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

Call 911 if you're in immediate danger. The National Domestic Violence Hotline is 1-800-799-7233. Florida's statewide hotline is 1-800-500-1119. Polk County runs family court out of two buildings. You file your injunction for protection petition at the Polk County Courthouse in Bartow, 255 N. Broadway Ave. A later hearing on your case might be held instead at the Northeast Government Center in Lake Alfred. Read every court notice carefully to check the location.

The Self-Help Center sells the state's approved injunction packets at both the Bartow and Northeast office locations. Call (863) 534-4015; staff are available weekdays from 8:30am to 5:00pm. Polk also offers an online tool called TurboCourt for some family law paperwork. An injunction for protection is different: you can't file it remotely. Bring it to the courthouse in person so a judge can act on it without delay.

Filing costs nothing in Polk County, no matter which injunction you need: domestic violence, repeat violence, dating violence, sexual violence, or stalking. Florida law bars a filing fee for all five, and the sheriff serves the respondent at no charge.

Peace River Center is Polk County's certified domestic violence provider. It runs a Polk-specific crisis line, 863-413-2700, separate from the general number it uses for Highlands and Hardee Counties, which it also serves.

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 Polk 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 Polk County, FL

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

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

Local notes for Polk County, FL

Bring photo ID to the Bartow courthouse. If you already have a hearing date, check whether it's listed at Bartow or at the Northeast Government Center in Lake Alfred before you drive out. Some family law hearings have shifted to Lake Alfred in recent years, and showing up at the wrong building wastes time you may not have.

Once a judge grants a temporary injunction and the respondent is served, Florida law requires the return hearing to be set within 15 days. That deadline comes from statute and stays the same no matter which Polk County building hears your case.

Florida Rural Legal Services generally serves Polk County for income-qualified family law matters. That can help if your injunction case overlaps with custody or support issues. Peace River Center's Polk crisis line, 863-413-2700, is also worth calling for safety planning support that runs independently of the court's schedule.

Official injunction resources in Polk County, FL

Polk County Courthouse handles restraining-orders filings, located at 255 N. Broadway Ave., Bartow 33830. Phone: 863-534-4015. Northeast Government Center at Lake Alfred handles Some family law hearings have been moving here rather than the Bartow courthouse; confirm hearing location on your notice.

The filing fee is Free. E-filing is available through https://www.myflcourtaccess.com. Polk also offers TurboCourt, an interactive DIY tool, for some dissolution paperwork, but injunction petitions are filed in person at the courthouse so a judge can review the request quickly.

Polk County Clerk Self-Help Center (https://www.polkclerkfl.gov/272/Self-Help-Center-DRAFT/1000) can help with procedure and paperwork. Self-Help Program phone (863) 534-4015, staffed Monday-Friday 8:30am-5:00pm; packets purchasable at Bartow and Northeast office locations. Clerk staff cannot give legal advice.

• Polk County Clerk Self-Help Center
• Peace River Center
• Florida Rural Legal Services
• Tenth Judicial Circuit of Florida
• 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.

Polk County, FL Injunction for Protection FAQs