Emergency and Temporary Custody Orders in New Hampshire

When a child's safety is at immediate risk — or when parents need a custody structure in place while the full case works through the court system — New Hampshire provides two tracks: emergency orders for urgent safety situations and temporary orders for maintaining stability during the litigation process.

Temporary Custody Orders

A temporary order establishes parenting time and decision-making responsibility while the custody case is pending. It's not permanent — it governs the arrangement until the final hearing produces a permanent parenting plan.

When they're issued. After the First Appearance session, either parent can request a temporary hearing. The court typically schedules these within a few weeks. Each parent gets approximately 15 minutes to present their case through "offers of proof" — a summary of the evidence they would present at a full trial.

What they cover. Temporary orders address:

• Which parent the child lives with during the case
• A parenting schedule for the non-residential parent
• Temporary child support
• Who stays in the family home
• Restrictions on either parent (no relocating with the child, no removing the child from school, no disparaging the other parent)

How they're decided. The court applies the same best interests factors used for final orders (RSA 461-A:6), but with less evidence and a faster timeline. Judges prioritize maintaining the child's status quo — keeping the child in their current school, with their current primary caregiver, in their current home — unless there's a compelling reason to change.

Duration. Temporary orders remain in effect until modified by the court or replaced by the final parenting decree. In contested cases, this can mean months of living under a temporary arrangement.

Emergency Custody Orders

Emergency orders exist for situations where the child faces immediate danger — not for ordinary custody disputes, even contentious ones.

When courts grant them. Emergency orders require evidence of imminent risk to the child's physical safety or well-being. Situations that may warrant an emergency order:

• Physical abuse of the child
• A parent's severe substance abuse creating an unsafe environment
• A parent threatening to flee the state with the child
• A parent who is incapacitated and unable to care for the child
• Sexual abuse allegations with supporting evidence

Situations that typically don't qualify:

• Disagreements over parenting style
• A parent who lets the child stay up too late or eat junk food
• Verbal arguments between parents (unless they escalate to threats of violence)
• One parent starting a new romantic relationship

How to obtain one. File a motion for emergency temporary orders with the Circuit Court Family Division. The court may schedule an expedited hearing — sometimes within 24-48 hours in genuine emergencies. In extreme cases, the court can issue an ex parte order (without the other parent present) based on the filing parent's sworn affidavit, but the other parent must receive notice and a hearing within a short timeframe.

How Domestic Violence Affects Custody

Domestic violence is one of the most powerful factors in New Hampshire custody determinations. When there's an active domestic violence protective order under RSA 173-B, several automatic consequences follow:

Presumption against joint decision-making. The standard presumption of joint decision-making responsibility is waived. The court may grant sole decision-making to the non-abusive parent.

Mediation is waived. Mandatory mediation is automatically excused when there's an active protective order or when a judge determines that face-to-face negotiation would pose a safety risk.

The equal parenting time presumption can be rebutted. Evidence of domestic violence is one of the strongest grounds for departing from the 146-overnight equal time threshold.

Supervised visitation. Courts may order that the abusive parent's parenting time be supervised by a third party or take place at a supervised exchange center. In severe cases, parenting time may be suspended entirely until the parent completes court-ordered treatment.

Impact on best interests analysis. Under RSA 461-A:6, the court evaluates any evidence of domestic violence, child abuse, neglect, or behavior endangering the child's safety. This factor can override all others — a parent's strong relationship with the child and their willingness to cooperate are irrelevant if the child is unsafe in their care.

What to Document

Whether you're seeking a temporary order, an emergency order, or raising domestic violence concerns, documentation is critical:

• Police reports and incident numbers
• Protective order history
• Medical records showing injuries
• Text messages, emails, or voicemails containing threats
• Photos with timestamps
• Witness statements from neighbors, teachers, or family members who observed concerning behavior

Verbal allegations without supporting evidence are insufficient for emergency orders. Courts need concrete documentation to justify disrupting the other parent's rights on an expedited basis.

The New Hampshire Child Custody & Parenting Plan Guide includes sections on documenting safety concerns, preparing for temporary hearings, and understanding how domestic violence protective orders interact with the custody process.

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