Case Alert: Vinson v. Kinsey (2023)

(1) Courts must not make assumptions about how survivors "should" behave when considering a DVRO. Courts may not deny a DVRO because the survivor had contact with their abuser after being threatened or harmed, or because the survivor waited a long time after the last abusive incident to request a restraining order.

(2) Courts must consider the full history of the relationship (the "totality of the circumstances") in DVRO cases, not just focus on a single incident.

(3) Courts must consider descriptions of abuse in any declaration submitted with a DVRO petition.