280th District Court
Harris County Juvenile Justice Center
1200 Congress, 1st floor
Houston, TX 77002
1200 Congress, 1st floor
Houston, TX 77002
Presiding Judge: Damiane Dianne Curvey
Harris County · 280th District Court
Harris County Protective Orders
Seeking protection or responding to an application? Understand your next steps, prepare for the 280th Court and discuss your case with our team.
Protective-order representation
Help with the next step in your case
Your preparation starts with the relief being requested, any orders already in place and the date of the hearing.
Seeking Protection
Explore Harris County application resources, temporary relief and the preparation involved in asking the court for protection.
Explore Your Options
Responding to an Application
Review the papers you received, identify any signed restrictions and organize the records and witnesses relevant to your response.
Prepare Your Response
For applicants
Seeking protection in Harris County
Public assistance, self-help resources and private legal representation offer different starting points. You do not have to hire a private attorney simply to explore an application.
If you are in immediate danger, call 911. A consultation request is not emergency assistance or a court filing.
The Harris County DA’s Protective-Order Information explains its application assistance and preparation checklist. The Texas State Law Library links information about order types, forms and legal assistance.
Organize the incident dates, supporting records, witness information and available service information for the respondent. A private consultation can address the relief requested, preparation for a hearing and related divorce or custody questions.
Family Code Section 81.002 protects applicants from specified public-official fees and expenses. Private attorney fees are a separate arrangement; an application does not guarantee an order or an award reimbursing attorney fees.
Temporary relief has its own requirements. A temporary ex parte application and a final protective-order hearing involve different questions. Exclusion from a residence has additional requirements. Read About Temporary Ex Parte Orders.
For respondents
Served with an application or order?
First, identify what the papers ask for and what a judge has already ordered. Keep the application, hearing notice and every signed order together.
- 01
Find the dates and restrictions
Record the court, cause number, hearing date and time of service. Read any signed temporary order carefully and follow restrictions that apply to you while obtaining advice.
- 02
Prepare a factual response
Preserve original messages and records, write a chronology and identify witnesses with direct knowledge. Match your response to the specific allegations and check the exhibit instructions.
- 03
Understand the available choices
An agreed protective order may remain civilly or criminally enforceable without family-violence findings. Discuss proposed terms, a contested hearing and any related proceedings with counsel before deciding.
The hearing-setting rules run from filing, with exceptions and service-related resets. Do not estimate your court date from when you were served or assume that an answer excuses attendance.
Court information
Find the 280th Court. Confirm your setting.
Use the court’s current information and your hearing notice together. Application assistance, filing and appearing in court are different steps.
Public Application Assistance
The Harris County DA lists its protective-order assistance at 1200 Congress, second floor. Review its current intake instructions before going.
- Format and interpreter needs
The court posts in-person hearing information and separate Zoom instructions for designated dismissal-for-want-of-prosecution dockets. Confirm the format for your own setting.
Contact the court coordinator about interpreter needs using the Official Directory.
- If you are running late
The posted late-call address is 280Late@justex.net. Follow the court’s directions, including copying counsel and self-represented parties.
A late-call email does not file documents or postpone a hearing.
Hearing preparation
Make the evidence clear and the preparation deliberate
Know what the court asks you to prepare, and how the hearing will proceed. A collection of screenshots is a starting point for evidence review.
Plan your presentation
The court’s posted guidance sets different presentation limits depending on the matter and whether children are involved. Prepare the chronology, witnesses and important records around the issues the court needs to decide.
Check the exchange instructions
Posted guidance calls for exchanging exhibits and a witness list 48 hours before the court date unless it is the parties’ first setting. It says not to e-file exhibits. Check the current instructions and any order in your case.
Understand the papers
Different orders. Different procedures.
- Family-violence protective order
- Title 4 of the Family Code governs this process. At a final hearing, current Section 85.001 addresses whether family violence occurred. Read the signed order and applicable duration provisions rather than assuming every order expires two years after signing.
- Temporary ex parte protective order
- Chapter 83 permits temporary relief on the required showing of clear and present danger. It provides an initial duration framework, extensions and a procedure to request that an order be vacated.
- Divorce temporary restraining order
- A TRO in a divorce case follows a different legal framework. Its purpose, terms and enforcement need to be reviewed separately from a family-violence protective order.
- Magistrate emergency protection and other orders
- A magistrate’s order for emergency protection may follow an arrest under Article 17.292. Chapter 7B provides protective-order procedures for qualifying offenses. Do not assume the same application, assignment or duration rules govern every category.
Go a little deeper
Prepare for the step in front of you
Preparing for a Protective-Order Hearing in the 280th Court
Prepare for a Harris County protective-order hearing: organize documents, witnesses and exhibits, and check the 280th Court's posted instructions.
Read the Guide
Served With a Protective-Order Application in Harris County?
Understand the papers, hearing dates and preparation steps after being served with a Harris County protective-order application or temporary order.
Read the Guide
Temporary Ex Parte Protective Orders in Harris County
Learn how temporary ex parte family-violence protective orders differ from final orders, divorce TROs and magistrate emergency orders in Harris County.
Read the Guide
Questions about Harris County protective orders
Where is Harris County's 280th District Court?
The court's posted information lists the Harris County Juvenile Justice Center, 1200 Congress, 1st floor, Houston, Texas 77002. The court telephone is (713) 274-4680. Confirm your setting and current directions with the court; the District Attorney's protective-order assistance office is a separate destination.
How much hearing time does the 280th Court allow?
Posted guidance lists 30 minutes per side when no children are involved and 45 minutes per side when children are involved. It separately lists one hour per side for modification or enforcement motions and excludes specified opening and closing statements from the limits. Confirm the directions for your setting; these are presentation limits, not a prediction of total courthouse time.
What is the 280th Court's 48-hour exhibit rule?
The posted guidance calls for exchanging exhibits and a witness list 48 hours before the scheduled court date unless the trial date is the parties' first court setting. It says not to e-file exhibits. Check current exhibit instructions and any order in your case before preparing copies or audio/video materials.
What should I do after being served with a protective-order application?
Read every document and identify the court, cause number, hearing date and any signed order. An application is a request for relief; an issued order may already restrict conduct. Preserve relevant records, follow any order that applies to you and arrange legal advice promptly. Do not assume filing an answer excuses attendance or that the hearing has been postponed.
Is a protective-order hearing always within 14 days of service?
No. The ordinary Title 4 setting rule runs from filing the application, not service. Exceptions include a qualifying prosecutor's request for a setting within 20 days in a county such as Harris, and service-related resets. If notice is served within 48 hours before the hearing, Section 84.004 provides for a reset on the respondent's request. Check the actual notice and obtain advice about your setting.
Can an agreed protective order have consequences without a family-violence finding?
Yes. Texas Family Code Section 85.005 allows written agreements subject to court approval and states that an agreed protective order is enforceable civilly or criminally regardless of whether the court makes the findings in Section 85.001. Have counsel review the proposed restrictions and possible consequences before signing. An agreement is not a guarantee of avoiding effects on related matters.
Can an applicant simply cancel an existing protective order?
Do not assume reconciliation or a private agreement ends an issued order. Withdrawing a pending application is a different procedural question from modifying, vacating or ending a temporary or final order. The available procedure depends on the stage and type of case. Obtain legal advice and keep following an existing order unless it expires or a court changes it.
How long does a Texas family-violence protective order last?
Read the signed order and the law that applies to it. Section 85.025 contains an ordinary two-year framework, longer-duration provisions for specified findings, and rules tied to related divorce, parent-child and criminal cases. Incarceration can also affect expiration. A temporary ex parte order has a different duration and extension framework under Chapter 83. Do not assume every order ends two years after signing.
What if a divorce or custody case is already pending?
Tell counsel about every related case and provide the court names, cause numbers and existing orders. Family Code Sections 85.062-85.065 address applications, transfers and conflicting orders involving related family cases. Family-violence evidence can also affect conservatorship and possession under Chapter 153. Do not assume a protective-order application automatically transfers the case or changes every custody provision.
Does applying for a protective order cost money?
Section 81.002 protects applicants from specified public-official fees and expenses connected with protective orders. Hiring a private attorney is a separate financial arrangement. Sections 81.003 and 81.005 address assessed costs and possible reasonable and necessary attorney-fee awards, with different conditions. An award is not guaranteed reimbursement. Ask about public assistance, eligibility for legal aid and any private consultation or representation fees.
Your next step
Bring your hearing date into the conversation
Tell us whether you are seeking protection or responding to an application, and include any hearing date so our team can assess the request.
Have your application, hearing notice, signed orders and related case numbers available for a consultation. Availability and the scope of representation must be confirmed with the firm.
This form is for Harris County matters.
Sources and further information
- 280th Court Information
- DA Application Assistance
- Temporary Orders: Chapter 83
- Hearings: Chapter 84
- Final Orders: Chapter 85
- Applicant Fees: Chapter 81
General information, not advice about a particular case. This is a private law firm’s guide; the firm is not affiliated with the court. The actual order, applicable law and current court directions need individual review.