How to Vary or Revoke an AVO
After an AVO is made, an application can be brought to court to either vary /change it or revoke (cancel) it.
An AVO can be varied to change the orders, revise some of the orders, add further orders, reduce the duration of the AVO or extend the duration. The standard length for an AVO is 2 years.
Persons who can apply to vary or revoke an AVO
The following persons can make an application to the Court:
- The Defendant
- The protected person
- The guardian of the protected person
- The Police
How to apply
You will need to obtain an application form from the court registry and fill it in to vary or revoke an AVO.
Change of circumstances required to vary or revoke an AVO
A Court may be reluctant to vary or revoke an AVO if there has not been a change of circumstances from when the order was made.
The onus of proving a change of circumstances is on the person seeking the variation or revocation. A change of circumstances can be, for example, you have rehabilitated yourself and demonstrated that you have changed your behaviour, that you have not breached the orders for a period of time or that certain conditions are too cumbersome and warrant amendment. It can also be that the protected person also seeks a variation or revocation of the AVO in that they no longer have fears for their safety or property.
The party seeking a variation will need to draft a statement setting out the existing conditions, which conditions they want varied or revoked and provide a basis for such variation or revocation. The Court will want to be satisfied that there is a justifiable basis for the variation or revocation of the AVO.
Serving an application
When applying for a variation or revocation of an AVO, you must serve a copy of the application on each protected person and in a police AVO, a copy must be served on the Commissioner of Police.
If you have an AVO and you are wanting to vary or revoke it, contact our experienced team at NCL and we will go through your matter with you and prepare an application tailored to your particular matter and circumstances.
