An Act To Amend the Protection from Abuse Laws Concerning Consent Agreements
Maine Legislature, Session 129, LD 1865
Committee: Judiciary
Sponsors: BAILEY, RECKITT
Amends: 19-A MRSA §4007

Legislative Document
No. 1865
H.P. 1336
House of Representatives, December 23, 2019
An Act To Amend the Protection from Abuse Laws Concerning 
Consent Agreements
Approved for introduction by a majority of the Legislative Council pursuant to Joint Rule 
203.
Received by the Clerk of the House on December 19, 2019.  Referred to the Committee on 
Judiciary pursuant to Joint Rule 308.2 and ordered printed pursuant to Joint Rule 401.
ROBERT B. HUNT
Clerk
Presented by Representative BAILEY of Saco.
Cosponsored by Representative: RECKITT of South Portland.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1.  19-A MRSA §4007, sub-§1, as amended by PL 2019, c. 407, §4, is 
further amended to read:
1.  Protection order; consent agreement.  The court, after a hearing and upon 
finding that the defendant has committed the alleged abuse as defined in section 4002, 
subsection 1 or engaged in the alleged conduct described in section 4005, subsection 1, 
may grant a protective order or, upon making that finding, approve a consent agreement 
to bring about a cessation of abuse or the alleged conduct.  This subsection does not 
preclude the parties from voluntarily requesting a consent agreement without a finding of 
abuse or a finding that the alleged conduct occurred.  The court may enter a finding that 
the defendant represents a credible threat to the physical safety of the plaintiff or a minor 
child residing in the plaintiff's household.  The court may enter a finding of economic 
abuse.  Relief granted under this section may include:
A.  Directing the defendant to refrain from threatening, assaulting, molesting, 
harassing, attacking or otherwise abusing the plaintiff and any minor children 
residing in the household;
A-1.  Directing the defendant not to possess a firearm, muzzle-loading firearm, bow, 
crossbow or other dangerous weapon for the duration of the order;
A-2.  Prohibiting the defendant from the use, attempted use or threatened use of 
physical force that would reasonably be expected to cause bodily injury against the 
plaintiff or a minor child residing in the household;
B.  Directing the defendant to refrain from going upon the premises of the plaintiff's 
residence;
C.  Directing the defendant to refrain from repeatedly and without reasonable cause:
(1)  Following the plaintiff; 
(2)  Being at or in the vicinity of the plaintiff's home, school, business or place of 
employment; or
(3)  Engaging in conduct defined as stalking in Title 17-A, section 210-A;
D.  Directing the defendant to refrain from having any direct or indirect contact with 
the plaintiff;
E.  When the mutual residence or household of the parties is jointly owned or jointly 
leased or when one party has a duty to support the other or their minor children living 
in the residence or household and that party is the sole owner or lessee:
(1)  Granting or restoring possession of the residence or household to one party, 
excluding the other; or
(2)  A consent agreement, allowing the party with the duty to support to provide 
suitable alternate housing;
E-1.  Directing the defendant to refrain from injuring or threatening to injure any 
animal owned, possessed, leased, kept or held by either party or a minor child 
residing in the household;
F.  Ordering a division of the personal property and household goods and furnishings 
of the parties and placing any protective orders considered appropriate by the court, 
including an order to refrain from taking, converting or damaging property in which 
the plaintiff has a legal interest;
F-1.  Ordering the termination of a life insurance policy or rider under that policy 
owned by the defendant if the plaintiff is the insured life under the policy or rider.  
Upon issuance, a copy of the court order must be sent to the insurer that issued the 
policy;
G.  Either awarding some or all temporary parental rights and responsibilities with 
regard to minor children or awarding temporary rights of contact with regard to minor 
children, or both, under such conditions that the court finds appropriate as determined 
in accordance with the best interest of the child pursuant to section 1653, subsections 
to 6-B.  The court's award of parental rights and responsibilities or rights of contact 
is not binding in any separate action involving an award of parental rights and 
responsibilities pursuant to chapter 55 or in a similar action brought in another 
jurisdiction exercising child custody jurisdiction in accordance with the Uniform 
Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act;
H.  Requiring the defendant to receive counseling from a social worker, family 
service agency, mental health center, psychiatrist or any other guidance service that 
the court considers appropriate.  The court may not order and the State may not pay 
for the defendant to attend a batterers' intervention program unless the program is 
certified under section 4014;
I.  Ordering the payment of temporary support for the dependent party or for a child 
in the dependent party's custody in accordance with chapter 63, or both, when there is 
a legal obligation to support that dependent party or that child, or both;
J.  Ordering the payment of temporary support payments to the State as provided in 
chapters 63 and 67;
K.  Ordering payment of monetary relief to the plaintiff for losses suffered as a result 
of the defendant's conduct.  Monetary relief includes but is not limited to loss of 
earnings or support, reasonable expenses incurred for personal injuries or property 
damage, transitional living expenses and reasonable moving expenses. Upon the 
motion of either party, for sufficient cause, the court may set a later hearing on the 
issue of the amount of monetary relief, if any, to be awarded.  Nothing in this 
paragraph may be construed to limit the court's discretion to enter any of the other 
available relief under this chapter, and does not preclude a plaintiff from seeking 
monetary relief through other actions as permissible by law;
L.  Ordering the defendant to pay court costs or reasonable attorney's fees;
L-1.  Ordering the plaintiff to pay court costs or reasonable attorney's fees, or both, 
only if a judgment is entered against the plaintiff after a hearing in which both the 
plaintiff and the defendant are present and the court finds that the complaint is 
frivolous;
M.  Entering any other orders determined necessary or appropriate in the discretion of 
the court; 
N.  Directing the care, custody or control of any animal owned, possessed, leased, 
kept or held by either party or a minor child residing in the household;
O.  With regard to conduct described as aggravated sex trafficking or sex trafficking 
as described in Title 17-A, section 852 or 853, respectively, entering any other orders 
determined necessary or appropriate in the discretion of the court, including, but not 
limited to, requiring the defendant to pay economic damages related to the return or 
restoration of the plaintiff's passport or other immigration document and any debts of 
the plaintiff arising from the trafficking relationship;
P.  With respect to unauthorized dissemination of certain private images as described 
in Title 17-A, section 511-A, entering any orders determined necessary or appropriate 
in the discretion of the court, including but not limited to ordering the defendant to 
pay costs associated with removal, destruction or return of the private images; or
Q.  With respect to unauthorized dissemination of certain private images as described 
in Title 17-A, section 511-A, ordering the defendant to remove, destroy or return or 
to direct the removal, destruction or return of the private images, ordering the 
defendant to cease the dissemination of the private images and prohibiting the 
defendant from disseminating the private images.
If the court enjoins the defendant under this subsection and the enjoined conduct 
constitutes harassment under Title 17-A, section 506-A, the court shall include in the 
order a warning in conformity with Title 17-A, section 506-A.
SUMMARY
This bill amends the protection from abuse laws to provide that parties are not 
precluded from voluntarily requesting a consent agreement without a finding by the court 
that the alleged conduct described in the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 19-A, section 
4005, subsection 1 occurred.