South Carolina Magistrates Court Restraining Orders for Harassment and Stalking: Free to File, Costly to Lose
Reviewed by DocDraft Legal Team · South Carolina · Last updated October 22, 2026
In South Carolina the order you want is filed in magistrates court, costs nothing to file, and is built on the criminal definitions of harassment and stalking, which is why one bad incident is not enough. A restraining order against harassment or stalking is a civil court order telling someone you are not in a domestic relationship with to stop harassing or contacting you and to stay away (S.C. Code 16-3-1750 to 16-3-1790). It reaches a pattern, meaning two or more acts, of intrusion that would distress a reasonable person, or a stalking pattern (S.C. Code 16-3-1700). A single incident does not fit that definition. If the person is a spouse, partner, ex, or family or household member, this is the wrong order and you want a domestic violence order from Family Court under chapter 20-4 instead. Any person may file the complaint, and no criminal charge is required first (S.C. Code 16-3-1750(C)). The order runs one year and can be extended, but some of its relief ends at one year unless the defendant has been criminally charged and a trial date set. A court may charge the losing party the filing fee. 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 South Carolina
Who is harassing you?
DocDraft provides document preparation, not legal advice.
Who can file a harassment or stalking restraining order in a South Carolina magistrates court?
Any person. The statute says a complaint and motion for a restraining order may be filed by any person, and the magistrates court has jurisdiction over actions against someone engaged in harassment in the first or second degree or stalking (S.C. Code 16-3-1750(A), (C)). No family or household tie is required.
Does South Carolina charge a fee to file a restraining order for harassment or stalking?
Not to file. The court must not charge a fee for filing the complaint and motion. However, the statute says the court shall assess a filing fee against the nonprevailing party, so a plaintiff whose request is denied can still be charged afterward (S.C. Code 16-3-1750(D)).
How fast can a South Carolina court issue a temporary restraining order?
Within twenty-four hours after filing, the court may hold an emergency hearing for good cause and, if the plaintiff proves the allegation by a preponderance of the evidence, issue a temporary order without notice to the defendant (S.C. Code 16-3-1760(A)). The full hearing follows within fifteen days of filing.
How long does a South Carolina harassment or stalking restraining order last?
One year, and it can be extended. A court may extend it on the plaintiff's motion showing good cause, with notice to the defendant, who is entitled to a hearing within thirty days of the date the order will expire (S.C. Code 16-3-1750(E), 16-3-1780(B)).
South Carolina civil harassment order rules at a glance
South Carolina folds harassment and stalking into one civil action under Title 16, chapter 3, article 17, heard by a magistrate rather than a circuit or family judge. A restraining order against harassment or stalking directs a person you are not domestically related to to stop harassing or contacting you and to keep away. What makes the South Carolina version distinctive is its asymmetry. The magistrates court must provide forms for people without lawyers, and filing is free, yet the court shall assess a filing fee against the nonprevailing party. The conduct standard is borrowed from the criminal code, so the pattern definitions in section 16-3-1700 shape what you must describe, and part of the relief can end at one year depending on a criminal case you do not control.
A Horry County hairstylist, a former client, and the one-year clock
A hairstylist in Horry County drops a client after a billing quarrel. Over the next six weeks the former client posts reviews naming her, calls the salon from unlisted numbers, and waits by her car after closing on four separate evenings. Because that is more than two acts with a common purpose, the pattern definition in section 16-3-1700 is at least in play, and she files in magistrates court, where filing costs nothing. The case turns on the end of the year: unless a criminal charge and trial date exist by then, relief under section 16-3-1770 dissolves, so she diaries a good-cause extension motion. Whether the magistrate finds the pattern proven, and whether a court later charges her the fee, is for the court.
Relevant Laws
S.C. Code 16-3-1750 (magistrates court restraining orders for harassment and stalking)
Gives the magistrates court jurisdiction over an action seeking a restraining order against a person engaged in harassment in the first or second degree or stalking. Subsection (C) provides that a complaint and motion may be filed by any person, subsection (D) requires the court to provide forms and bars a filing fee while directing a fee against the nonprevailing party, and subsection (E) sets a fixed period of not less than one year.
S.C. Code 16-3-1700 (definitions of harassment, stalking and pattern)
Defines harassment in the second degree as a pattern of intentional, substantial and unreasonable intrusion into the private life of a targeted person that serves no legitimate purpose and causes, and would cause a reasonable person to suffer, mental or emotional distress. Defines pattern as two or more acts occurring over a period of time, however short, evidencing a continuity of purpose.
S.C. Code 16-3-1760 (emergency hearing and temporary order)
Allows the court, within twenty-four hours after filing and for good cause, to hold an emergency hearing and issue a temporary restraining order without notice if the plaintiff proves the allegation by a preponderance of the evidence. Prima facie present danger of bodily injury, verified by affidavits, is good cause.
S.C. Code 16-3-1770 (relief and the violation notice)
Lists the relief a restraining order may grant and requires each order to carry the notice that violation is a criminal offense punishable by thirty days in jail, a fine of five hundred dollars, or both.
S.C. Code 16-3-1780 (duration, extension and the one-year carve-out)
Subsection (A) keeps a temporary order in effect until the Rule to Show Cause hearing on extension for the full one-year period. Subsection (B) sets a fixed period not to exceed one year, extendable on the plaintiff's motion showing good cause with notice, and gives the defendant a hearing within thirty days of expiry. Subsection (C) dissolves relief under section 16-3-1770 at one year unless the defendant has been charged and a trial date scheduled.
S.C. Code 20-4-20 (domestic abuse definitions, for routing)
Defines abuse in the Protection from Domestic Abuse Act as physical harm, bodily injury, assault or the threat of physical harm, or sexual criminal offenses, committed against a family or household member by a family or household member. A petitioner in that relationship uses chapter 20-4 in Family Court rather than article 17.
SCCA/749, Complaint and Motion for Restraining Order (Harassment and Stalking)
The magistrates court complaint form, Amended 12/2015. Its number is confirmed by a county government copy and a forms-library listing rather than the judiciary's own site, which could not be retrieved, so confirm the current version with the court clerk.
Regional Variances
South Carolina civil harassment order rules at a glance
Instrument name
Restraining order against harassment or stalking, brought as a complaint and motion in magistrates court under S.C. Code 16-3-1750 to 16-3-1790. It is a civil action by the victim, separate from the Family Court process in chapter 20-4.
Who it covers, and the relationship test
No relationship test. A complaint and motion for a restraining order may be filed by any person, and no criminal charge is required to file (S.C. Code 16-3-1750(C)).
The standard
Harassment in the first or second degree, or stalking, each a pattern of two or more acts measured against a reasonable person (S.C. Code 16-3-1700). A single incident does not fit. A temporary order requires proof by a preponderance and, as good cause, prima facie present danger of bodily injury (S.C. Code 16-3-1760).
Temporary order
Within twenty-four hours after filing, the court may hold an emergency hearing and issue a temporary order without notice. It stays in effect until the Rule to Show Cause hearing (S.C. Code 16-3-1760(A), 16-3-1780(A)).
Hearing timing
Within fifteen days of filing and not sooner than five days after service on the defendant (S.C. Code 16-3-1760).
Duration
One year. The provision setting a floor of one year and the provision setting a ceiling of one year for cases outside subsection (A) converge on exactly one year (S.C. Code 16-3-1750(E), 16-3-1780(B)).
Renewal
Extension by court order on the plaintiff's motion showing good cause, with notice to the defendant, who is entitled to a hearing within thirty days of the date the order will expire (S.C. Code 16-3-1780(B)).
The one-year carve-out
Relief granted under section 16-3-1770 dissolves one year after issuance unless the court has charged the defendant with harassment in the first or second degree or stalking and scheduled a trial. If a trial is scheduled, the relief continues only until the trial concludes (S.C. Code 16-3-1780(C)).
Court and form
Magistrates court, which must provide forms for unrepresented plaintiffs (S.C. Code 16-3-1750(D)). The form is SCCA/749, a number corroborated by two secondary copies rather than the judiciary's own site.
Filing fee
No fee to file. The court shall assess a filing fee against the nonprevailing party, so a plaintiff who loses can be charged (S.C. Code 16-3-1750(D)).
Firearm provision and service
This page does not state a firearm provision or a service rule, because neither has been verified from the statute text for this build. Ask the magistrates court clerk about both.
Violation
Each order carries a notice that violation is a criminal offense punishable by thirty days in jail, a fine of five hundred dollars, or both (S.C. Code 16-3-1770(C)(1)).
Frequently Asked Questions
Other South Carolina guides
Adult Guardianship in South Carolina
Adverse Possession in South Carolina: Ten Years Against a Presumption
Asset Protection Planning in South Carolina (2026)
Dealing With Debt Collectors in South Carolina (2026)
Delinquent Property Taxes in South Carolina: A Twelve Month Clock That Steps Up Four Times
Expunging a Criminal Record in South Carolina (2026)
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