How to File for a Stalking No-Contact Order: The Difference Between Emergency and Provisional Measures
1. When Can You Obtain a Stalking No-Contact Order?
If the other party's conduct is likely to continue or recur and there is a need to protect the victim, a no-contact order may be considered.
It is first necessary to distinguish between "stalking conduct" and "stalking crime" as defined under the Act on the Punishment of Stalking Crimes.
The Act defines stalking conduct as approaching or following a person without their consent and without justifiable reason, waiting for or watching them at their home or workplace, or using telephone calls or information and communications networks in a way that causes anxiety or fear.
When such stalking conduct is carried out continuously or repeatedly, it may constitute a stalking crime.
A stalking crime is currently punishable by imprisonment for up to three years or a fine of up to 30 million won, and by imprisonment for up to five years or a fine of up to 50 million won if a dangerous weapon or object was carried or used.
Therefore, when reviewing whether a no-contact order is warranted, the analysis goes beyond simply confirming that a conflict occurred between the two parties, and also considers factors such as the following:
- Whether the other party clearly refused contact or communication
- Whether contact or visits continued afterward
- Whether the other party waited for or followed the victim at their home, workplace, or school
- Whether repeated conduct caused anxiety or fear
- Whether there is a possibility of renewed contact even after a report was filed
These and other circumstances are examined together.
In particular, even without text messages or KakaoTalk messages, repeated phone call attempts alone can be problematic.
2. What's the Difference Between Emergency Measures and Provisional Measures?
Emergency measures are actions the police can take in urgent situations, while provisional measures are protective measures decided by a court following a request from a prosecutor, among other procedures.
Both are commonly referred to as a "stalking no-contact order," but the actual legal procedures and durations differ.
| Category | Emergency Measures | Provisional Measures |
| Authority | Judicial police officer | Court |
| Main Requirements | Stalking conduct is likely to continue or recur, and urgent action is needed to prevent a crime | Risk of recurrence of a stalking crime and the need to protect the victim |
| Access Restriction | No-contact order within 100m of the other party or their residence, etc. | No-contact order within 100m of the victim, cohabitants, family members, or their residence, etc. |
| Communication Restriction | No-contact order via telecommunications | No-contact order via telecommunications |
| Duration | Up to 1 month | No-contact/communication restrictions generally up to 3 months |
| Additional Measures | - | Electronic location tracking device, detention at a holding facility or detention center, etc., may be possible |
Under Article 4 of the Act on the Punishment of Stalking Crimes, a judicial police officer may take emergency measures, such as a no-contact order within 100 meters and a no-contact order via telecommunications, when there is a risk that stalking conduct will continue or recur and urgent action is needed to prevent a crime.
An emergency measure may not exceed one month in duration.
A provisional measure, on the other hand, is decided by a court.
If the court finds it necessary to protect the victim, it may order not only a no-contact order within 100 meters and a no-contact order via telecommunications, but also, depending on the case, provisional measures such as attaching an electronic location tracking device or detention at a holding facility or detention center.
The no-contact order, the no-contact order via telecommunications, and the electronic device attachment are generally limited to three months, but may each be extended twice, up to three months at a time, if necessary to protect the victim.
3. What Factors Are Considered When Deciding on a No-Contact Order?
The key issue is how specifically the risk of the stalking crime recurring and the need to protect the victim can be confirmed.
Under Article 8 of the Act on the Punishment of Stalking Crimes, if a prosecutor finds a risk that a stalking crime will recur, the prosecutor may request the court to issue a provisional measure, either on their own authority or upon request by a judicial police officer.
For example, the following circumstances may be considered together.
Repeated calls or texts continue even after contact is refused
If contact continues through a different number or SNS account after one number was blocked, or if repeated call attempts occur, it is advisable to preserve the dates, frequency, and content of such contact.
The other party keeps showing up at your home or workplace
It is helpful to establish repeated conduct through the time and place of the visits, CCTV footage, dash cam footage, entry records, and witnesses.
Contact is made through a third party
Indirect approaches, such as asking a friend or family member to relay messages or deliver items, may also be reviewed depending on the facts, so it is advisable not to delete related conversation records.
Ultimately, the need for a no-contact order is not determined by the number of contacts alone, but is reviewed comprehensively based on the nature of the conduct, its repetition, the victim's refusal of contact, the history of the relationship, actions taken after a report was filed, and the likelihood of recurrence.
4. What Happens If the Other Party Contacts or Approaches You After a No-Contact Order Is Issued?
If the other party shows up again or makes contact through a prohibited method after a no-contact order has been issued, it is necessary to immediately secure related evidence and file a report.
Failure to comply with a provisional measure's no-contact order within 100 meters or no-contact order via telecommunications may result in imprisonment for up to two years or a fine of up to 20 million won.
Failure to comply with a court-approved emergency measure may also result in imprisonment for up to one year or a fine of up to 10 million won.
Therefore, if the other party appears again after a no-contact order has been issued, rather than trying to resolve the situation by meeting them directly, it is important to keep records of the following:
- The date and time of the approach
- The location and the distance from the victim
- CCTV or dash cam footage
- Records of calls, texts, KakaoTalk messages, and SNS activity
- Contact made through a different number or account
- Contact made through a third party
- Records of police reports and dispatches
Keeping such records is important.
In addition, even after the term of an existing provisional measure has expired, it does not necessarily mean that protective measures can never be granted again.
Courts have found that, where there is a recognized risk of recurrence and a need to protect the victim, a new provisional measure may be possible even if no new stalking crime has occurred since the prior provisional measure.
5. What Should You Prepare First If You Need a Stalking No-Contact Order?
The first step is to organize the timeline of events from when the stalking began to the present, and to secure evidence showing the repetition and risk of recurrence.
1) Do not delete contact records
It is advisable to preserve not only text messages, KakaoTalk messages, SNS DMs, and emails, but also missed calls and records of blocked calls.
2) Secure records of the other party's visits
Check whether CCTV footage from shared entrances, commercial buildings, or the workplace, dash cam footage, and entry records can be obtained before they are deleted.
3) Organize records showing that you refused contact
If there are records of communicating a wish such as "please stop contacting me" or "please stop coming here," organize them as well.
However, it is best to avoid unnecessarily contacting or meeting the other party again simply to create evidence.
4) Prepare a chronological account of events
For example, organizing events as follows makes it easier to show the pattern of repeated conduct and what happened after a report was filed:
- August 1: Request to stop contact
- August 3: 12 phone calls
- August 5: Visit to the workplace
- August 7: SNS message from a different account
- August 8: Police report filed
5) Review any existing reports or protective measures
If there are prior 112 emergency call records or existing emergency or provisional measure decisions, it is necessary to organize separately whether any further contact or approaches occurred after those measures were issued.
6. Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Q1. Does filing a stalking report automatically result in a no-contact order?
Filing a report alone does not automatically result in a no-contact order.
An emergency measure requires a review of whether the stalking conduct is likely to continue or recur and whether urgent action is needed, while a provisional measure proceeds based on the risk of recurrence of the stalking crime and the need to protect the victim.
Therefore, it is necessary to specifically present records of repeated contact or visits, evidence of refusal, and actions taken after the report was filed.
Q2. If a no-contact order is issued, does that also prohibit phone calls and KakaoTalk messages?
If a no-contact order via telecommunications is issued together with the order, contact by phone or through information and communications services may also be restricted.
Since the law separately provides for a physical 100-meter no-contact order and a no-contact order via telecommunications, it is necessary to check which measures are actually included in the decision.
Q3. Once the term of a no-contact order ends, are there no further options?
The mere fact that the term has ended does not mean that all possibility of further protective measures disappears.
If there continues to be a risk of recurrence of the stalking crime and a need to protect the victim, a new provisional measure may be considered depending on the specific circumstances.
However, the term and any extensions of the prior decision, as well as subsequent conduct, must be reviewed together.
7. Summary and Key Points
A stalking no-contact order is examined based not simply on a dispute over contact, but on the repetition of the conduct, the victim's refusal of contact, the anxiety or fear caused, the likelihood of recurrence, and the need to protect the victim.
In urgent situations, the police's emergency measures may be at issue, and in cases where a stalking crime is likely to recur, the court's provisional measures may be at issue, so it is important to identify the procedure appropriate to the current situation.
In particular, records of calls, messages, and visits, along with CCTV footage, from before and after a no-contact order should not be deleted and should be organized chronologically.
Decent Law Firm reviews contact records, visit records, and the circumstances of the report in stalking cases to help identify the protective measures and criminal procedure issues that may currently apply.
If a no-contact order is needed, or if the other party continues to make contact or approach you even after a measure has already been issued, we can review the necessary response for further reports and investigative procedures based on the relevant materials.
