Hawaii's Injunction Against Harassment: A District Court Order With a Circuit-Prefixed Form
Reviewed by DocDraft Legal Team · Hawaii · Last updated October 22, 2026
In Hawaii, the order for someone who is not family is an injunction against harassment, and it is decided in district court rather than family court, on a petition form whose number changes with the island you file on. It is a court order telling a person you are not related to, and have never lived with or dated, to stop harassing you. If the person is a spouse, former spouse, relative, former household member, co-parent or dating partner, this is the wrong order and you want the family court order for protection under HRS chapter 586 instead (HRS 586-1). The judiciary draws the same line: a defendant not related by blood and never lived with goes to District Court. Harassment means physical harm or a threat of it, or an intentional or knowing course of conduct that seriously alarms or disturbs you, serves no legitimate purpose, and would cause a reasonable person emotional distress (HRS 604-10.5). The judge must find it by clear and convincing evidence. A temporary order can last up to 90 days, and an injunction no more than three years. This page is document preparation information, not legal advice, and no order can guarantee your safety. Attorney review is available through DocDraft.
Find out where you stand in Hawaii
Who is harassing you?
DocDraft provides document preparation, not legal advice.
How long does a Hawaii injunction against harassment last?
A district court injunction under HRS 604-10.5(g) runs for no more than three years. A temporary restraining order issued before the hearing can remain in effect for a period not to exceed ninety days, and the statute requires the hearing on the injunction within fifteen days after that temporary order is granted.
What proof does a Hawaii court require for an injunction against harassment?
Clear and convincing evidence, which is a higher bar than the preponderance standard used in most civil cases. The judge must find that harassment, as the statute defines it, exists before enjoining further harassment of the petitioner for up to three years (HRS 604-10.5(g)).
Which Hawaii court hears a harassment injunction against someone who is not family?
The district court. HRS 604-10.5(b) gives district courts the power to enjoin, prohibit or temporarily restrain harassment. The judiciary directs a defendant who is not related by blood and never lived with the petitioner to District Court, and a family member or dating partner to Family Court.
Is there a filing fee for a Hawaii district court TRO petition?
The Hawaii State Judiciary states a $15.00 filing fee for the TRO, which can be waived in exceptional circumstances. That figure comes from the judiciary's self-help page rather than from a statute, so confirm the current amount with the district court clerk where you file.
Hawaii injunction against harassment rules at a glance
Hawaii splits its protective orders by court rather than by label. An injunction against harassment under HRS 604-10.5 is a district court order that directs someone who is not a relative, former household member, co-parent or dating partner to stop harassing you, and it carries no relationship element of its own: the statute lets any person subjected to harassment petition. The routing comes from the judiciary instead, which sends family and dating situations to Family Court under chapter 586. The statute also treats a single insult as too little, because the second prong needs a course of conduct, a series of acts showing continuity of purpose. Hawaii's petition form is circuit-prefixed, so the same document appears as 1DC51 on Oahu, 2DC51 on Maui, 3DC51 on Hawaii island and 5DC51 on Kauai.
A Maui condominium owner and a neighbour who films her through the lanai rail
A Maui condominium owner finds that the owner of the unit below has begun recording her on the shared walkway, leaving printed notes about her visitors on her door, and posting her comings and goings to a residents' group chat. It has gone on for months, no threat of violence appears anywhere, and the neighbour is not a relative or someone she has lived with or dated. That points toward the course of conduct prong of HRS 604-10.5 rather than a chapter 586 order. She fills in form 2DC51 for the Maui district court and asks for a temporary order. Whether the judge finds clear and convincing evidence, and for how long, is for the court to decide.
Relevant Laws
HRS 604-10.5 (power to enjoin harassment)
The governing statute. Subsection (b) gives the district courts the power to enjoin, prohibit or temporarily restrain harassment, and subsection (c) lets any person subjected to harassment petition the district court where the petitioner resides or is temporarily located, where the respondent resides, or where the harassment occurred. Subsection (a) defines course of conduct and harassment. Last amended by L 2023, c 81, s 2 according to the section's history line.
HRS 604-10.5(f) and (g) (temporary orders, hearing and duration)
Subsection (f) permits an ex parte temporary restraining order on probable cause that past harassment occurred or that a threat may be imminent, issued in writing or orally with oral orders reduced to writing by the close of the next court day. Subsection (g) limits a temporary order to ninety days, requires a hearing within fifteen days, and permits an injunction of no more than three years on a clear and convincing finding.
HRS 586-1 (definitions, including family or household member)
Defines a family or household member for the family court order for protection: spouses or reciprocal beneficiaries, former spouses, persons who have a child in common, parents, children, persons related by consanguinity, persons jointly residing or formerly residing in the same dwelling unit, and persons who have or have had a dating relationship. A petitioner inside this list uses chapter 586, not section 604-10.5.
HRS 586-5.5 (duration of a chapter 586 protective order, for contrast)
Provides that, after a hearing on a further period, the court may order that a protective order be issued for a further fixed reasonable period as the court deems appropriate. The domestic abuse track therefore sets its length differently from the three-year cap that section 604-10.5 places on a harassment injunction.
Hawaii State Judiciary, Requesting a District Court Protective Order
The judiciary's self-help page for the district court TRO. It lists who may request one, namely a person harassed by someone who is not a spouse or former spouse, not a relative, has never lived with them, is not a co-parent and is not and never was a dating partner, and it points everyone else to Family Court.
Hawaii State Judiciary, About Filing for Your TRO (district court)
States a $15.00 filing fee for the district court TRO, which can be waived in exceptional circumstances. This is a judiciary self-help statement rather than a fee statute, so confirm the amount with the clerk of the court where you file.
Form 1DC51, Petition for Ex Parte Temporary Restraining Order and for Injunction Against Harassment
The Oahu circuit version of the district court petition, revised 5/20/24, combining the petition, the declaration of the petitioner, the temporary restraining order against harassment and the notice of hearing. Other circuits publish the same petition as 2DC51, 3DC51 and 5DC51.
Regional Variances
Hawaii civil harassment order rules at a glance
Instrument name
Injunction against harassment, with a district court temporary restraining order before the hearing. Governed by HRS 604-10.5 and heard in district court. It is separate from the family court order for protection under HRS chapter 586.
Who it covers, and the relationship test
The statute has no relationship element and lets any person subjected to harassment petition (HRS 604-10.5(c)). The judiciary routes by relationship: a defendant not related by blood and never lived with goes to District Court, while a family member or dating relationship goes to Family Court. HRS 586-1 defines the family or household list.
The standard
Harassment means physical harm, bodily injury, assault or the threat of imminent physical harm, or an intentional or knowing course of conduct directed at an individual that seriously alarms or disturbs or consistently or continually bothers the individual and serves no legitimate purpose, provided a reasonable person would suffer emotional distress (HRS 604-10.5(a)).
Burden of proof
Clear and convincing evidence at the hearing (HRS 604-10.5(g)). That is higher than the preponderance standard used in most civil cases.
Temporary order
An ex parte temporary restraining order may issue on probable cause that a past act of harassment occurred or that a threat may be imminent, in writing or orally. It may remain in effect up to ninety days, with a hearing within fifteen days. Form 1DC51 prints a fifteen-day effective period (HRS 604-10.5(f), (g)).
Duration
An injunction may enjoin further harassment for no more than three years (HRS 604-10.5(g)). The cap does not prohibit the court from issuing other injunctions against the named parties beyond a total of three years.
Renewal
Section 604-10.5 states no renewal or extension procedure. Court rules were not reviewed for this page, so no renewal rule is asserted either way. Ask the district court clerk what applies to your order.
Court and form
District court. The petition is form 1DC51 on Oahu, 2DC51 on Maui, 3DC51 on Hawaii island and 5DC51 on Kauai, titled Petition for Ex Parte Temporary Restraining Order and for Injunction Against Harassment on the Oahu form. The order granting an injunction is form 1DC52 on Oahu.
Filing fee
The Hawaii State Judiciary states a $15.00 filing fee for the district court TRO, which can be waived in exceptional circumstances. The figure comes from a judiciary self-help page, not a fee statute.
Service
This page does not state a service rule or service fee for a harassment injunction. The petition packet and the district court clerk will explain how the other person must be served before the hearing.
Firearm provision
This page does not state any firearm provision for a harassment injunction, and none should be inferred from the chapter 586 track. Ask the court or an attorney whether firearm limits apply to your situation.
Violation
This page does not state the penalty for violating a harassment injunction. A court order directs behaviour and carries consequences for violation, but it cannot by itself guarantee your safety. Report any violation and keep a copy of the order with you.
Frequently Asked Questions
Other Hawaii guides
Adult Guardianship in Hawaii
Adverse Possession in Hawaii: Twenty Years and a Five Acre Ceiling
Asset Protection Planning in Hawaii (2026)
Dealing With Debt Collectors in Hawaii (2026)
Delinquent Property Taxes in Hawaii: No State Statute, Four County Ordinances, and a Year to Buy It Back From the Bidder
Expunging a Criminal Record in Hawaii (2026)
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