Served with a non-molestation order: how a respondent can respond
Being served with a court order about your behaviour is a shock, whatever the background. This guide explains the procedure from the respondent's side, calmly and without assuming anything about what did or did not happen. It is not advice on which option to take.
What you have been served with
A non-molestation order is made under section 42 of the Family Law Act 1996. It forbids the respondent from specified behaviour towards the applicant and, sometimes, a relevant child. Most first orders are made "without notice": the court read only the applicant's statement and you were not told beforehand. Section 45 allows that where it is "just and convenient", but the court must then give you an opportunity to make representations at a full hearing as soon as just and convenient.
A without notice order is not a finding that the allegations are true. The template order attached to the 2026 guidance says, in plain words, that the court has not yet decided whether the applicant's statement is true. Your papers should include the order, the applicant's application and statement, and a notice of the hearing date.
First: what the order means for you today
- It applies now. Under section 42A, doing anything the order forbids, without reasonable excuse, is a criminal offence. For a without notice order, that applies to conduct once you are aware of the order. The maximum sentence on indictment is five years' imprisonment.
- Disagreeing does not suspend it. Even if you dispute every word of the applicant's statement, the order stands until the court changes or ends it.
- Contact through other people counts if the order says so. Many orders forbid asking someone else to make contact for you. Read any exception carefully, for example for arranging time with children through a solicitor or an agreed person.
- Replying to the case is allowed. The 2026 guidance says orders must not have the effect of stopping a respondent serving evidence in response; the template order lets you send court documents to the applicant (or their solicitor) for these proceedings.
- The police have a copy. The rules require a copy of a non-molestation order to go to the police (FPR 10.10).
The return hearing
The President of the Family Division's Guidance on non-molestation orders, in force since 12 January 2026, says that when a judge makes a without notice order on the papers, a return hearing should be listed in no more than 28 days, and the date must be on the order. Giving you only permission to ask for a hearing is not enough. The order must also have a fixed end date.
The return hearing is your opportunity to be heard. It is held in private (FPR 10.5). It may be short: the judge often wants to know whether the order is agreed, not opposed, or contested, and if contested, what directions are needed for evidence and a further hearing. A contested final hearing is often on a later date.
The response form
The 2026 guidance introduced a response form, given the number FL435 in the guidance's annex, which is served with a without notice order. It lets you tell the court before the hearing which of three positions you take, and asks about interpreters and disability adjustments. The form is not on the gov.uk forms list at the time of checking; it comes with the order. Its own instructions give the date by which the court must receive it, and say a copy goes to the applicant's solicitor if they have one.
The options, described neutrally
None of these is the "right" choice in general. Each has consequences, and legal advice matters most if there is also a police investigation, a criminal charge, or a children case running alongside.
| Option | What it means | What follows |
|---|---|---|
| Agree to the order continuing | You accept the applicant's statement and agree to the order or a further order. | The court can deal with it without a contested hearing. Your acceptance may be relied on later. |
| Do not oppose, no admissions | You do not accept the allegations but do not object to the order continuing. The guidance says the order then records that no findings of fact were made. | The order binds you fully and breach is still a crime. Nothing has been decided about what happened. |
| Offer an undertaking | A formal promise to the court instead of an order, under section 46. | The court decides whether to accept it. It cannot where violence was used or threatened and an order is needed so breach is punishable as a crime (s.46(3A)). See undertaking vs non-molestation order. |
| Contest | You dispute the allegations or specific terms and ask for a hearing to challenge the evidence and give your own. | The court gives directions: usually statements from both sides, then a hearing where evidence is tested. The order normally continues meanwhile unless the court changes it. |
You can also ask to change specific terms without contesting everything, for example a named road you need for work, or a route for children's handovers. The response form allows for this, and so does form FL403. Our FL403 guide explains that form.
Setting aside or varying the order early
A without notice order must tell you of your right to apply to set it aside or vary it, without waiting for the return date. Read the order for how and when to do that, and act quickly: if there is any time limit, it runs from when the order was served on you. The 2026 guidance says that if a respondent applies, the court should list it urgently, within days.
Writing a statement in response
If the case is contested, the court will usually direct you to file a statement by a set date. Answer the applicant's statement in the order it is written: what you agree with, what you dispute and why, and any documents that bear on it. Avoid insults or speculation about the applicant's motives; the judge is assessing evidence. Our guide to the statement in response shows the layout and the statement of truth, and the guide to message evidence covers screenshots.
If the hearing will involve evidence and allegations of abuse between you, neither of you may be allowed to question the other in person. Form EX741 is for the person accused of abuse; there is no fee. Our page on cross-examination in person and qualified legal representatives explains how that works.
Children and other cases
If you and the applicant share children, the order may affect how arrangements are made. The template order allows exceptions for child arrangements to be written in, and the guidance asks courts to link protective order cases with any children case between the same people. A non-molestation order does not itself decide where children live or how much time they spend with each parent; that is a child arrangements question. Children cases are private: do not post about the case or the children online.
If you do nothing
The template order says that if you do not attend the hearing, the order stays in place until its end date. The court can deal with the hearing without you, and the response form warns that if you asked for a contested hearing and do not attend, the court may assume you are not contesting. If the order is continued unchanged in your absence, the guidance says it can be served on you by post or email.
Free help and legal aid
Civil legal aid covers advice and representation about non-molestation and occupation orders. It is not limited to applicants, though respondents go through the usual means and merits tests. Check if you can get legal aid on gov.uk. The Men's Advice Line supports male victims of domestic abuse, and Rights of Women gives legal advice to women; both are independent and do not endorse EvidenceCanvas. Our page on a lawyer for a non-molestation hearing covers when representation may matter.
Where EvidenceCanvas fits, and where it does not. EvidenceCanvas does not complete, file or send the response form or any court form, and it does not tell you whether to agree, not oppose, offer an undertaking or contest. If you have been directed to file a statement, it can draft a response to the applicant's statement from your own documents, for you to check line by line before you sign.
Questions people ask
- Does a without notice non-molestation order mean the court believed the applicant?
- No. The court has read only the applicant's evidence and has made no findings of fact. You can be heard at the return hearing.
- What does "no admissions" mean?
- You do not accept the allegations but do not oppose the order continuing. The order records that no findings of fact were made, and it still binds you in full.
- Can I contact the applicant to sort this out?
- Only if and how the order allows. Contact the order forbids, including through other people if the order says so, can be a criminal offence under section 42A even if it is meant to resolve things.
- Is breaking a non-molestation order a crime?
- Yes. Under section 42A of the Family Law Act 1996, doing anything the order prohibits without reasonable excuse is an offence, with a maximum of five years' imprisonment on indictment.
- Can I offer an undertaking instead?
- You can offer one, and the court decides whether to accept it. It cannot accept one where violence was used or threatened and an order is needed so that a breach can be punished as a crime.
Checked on 23 October 2026: Family Law Act 1996 ss.42, 42A, 45, 46; FPR Part 10; gov.uk injunction guide; gov.uk legal aid; President of the Family Division's Guidance 2026 on non-molestation orders and its annexes. General information for England and Wales, not legal advice. Your court's directions take priority over this guide.