What a protective order can and cannot do
A Utah protective order can bar contact, keep someone away from your home, work, and school, remove them from a shared home, give temporary custody of children, and restrict firearms. It cannot divide property, decide custody permanently, award lasting support, or end a marriage. Those come from a divorce, custody, or parentage case, and the temporary civil terms of a protective order expire after 150 days unless extended.
People reach for a protective order expecting it to settle everything that is wrong: the house, the kids, the money, the relationship. It settles one thing. It tells one person what they may not do. Knowing where its reach ends keeps you from relying on it for decisions it was never built to make.
If you are in danger right now, call 911. The Utah Domestic Violence Coalition's LINKLine is free, confidential, and open 24 hours: call or text 1-800-897-5465.
Last checked: October 19, 2026, against Utah Code Title 78B, Chapter 7, and the Utah Courts' self-help pages. This is general information, not legal advice.
What it can do
The core of every Utah protective order is the same. The court can order the respondent not to threaten, abuse, or harass you, not to contact you directly or indirectly, and to stay a set distance from your home, work, school, and any other place the court names.
A cohabitant abuse order, the most common one, can go further. After reading the petition, and before the respondent is heard, the court can:
- exclude the respondent from the residence you share, and from your school, workplace, and place of worship, with limits where you share those places;
- bar the respondent from buying, using, or possessing firearms or other weapons, on a finding that their possession may pose a serious threat of harm to you;
- give you possession of a vehicle and personal effects, with a police officer present if needed;
- keep an existing phone plan in place so you are not cut off;
- award you temporary custody of a minor child;
- appoint a guardian ad litem for a child;
- protect household animals;
- order anything further the court considers necessary for your safety.
After notice and a hearing, the court can also transfer a wireless number to you and set arrangements for the respondent's parent-time, require that it be supervised, or deny it where necessary to protect you or the child.
Violating the criminal terms, such as contact and stay-away, is a class A misdemeanor. Violating the civil terms, such as custody, is contempt of court. A respondent can be arrested for prohibited contact even if you invited it, which is why an order is not something to use loosely.
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Open the savings toolWhat it cannot do
It cannot end your marriage or divide property. The courts' own page says it plainly: a cohabitant abuse order is not a substitute for divorce, and permanent custody, parent-time, support, and division of property require a divorce decree. An order can put you in the house and the car this week. It does not decide who owns them.
It cannot decide custody permanently. The custody and parent-time terms in a protective order are temporary. By statute, the civil provisions of a cohabitant order expire 150 days after the order is entered unless the court finds good cause to extend them, and even then not beyond three years without a separate motion. Lasting custody comes from a divorce, custody, or parentage case, and if there is such a case between you, that court can change the protective order's civil terms by agreement or for good cause.
It cannot be made mutual to keep the peace. Utah courts may not grant mutual protective orders unless each person files their own petition, proves abuse at a hearing, and shows the abuse was not self-defense. A judge will not split the difference.
It cannot be withdrawn informally. Once filed, a cohabitant petition cannot be withdrawn without the court's approval. A petitioner can ask the court to dismiss an order at any time, and the court holds a hearing. Deciding between yourselves that it no longer applies has no legal effect, and the respondent remains exposed to arrest.
It cannot be mediated. Utah law bars a court from ordering mediation of the issues in a cohabitant abuse petition. Whether someone needs protection is not a negotiation. Our guide on mediation when there is a protective order covers what that means for a divorce or custody case running alongside.
It cannot be undone quickly by the respondent. The criminal terms of a cohabitant order cannot be vacated within two years without the petitioner's personal consent in court or by sworn affidavit. After one year, a court may amend or dismiss an order only on specific findings, and the appeals court has held the decision stays within the judge's discretion.
It does not reach everything the respondent does. An order bars contact and sets distances. It does not stop the other person from living their life, holding a job, or seeing other people. Reports of conduct that does not violate a term go to the police or to your attorney, not to the order.
Where the other decisions get made
| You want | Where it is decided |
|---|---|
| Safety now: no contact, stay away, leave the home | Protective order |
| Temporary custody and parent-time, up to 150 days | Protective order, civil terms |
| Custody and parent-time that last | Divorce, custody, or parentage case |
| Child support and alimony that last | Divorce or parentage case |
| Who keeps the house, accounts, and debts | Divorce case, or a written agreement if you were not married |
| Ending the marriage | Divorce decree |
| Criminal consequences for the abuse | Criminal case, brought by the prosecutor |
If a divorce is pending, the court can dismiss the protective order when it enters the decree, on a motion in both cases, if the parties agree or the court finds at trial that the petitioner no longer has a reasonable fear.
Why this matters for the long run
Protective orders expire. Most last three years, and the family terms far less. The decisions that shape the next decade, where the children live, what you own, what support looks like, get made somewhere else, usually in a divorce or custody case, usually with mediation along the way. Our guide on a protective order when you share children looks at that overlap. The order keeps you safe while those decisions get made. It is not the place they get made.
Where to get help
- Emergency: 911.
- Utah Domestic Violence Coalition LINKLine, 24 hours, call or text: 1-800-897-5465.
- National Domestic Violence Hotline: 1-800-799-7233, or text START to 88788.
- Legal Aid Society of Salt Lake for Salt Lake County, Utah Legal Services, and the Timpanogos Legal Center hotline at 801-649-8895.
Common questions
Can a protective order give me custody of my kids in Utah?
Temporarily. A cohabitant abuse order can award temporary custody and set, supervise, or deny parent-time to protect you or the children. Those civil terms expire 150 days after the order is entered unless the court extends them. Permanent custody and parent-time require a divorce, custody, or parentage case.
Does a protective order make him leave the house?
It can. A cohabitant abuse order can exclude the respondent from the residence, and the court can allow them to collect belongings with a police officer present. It does not decide who owns the home or who keeps it long term. That is decided in a divorce or other civil case.
Can a protective order take away someone's guns in Utah?
A cohabitant abuse order can bar the respondent from buying, using, or possessing firearms if the court finds a serious threat of harm, and the court reports qualifying orders to the Bureau of Criminal Identification. For dating and sexual violence orders, a firearms term requires notice and a hearing, abuse proved by a preponderance, and a serious threat proved by clear and convincing evidence. Federal law can also apply.
Sources
- Utah Code §78B-7-603, what a cohabitant abuse order may include, and modification
- Utah Code §78B-7-605, amendment and dismissal, §78B-7-606, expiration of civil provisions, §78B-7-607, penalties, §78B-7-608, lapse of time, §78B-7-609, no court-ordered mediation
- Utah Code §78B-7-108, mutual orders, §78B-7-404, dating violence orders and firearms, §78B-7-504, sexual violence orders and firearms
- Utah Courts, Dating Violence page: "not a substitute for divorce" and Protective Orders
- Mota v. Mota, 2016 UT App 201 (dismissal is discretionary)
- Utah Domestic Violence Coalition and National Domestic Violence Hotline
David Ring III
Mediator and founder of Salt City Mediation LLC. Founder of EmpathEase, an app for practicing empathy and Nonviolent Communication. Completed Utah Dispute Resolution's 40-hour mediation training in 2026.