What Happens When An Emergency Order of Protection Consolidates Into a Divorce Case?

If you’ve already secured a domestic violence Emergency Order of Protection (“EOP”), you’ve taken an important step toward maintaining your safety and keeping your children secure. If you need information about a domestic violence emergency order of protection, please check out our post on those orders here: https://olonglaw.com/blog/obtaining-an-order-of-protection-in-illinois/

You may be wondering: if I already have an EOP, what happens to my case if I file for divorce? How do these two cases, both between the same parties and involving many of the same events, go forward without wasting time and resources or creating confusing orders that conflict with each other?

Understanding Consolidation

In Cook County, if either spouse files for divorce after they have already initiated a domestic violence order of protection case against each other, the law requires that your pending order of protection case be consolidated with the divorce proceeding (Cook County Local Rule 13.3(n)(b)). This means both matters will be handled by the same domestic relations judge, which can streamline the process and avoid conflicting orders.

To consolidate, either party files a Motion to Consolidate, and once granted, both the Order of Protection case and the divorce case will proceed in front of the same judge: the one that will be handling your divorce.

What Happens to Your Emergency Order?

Your EOP is temporary. Once consolidated, the judge may schedule a hearing to decide whether to issue a Plenary Order of Protection, which can last up to two years. At this hearing, both sides can present evidence. If the plenary order is not granted, the protections in your emergency order may end—unless the judge enters similar restrictions in the divorce case.

It is also very common for divorce judges to encourage the parties to enter into a different no-contact order, called a Mutual No-Contact Order, that can be enforced by the divorce judge, and abandon the EOP. Parties sometimes find this a good option because an EOP requires calling the police to enforce, while a Mutual No Contact Order can be enforced through contempt sanctions by the divorce judge. Since many divorcing families do not want to involve law enforcement in their families, dropping the EOP is often the best path forward.

What Happens With Parenting Time and Decision-Making?

If you share children, the court will allocate parenting time based on the best interests of the child (750 ILCS 5/602.7). Your Order of Protection will be considered when creating a parenting plan. The judge can also restrict parenting time if there’s evidence of conduct that seriously endangers the child (750 ILCS 5/603.10), but you may need to file a new motion that independently argues for a restriction of parenting time to obtain this relief.

Conclusion

Navigating a divorce after the consolidation of a domestic violence order of protection requires strategic legal guidance. O. Long Law can assist you as you consider additional motion practice to keep you safe, like motions for exclusive possession of the marital home, other restraining orders, and parenting restrictions.