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Home » Self-Help » Harassment & Protection » Protection From Workplace Harassment

Protection From Workplace Harassment


Overview

There are eight basic steps you must take to apply for a protection order against workplace harassment:

Step 1: Verify that this is the appropriate application for you
Step 2: Notify the perpetrator and the victim that you intend to apply for a TPO
Step 3: Decide where to file your application
Step 4: Prepare your application
Step 5: Prepare your confidential information sheet
Step 6: Prepare your exhibits (if necessary)
Step 7: Prepare a cover sheet
Step 8: File your documents with the court, pay the filing fee, and post a bond
Step 9: Attend a hearing if scheduled and wait for the court’s decision

Each of these steps is discussed below. For general information about protection orders, click to read Overview of Protection Orders.


Step 1:
Verify That This Is The Appropriate Application For You

Which application you should file depends on the facts of your particular situation and why you need the protection. You can use the application for protection against workplace harassment on this page if you are an employer (or the employer’s authorized agent, such as an attorney) and you believe that “harassment in the workplace” has occurred.

“Harassment in the workplace” occurs when:

1. A person knowingly threatens to cause or commits an act that causes:

(a) Bodily injury to himself or another person;

(b) Damage to the property of another person; or

(c) Substantial harm to the physical or mental health or safety of a person;

2. The threat is made or the act is committed against an employer, an employee of the employer while the employee performs his duties of employment or a person present at the workplace of the employer; and

3. The threat would cause a reasonable person to fear that the threat will be carried out or the act would cause a reasonable person to feel terrorized, frightened, intimidated or harassed. (NRS 33.240.)

If you are confident that the workplace harassment application is appropriate for you, click to jump to Step 2. If workplace harassment does not seem to apply to your situation, click for information about these other possible protection orders:

Protection from Stalking, Aggravated Stalking, or Harassment
Protection from Harm to Children
Protection from Sexual Assault

TIP! If you and the person you need protection from are in a “domestic” relationship (which could include someone you’re related to, someone you're dating, or someone you have dated), you might need a protection order against domestic violence from the family court. The justice courts cannot issue that type of order. For more information, click to visit the Family Law Self-Help Center website.


Step 2:
Notify The Perpetrator And The Victim That You Intend To Apply For A TPO

If you have knowledge that a specific person is the target of harassment in the workplace, you are required to make a good faith effort to notify the victim who is the target of the harassment that you intend to seek a protection order. (NRS 33.260.)

You are also generally required to provide written or oral notice to the “adverse party” (the perpetrator who is causing the harassment) that you intend to seek a protection order. An e-mail, letter, or fax to the adverse party could constitute written notice. A telephone call or face-to-face statement could constitute oral notice.

FYI! If you are unable to provide written or oral notice, or if you believe the notice would be dangerous or impractical, you can still apply for the protection order, but you must provide some additional information in your application in Step 4 below.


Step 3:
Decide Where To File Your Application

You must file your application in the justice court for the township where the workplace harassment occurred or where the person affected by the harassment was located when it occurred. (NRS 200.581.)

For example, if the adverse party caused physical damage to a business in North Las Vegas, or threatened employees in North Las Vegas, you can file your application in the North Las Vegas Justice Court. If the adverse party is making threatening phone calls to your business or its employees, and you received those phone calls in Henderson, you can file in that court. 

To find out which justice court has jurisdiction over a specific location, click to go Find My Court or go to our home page and use the Find a Court Location function. Click to visit Justice Courts for court location and contact information.


Step 4:
Prepare Your Application

A form Application for Protection Against Harassment in the Workplace is available, free of charge, at the Self-Help Center. You can also download the application by clicking one of the formats underneath the form’s title below:

APPLICATION FOR PROTECTION AGAINST HARASSMENT IN THE WORKPLACE  
Pdf Fillable

If you are unable to provide written or oral notice to the adverse party prior to filing your application, or if you believe the notice would be dangerous or impractical, then you must provide the following information in your application:

  • Specific facts that clearly show that “immediate and irreparable injury, loss or damage” will result to one of the following people before the adverse party or his attorney can be heard in opposition to your application:
    • The employer
    • An employee of the employer while the employee performs the duties of his employment, or
    • A person who is present at the workplace of the employer.
  • The efforts, if any, that have been made to give notice to the adverse party.
  • Specific facts supporting waiver of the notice requirement.

As you fill out your application, keep the following in mind:

 The employer or its agent will be the “applicant.” The person the applicant is requesting the order against is the “adverse party.”

 A TPO against workplace harassment cannot be issued against more than one adverse party.

 Your application should be typed or neatly handwritten.

 Do not write outside the margins or on the back of the forms.

 Make sure every blank is filled, even if you write “None,” “N/A,” or “UNK” (for “unknown”).

 Be as specific as possible and include all relevant dates, locations, and witnesses.

 Whatever way you list your name and the name of the adverse party, list the names consistently throughout the application.

 The application and any supporting documentation you submit to the court becomes a public record that can be viewed by anyone, so do not include (or black out) things like social security and bank account numbers.

 You are signing the application under penalty of perjury. If you make any intentionally false or misleading statements, you may be subject to criminal penalties.

For more tips on filling out legal forms, click to read Basics of Court Forms and Filings.


Step 5:
Prepare Your Confidential Information Sheet

The next document you must complete is a confidential information sheet. The information you provide in this document is not available to the general public. You can download the form by clicking one of the formats underneath the form’s title below:

HARASSMENT IN THE WORKPLACE PROTECTION ORDER INFORMATION  
Pdf Fillable

Provide as much information as possible. This information allows the court to contact you about upcoming hearings or activities in your case. It also allows law enforcement to serve documents on the adverse party.


Step 6:
Prepare Your Exhibits (If Necessary)

If you DO NOT have documents (such as police reports or related protection orders) that you want to submit to the court to support your application, click to jump to Step 7.

If you DO have documents to support your application, print out and copy such things as:

  • Documentation or transcripts of phone calls by the adverse party
  • Notes or written threats left by the adverse party
  • Pictures of property damage caused by the adverse party
  • Any other written documents that help to support your application

You are not required to file a written police report before applying for a protection order. If you have filed a police report, you can attach a copy to your application. If there are other protection orders that name the adverse party, attached copies of those as well if they are available.

CAUTION! Remember that any documents you file with the court become public records that anyone can view. So be sure to black out any confidential information (social security numbers, for example) before you file them with the court.


Step 7:
Prepare A Cover Sheet

All justice courts except Las Vegas require a cover sheet. A Civil Court Cover Sheet is available for free at the Self-Help Center, or you can download it on your computer by clicking one of the formats underneath the form's title below:

CIVIL COURT COVER SHEET
Pdf Fillable 

 

Step 8:
File Your Documents With The Court, Pay The Filing Fee, And Post A Bond

If you decided in Step 2 that you are filing in Henderson, North Las Vegas, or one of the other Clark County justice courts (other than Las Vegas), you must take the following completed documents to the justice court and give them to the court clerk:

 Application for Order for Protection Against Harassment in the Workplace (and any continuation pages used)

 Harassment in the Workplace Protection Order Information

 Any police reports, documents, photos, notes, etc., that support your application

 $74 filing fee

 $100 bond (see below for more information)

 Civil Court Cover Sheet

If you want to keep a copy of the forms and other documents you are submitting to the court, make a copy of them before you give them to the court clerk.

If you decided in Step 2 that you are filing your application in the Las Vegas Justice Court, you will need all the documents listed above except the Civil Court Cover Sheet. Take your documents to the courthouse and give them to the court clerk. All documents to be filed with the Las Vegas Justice Court must be electronically filed. The court clerk will scan in your documents and return them to you, so you do not need to make copies. But make sure any odd-sized documents are copied onto 8 ½ x 11 standard paper. You will need an e-mail address to file. For more information about e-filing, click to visit the Las Vegas Justice Court website.

Unlike other types of protection orders, there is a filing fee and a bond required to be posted with the court when you file your application. The purpose of the bond is to compensate the adverse party for costs and damages suffered should the court find the TPO was obtained improperly. The current bond amount required by the courts is $100. The adverse party can file a motion to increase the bond amount.

If the judge either denies the application or issues a protection order that expires, the applicant can file a motion to release bond. If the judge dissolves a TPO against the adverse party, the adverse party can file a motion for award from the bond, in which case the court could award some or all of the bond to the adverse party.

The following forms relate to the bond and can be downloaded by clicking one of the formats underneath the form’s title:

ADVERSE PARTY’S MOTION FOR AN AWARD FROM THE SECURITY  
PDF NONFILLABLE  

ADVERSE PARTY’S MOTION TO INCREASE THE SECURITY  
PDF NONFILLABLE  

EMPLOYER’S MOTION FOR REFUND OF REMAINING SECURITY  
PDF NONFILLABLE  


Step 9:
Attend A hearing If Scheduled And Wait For The Court’s Decision

When you file your documents, the court will assign your case to a judge who will review your information. The judge can:

  • Deny your application. If the judge denies your application, the court will mail you an order explaining the reasons for the denial. If you disagree with the judge's decision, you can file a motion asking that the judge to reconsider the decision or file a new application and provide additional information or evidence.
  • Grant your application. If the judge grants your application, the court will mail you a Temporary Protection Order and the sheriff will serve the TPO on the adverse party. The order is not effective until it is served. Unlike other types of TPOs, there is a fee for having law enforcement agencies serve a TPO against workplace harassment.

FYI! If the sheriff can’t serve the order on the adverse party, you must arrange to have the order served. The order can’t be served by you or any person named in the order. You can have the order served by a private process server or any person not named in the order who is at least eighteen years old. After the order is served, proof of service must be filed with the court. If the adverse party resides out of the county or state, contact law enforcement where he lives to have the order served.

  • Schedule a hearing on your application.  If the judge schedules a hearing on your application, the court will mail you the order scheduling the hearing and the sheriff will serve the order on the adverse party.  For more information about what to expect at a court hearing, click to visit Going to Court.

Unlike other TPOs, a protection order against workplace harassment must expire not later than fifteen days after the date the order is issued, unless otherwise ordered by the judge. If you want the order to be extended for up to one year, you must file a motion requesting that the court extend the order prior to its expiration. The court will schedule a hearing, and the TPO will automatically remain in force until the hearing is held. Click to visit Extending a Protection Order.

To learn what you can do if the adverse party violates your protection order, click to read Enforcing a Protection Order.