a defendant consents to the AVO being made, the Local Court Magistrate may make the Apprehended Violence Order. Consent can be given on a "without admissions" basis. This means that you consent to the AVO being made but you do not admit to the allegations made by applicant. You should obtain legal advice and carefully consider the consequences of an AVO being made before consenting.

AVO conditions

When an Apprehended Violence Order is made, three mandatory conditions will be included prohibiting the Defendant from:

a) Assaulting, molesting, harassing, threatening or interfering with the protected person;

b) Intimidating the protected person;

c) Stalking the protected person. In addition to the mandatory AVO conditions above, the court may elect to make one or more of the following optional conditions prohibiting the defendant from:

approaching the applicant

contacting the applicant (by any means whatsoever)

approaching or entering places where the applicant lives or works

approaching the applicant after consuming alcohol or taking drugs

damaging property

other conditions as agreed by the parties or as ordered by the court.

Consequences of an Apprehended Violence Order being made

An AVO is not a criminal conviction or finding that an offence was committed

The consequences of an Apprehended Violence Order include:

Your firearms licence is automatically suspended by an interim Order and revoked by a final Order. If you own firearms, they will be seized by police;

You will be prevented from applying for a firearms licence for 10 years after the expiry of the Order;

An AVO can affect licences to work as a security guard and other occupations where a security check is required;

If the Apprehended Violence Order includes children, the Commission for Children and Young People may be notified which may negatively impact upon your ability to obtain or maintain employment which involves contact with children.

Call our Blacktown AVO lawyers for more information