Laws and Legislation

A protection order (also known as a restraining order) can help protect victims of physical, sexual, or emotional abuse from the person being abusive. This handout from Break the Cycle explains what a protection order is, who can get one, how to get one, and what protections they can provide.

A protection order (also known as a restraining order) can help protect victims of physical, sexual, or emotional abuse from the person being abusive. Minors and their guardians need to know special information in order to secure a protection order. This handout addresses important considerations for protection orders for minors.

Each state treats young victims of dating abuse differently, but not all ways are equal. loveisrespect conducted a nationwide review of state laws and found common trends, both positive and negative, that directly impact the protection of teens.

This report provides an overview of state laws and reporting requirements for sexual activities involving minors and individual reporting responsibilities. This material may not reflect the most current state law - users should confirm the information.

This chart summarizes laws around when communication is protected (i.e., is privileged or confidential) between domestic or sexual violence victims and advocates, and defines various advocate roles and types of communication.

Each state’s civil domestic protection order laws and their impact on minors seeking protection from abusive relationships were assessed and steps for improving protections were outlined in this document.

This study examines protective orders (POs) taken out by teens as a remedy for dating violence by developing a comprehensive portrait of their use in New York State.

This guide presents state laws and pending legislation requiring school districts to adopt policies to address teen dating violence.

This webpage provides a list of enacted legislation through 2014 addressing teen dating violence.