Injunction for Protection (Restraining Order) in Lee County, Florida

If you're in immediate danger, call 911. The National Domestic Violence Hotline is 1-800-799-7233. Florida's statewide hotline is 1-800-500-1119. Lee County's Self-Help Center is on the 1st floor of the Lee County Justice Center, 2075 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard in Fort Myers. File your injunction for protection there, in person.

The Self-Help Center does more than hand out forms. It offers free virtual legal consultations, notary services, and public access computers, all on the same floor. You still have to file the actual injunction petition in person so a judge can review it promptly, but the free consultation is there if you want to talk through your paperwork first.

Lee County also promotes TurboCourt, a paid online tool for preparing some family law forms. That's a separate, optional service, not a substitute for filing at the Justice Center. Filing itself costs nothing, whether the injunction is for domestic violence, repeat violence, dating violence, sexual violence, or stalking, and the sheriff serves the respondent free of charge too.

ACT, Abuse Counseling & Treatment, has served Lee County for more than 44 years, along with Hendry and Glades Counties, and runs a crisis hotline at (239) 939-3112, V/TTY accessible.

How an injunction for protection works in Florida

An injunction for protection against domestic violence (Fla. Stat. 741.30) is for someone you have a close relationship with, such as a spouse or former spouse, someone you live with or used to live with as a family, a co-parent, or a close relative. Florida has related injunctions for repeat violence, dating violence, sexual violence, and stalking that may apply instead if the relationship does not fit the domestic violence category.Florida uses the same statewide forms in every county, including Lee County, FL. The basic steps are:

1. File a Petition for Injunction for Protection Against Domestic Violence (Florida Supreme Court approved family law form 12.980(a)) at the courthouse. There is no filing fee.
2. A judge reviews your petition, often the same day, and can grant a temporary injunction that lasts until your hearing.
3. The other person is served with the paperwork and can respond.
4. You attend a full hearing, generally within about 15 days of a temporary injunction.
5. If the judge grants a final injunction, it can last a fixed term or until further order of the court, and can be extended.

An injunction for protection can do more than order someone to stay away. It can set temporary time-sharing with children, require the other person to leave a shared home, and require them to surrender firearms. Local domestic violence advocates and the clerk's office can help you fill out the forms, often at no cost.

Where to file in Lee County, FL

Injunction requests in Lee County, FL are filed with the Twentieth Judicial Circuit Court of Florida, Lee County. Because courthouse locations, hours, and local domestic violence resources change over time, confirm current details using the Florida court clerk directory:

Find the Lee County, FL Clerk of Court (Florida court clerk directory)

Local notes for Lee County, FL

Booking the Self-Help Center's free virtual legal consultation before your trip to the Justice Center can help you figure out which of the five injunction forms fits your situation. The consultation itself doesn't file anything with the court.

Once a judge grants a temporary injunction and it's served, Florida law requires the return hearing within 15 days. That's a statewide deadline, not a Lee County rule.

Florida Rural Legal Services generally serves Lee County for income-qualified family law matters. ACT's decades of local presence mean its advocates know how Lee County's court process works for people going through it the first time.

Lee County handles all five of Florida's injunction types, each built around a different relationship or situation. Domestic violence covers spouses, former spouses, relatives, or people living together as family. Repeat violence covers two incidents against someone you don't live with. Dating violence, sexual violence, and stalking each cover their own specific circumstances. Every one of these injunctions is free to file, free to serve, and subject to the same 15-day return hearing deadline set by state statute. If the respondent violates an active injunction, that's a separate crime. Call 911, not the Self-Help Center.

Official injunction resources in Lee County, FL

Lee County Justice Center handles restraining-orders filings, located at 2075 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, Fort Myers 33901.

The filing fee is Free. E-filing is available through https://www.myflcourtaccess.com. TurboCourt is available as an optional paid form-preparation service, but injunction petitions themselves are filed in person at the Justice Center for same-day judicial review.

Lee County Self-Help Center (https://www.leeclerk.org/departments/courts/self-help-center) can help with procedure and paperwork. 1st floor of the Lee County Justice Center. Offers free virtual legal consultations through Lee County Legal Aid, notary services, and public access computers.

• ACT - Abuse Counseling & Treatment
• Florida Rural Legal Services
• Fla. Stat. 741.30 (injunction statute)

Local details reviewed August 2026. Offices and locations can change, so confirm with the official sites above before you file.

Lee County, FL Injunction for Protection FAQs