Occupation Orders - Getting help from the criminal justice system - Practical Help - Domestic Violence Forum - The London borough of Barking and Dagenham.

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Getting help from the criminal justice system

Occupation Orders

Occupation orders are more complicated than non-molestation orders. They are orders which affect the rights which you and/or your (ex) partner have to the home you live in (or have lived in) together.

You may apply for an occupation order to:

Order your abuser to move out of the home or stay away from the home
Order your abuser to stay a certain distance away from the home
Order your abuser to stay in certain parts of the home
Order your abuser to allow you back into the home if he has locked you out.

There are some additional options available under this legislation. You can get further information about this from a solicitor or from a legal advice centre or legal advice line or other appropriate advocate.

Anyone who is legally associated to their abuser (see section on non-molestation orders) and who has property rights to the home ('entitled applicants') can apply for an occupation order. You are considered to be an 'entitled applicant' if you fall into one of the following categories:

You are a sole tenant
You are a joint tenant
You are a sole home owner
You are a joint home owner
You are married to the sole tenant or sole home owner
You are in a civil partnership with the sole tenant or sole home owner
You have a registered (e.g. beneficial) interest in the home

NB You would need to have gone to court to fall into the last category.

If you fall into one of these categories you may get an occupation order which lasts for six months or longer.

It is harder to get an occupation order if you do not have any automatic rights to the home (e.g. it is in your (ex) partner's sole name and you are not their spouse or civil partner).

Under the original Family Law Act non-entitled people could only apply for occupation orders if they had lived in a heterosexual (equivalent of husband and wife) relationship. This restriction was changed by the introduction of the Domestic Violence, Crime and Victims Act 2004 and non-entitled lesbian and gay cohabitants (i.e. lesbians and gay men who live in their abusive partners' homes) are also now able to apply for occupation orders.

Non-entitled applicants (e.g. women who live in their boyfriend's homes) can only get occupation orders which last for a maximum of six months. After this they can only make one further application which can also only last a maximum period of six months. This means that they can only obtain rights to the home and/or an order to exclude their abuser from the home for a maximum of one year (this would be with two separate orders).

If you are successful in obtaining an occupation order the court may or may not attach a power of arrest to the order.

If your order is temporary you should seek advice about your long-term housing rights. If you live in a council or housing association property and your partner is a tenant (sole or joint) you may wish to consider applying for a court ordered transfer of tenancy. This is another civil court order which you may be able to obtain using the Family Law Act.

A transfer of tenancy can transfer the tenancy into your sole name. This was originally only available to those who had lived together in heterosexual relationships but was extended (by the Domestic Violence, Crime and Victims Act 2004) in July 2005 to include lesbian and gay cohabiting couples.

NB When you are going to court to ask for occupation orders or a transfer of tenancy it helps if you have documentary evidence of domestic violence (e.g. police records, medical records or other agencies/witnesses involved who can confirm that you have experienced domestic violence). The court will consider a number of other factors such as both parties' financial and housing needs and resources.

It will help your case if you are less able to obtain alternative housing than your ex partner is. The court has to look at the needs of all parties involved. This will include your needs, those of your abuser and those of any relevant children (of both parties).

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