Civil Restraint Orders: When Court Applications Won't Stop

Part of: What is a Barring Order and How to Apply?

A civil restraint order stops someone from making further applications to the family court unless a judge gives permission first. Judges use it when a person keeps bringing applications that are totally without merit (Family Procedure Rules 2010, r.4.8). If you are a parent worn down by one application after another, it can bring some quiet. If a judge has made one against you, it does not close the door on your case. Our specialists assist and advise people on both sides, and our guide to your first family court hearing explains how hearings run. This page covers the law of England and Wales.

Reviewed by: Iblal Iqbal, Partner & Family Law Strategist, Kabir Family Law

What does a civil restraint order actually do?

It puts a judge between the other person and the court office. Once the order is in place, the person it names cannot simply file a new application. Instead, they must first ask the judge named in the order for permission (PD4B, para 2.2).

That change matters most to the parent on the receiving end. If the restrained person applies without permission, the court dismisses the application automatically. The judge does not need to make a further order, and you do not need to respond to it (PD4B, para 2.3).

Even so, the order does not silence anyone for good. The restrained person can still ask the named judge for permission to change it or end it. They can also ask for permission to appeal it.

When can a family court make a civil restraint order?

The trigger is a pattern of applications that are totally without merit. Losing an application is not enough on its own. The rules treat that phrase as a separate finding, and the court’s order must record it (FPR r.4.3(7), r.4.4(5) and r.18.13).

Each time a judge makes that finding, the same rules say the court must also consider whether a restraint order is appropriate. So the court can act on its own. In addition, the other party can ask for one (PD4B, para 5.1).

For a tired parent, that written record matters. Old orders that use the words “totally without merit” can tell a clear story. Orders that say nothing about merit may leave gaps that need explaining.

Limited, extended or general: which restraint order is it?

There are three types, and each one reaches further than the last. The judge decides which type fits the history (PD4B, paras 2 to 4).

Every type names the judge who deals with permission requests. Extended and general orders must also list the courts they cover (PD4B, paras 2.9, 3.9 and 4.9). If you already have an order, you will find those details in its wording. Not sure which type you are facing, or which to ask for? A free initial consultation is a sensible first step.

How long does a civil restraint order last?

A limited order lasts for the proceedings it came from, unless the court orders otherwise (PD4B, para 2.9). Extended and general orders run for a set period, which cannot be more than 2 years (paras 3.9 and 4.9).

The court can extend an extended or general order when it considers that appropriate. However, each extension can add no more than 2 years (paras 3.10 and 4.10). So a long history can mean more than one extension.

Be careful with figures you find online. The GOV.UK guidance says extended and general orders last 3 years. That matches the civil court rules, where the limit is 3 years (CPR PD 3C, paras 3.9 and 4.9). Family proceedings follow PD4B instead, where the limit is 2 years at a time.

How do you ask for a civil restraint order?

You do not start a new case. Instead, the request sits inside the proceedings you are already in. Here is the path an order follows.

1. The applications fail. A judge dismisses or strikes out an application and records that it is totally without merit.
2. The court weighs up an order. At the same time, the rules require the judge to think about a restraint order (FPR r.4.3(7)).
3. You can ask for one. As the other party, you apply using the Part 18 procedure and say which type you want (PD4B, paras 5.1 and 5.2).
4. The judge decides the type and length. The order then names the judge for any later permission request and, for wider orders, the courts it covers.
5. Later requests come to you first. The restrained person must serve notice on you and give you at least 7 days to reply. After that, a judge decides on paper, without a hearing (PD4B, paras 2.4 to 2.6).

Which type to ask for, and how to show the pattern, depends on your own history. That is where early advice helps most, and a free initial consultation gives you initial advice from one of our specialists before you apply.

Which order fits when the applications are about your child?

Many parents facing repeat applications about a child look first at a different power. Under section 91(14) of the Children Act 1989, a court can stop a named person applying for set kinds of order about the child without its permission. Section 91A adds that the court may do this where an application would put the child, or another person, at risk of harm (Children Act 1989, s.91A).

A civil restraint order works differently. It rests on applications that are totally without merit, and it can reach beyond Children Act cases. Practice Direction 4B says its powers are separate from section 91(14) and do not replace it. Our guide to section 91(14) barring orders explains that power in detail. You can also read one family’s experience of repeat applications.

Repeat applications can also be part of a wider pattern of control, which our guide to abuse after separation and the courts explains. A third, rarer route sits in section 42 of the Senior Courts Act 1981. It lets the High Court restrict someone who has habitually and persistently brought vexatious cases. However, a private person cannot apply for it.

Is there a civil restraint order against you?

An order against you can feel as if the court has stopped listening. Yet it has not closed your case. Instead, it changes how you reach the judge.

• Ask before you apply. Your request for permission goes in writing to the judge the order names. First, serve notice on the other party and give them at least 7 days to reply (PD4B, paras 2.4 to 2.6).
• Expect a decision on paper. The judge decides without a hearing. If the judge refuses permission, any request for permission to appeal also goes in writing (para 2.8).
• Change or end the order the same way. You can ask to amend or discharge it, but only with the named judge’s permission (para 2.2(b)).
• Plan for the full fee. Help with fees does not cover these permission requests, so the full court fee is due when you apply (Family Proceedings Fees Order 2008, Sch. 2, para 19). If a judge grants permission, some or all of it may be refunded, and GOV.UK says to apply within 3 months.

Repeated requests carry a risk of their own. If they keep failing as totally without merit, the court can direct that a further refusal of that kind is final, with no appeal unless the refusing judge allows one (para 2.3(b)). Our guide to grounds for appeal in family court explains what an appeal court looks at.

Civil restraint order checklist: where do you stand?

Tick what is already true for you. It shows what you have in place, and what still needs thought. If a judge asks you to set out the history in writing, our guide to witness statements in family court explains how statements work.

What can go wrong on either side?

• Missing the reply window. A permission request must include your written reply, if you send one. Because the judge decides on paper, silence can leave the judge with one side only (PD4B, para 2.6).
• Trusting the wrong time limit. General guidance, including GOV.UK’s, gives the civil courts’ 3-year limit. In family proceedings the limit is 2 years at a time.
• Asking for the wrong order. A restraint order and a section 91(14) order have different tests, so choosing the wrong one can cost time you do not have.
• Treating it as protection. The order controls court applications only. It will not stop messages, threats or visits. For that, look at a non-molestation order.
• Applying without permission. Under an order, the court dismisses that application automatically, without the judge making any further order (PD4B, para 2.3).

Frequently asked questions

General information about the law in England and Wales, not advice on your circumstances.

Expert Tip

Parents often tell us they ignored a permission request because they were tired of replying. That is the one step not to skip. The restrained person must give you at least 7 days, and the judge then decides on the papers. A short, calm reply that points to the earlier findings can make a real difference. Keep every past order in one folder, so you can find the wording in minutes.

Hannah Overton, Complex Children Specialist & Client Support