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Attorneys who work on cases involving domestic and dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking (DVSAS) face a disproportionate amount of threatened and actual violence compared to attorneys who practice in other fields. We created the Attorney Safety Guide to provide civil attorneys who represent survivors of DVSAS, as well as leadership at legal services organizations serving DVSAS survivors, with information and resources to help them preempt and address safety concerns often affecting attorneys in the field.

Because protection orders can be the basis by which someone is ineligible to receive a firearm, a National Instant Criminal Background Check relies on state, local and tribal court protection order information. Generally, protection order information can be entered into the National Crime Information Center (NCIC) Protection Order Files (POF) and/or the NICS Indices. The easiest way to ensure that the proper information is uploaded from state, tribal and local justice system databases into federal databases that are used to conduct background checks is to develop a summary information form or cover sheet that includes all of the information needed for NICS to run a firearms-related background check and is completed at the time the related protection order is issued. This resource details all of the information that a summary information form would need to include and provides a sample form.

Because misdemeanor convictions for crimes of domestic and dating violence can be the basis by which someone is prohibited from receiving a firearm, the National Instant Criminal Background Check System at the FBI relies on state, local and tribal court criminal records information. Generally, information about convictions for misdemeanor crimes of domestic and dating violence can be entered into the National Crime Information Center (NCIC), the Interstate Identification Index (III), and/or the NICS Indices. The easiest way to ensure that the proper information is uploaded from state, Tribal and local justice system databases into federal databases that are used to conduct background checks is to develop a summary information form or cover sheet that includes all of the information needed for NICS to run a firearms-related background check and is completed at the time the conviction is entered. This resource identifies the information that should be included in such a cover sheet and provides a sample.

In June 2024, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the federal law that prohibits domestic abusers subject to protection orders from possessing firearms.

This technical assistance bulletin answers frequently asked questions about the Court’s opinion and practical considerations for judges, lawyers, advocates and others whose work involves supporting survivors and/or the issuance and enforcement of domestic violence protection orders.

In the United States, one in eight high school students reports having been subjected to dating violence (physical, sexual, or both) within the last year. Among the college population, approximately 23% of U.S. undergraduate students report having been subjected to emotional, physical and/or sexual violence by a dating partner in the preceding year. This means that every high school and college community is impacted by teen dating violence. The majority of teen dating violence-related homicides are committed with a firearm and schools have been the site of fatal teen dating violence. This resource identifies key information about the intersection of teen dating violence and firearms that schools should understand and recommends steps schools can take to minimize risk.

The 2005 Reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) included a certification requirement in the STOP Grants Program, requiring any applicant for STOP funds (including States) to certify that “its judicial administrative policies and practices include notification to domestic violence offenders of the requirements delineated in section 922(g)(8) and (g)(9) of Title 18, United States Code, and any applicable related Federal, State, or local laws[.]” STOP funding depends on the Court’s ability to show that they have a policy or practice that reliably informs domestic violence offenders in cases involving protection orders and misdemeanor crimes of domestic violence about the potential or actual prohibitions they may face under federal, State, tribal, or local firearms laws. Failure to show compliance could result in your State losing all or part of its STOP grant funding. Law enforcement, prosecution, and victim services (as well as courts) all depend on courts meeting the grant conditions for STOP funding in their state. This resource from the National Resource Center on Domestic Violence and Firearms and the National Center on Protection Orders and Full Faith and Credit explains how courts can meet this obligation.

Domestic Violence Protection Orders (DVPOs) and Extreme Risk Protection Orders (ERPOs) are types of injunctions issued by a civil court. Both can prohibit the person subject to the order from possessing or purchasing firearms or ammunition. However, DVPOs and ERPOs are not interchangeable, and there are a number of key distinctions between the two.

This trifold template brochure is intended to guide legal practitioners, advocates, and others in creating a resource for survivors that outlines the important differences between the two orders using information specific to their jurisdiction. When survivors know what each type of order can and cannot do, they are able to make more informed choices about how to keep themselves and their children safe.

When someone becomes prohibited from accessing a firearm under Federal or state law that prohibition applies to firearm(s) they already owned or had possession of. The person subject to the firearm prohibition (due to domestic violence protection order, domestic violence conviction, or other reason) must ensure that they no longer have access to their firearm(s) or they can be subject to criminal penalties. When these firearms are turned in to law enforcement or a suitable proxy (such as a federally licensed firearm dealer), there are considerations for how to accept, store, and return those firearms. This resource explores options and considerations for having a process in place to store relinquished firearms.

The Fifth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution states that no person “shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself.” This right against self-incrimination protects individuals from being forced to provide evidence or testimony that would implicate them in a crime or could expose them to a criminal prosecution. The Fifth Amendment has been interpreted by courts to extend to civil proceedings if there is a reasonable possibility it could expose them to a criminal proceeding in the future. Civil protection order proceedings are an example of this. This paper explores how communities can balance protecting the Fifth Amendment rights of protection order respondents while still ensuring compliance with orders to relinquish firearms.