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Family Court Act 841
FCA 841: Orders of Disposition

Family Court Act 841
Orders of Disposition

At the conclusion of a dispositional hearing under this article, the court may enter an order:

(a) dismissing the petition, if the allegations of the petition are not established; or

(b) suspending judgment for a period not in excess of six months; or

(c) placing the respondent on probation for a period not exceeding one year, and requiring respondent to participate in a batterer's education program designed to help end violent behavior, which may include referral to drug and alcohol counseling, and to pay the costs thereof if respondent has the means to do so, provided however that nothing contained herein shall be deemed to require payment of the costs of any such program by the petitioner, the state or any political subdivision thereof; or

(d) making an order of protection in accord with section eight hundred forty-two of this part; or

(e) directing payment of restitution in an amount not to exceed ten thousand dollars. An order of restitution may be made in conjunction with any order of disposition authorized under subdivisions (b), (c), or (d) of this section. In no case shall an order of restitution be issued where the court determines that the respondent has already paid such restitution as part of the disposition or settlement of another proceeding arising from the same act or acts alleged in the petition before the court.

No order of protection may direct any party to observe conditions of behavior unless the party requesting the order of protection has served and filed a petition or counter-claim in accordance with section one hundred fifty-four-b of this act. Nothing in this section shall preclude the issuance of a temporary order of protection ex parte, pursuant to section eight hundred twenty-eight of this article.

Nothing in this section shall preclude the issuance of both an order of probation and an order of protection as part of the order of disposition.

Notwithstanding the foregoing provisions, an order of protection, or temporary order of protection where applicable, may be entered against a former spouse and persons who have a child in common, regardless of whether such persons have been married or have lived together at any time, or against a member of the same family or household as defined in subdivision one of section eight hundred twelve of this article.


This section of the Family Court Act is provided as part of a free educational service by J. Douglas Barics, attorney at law for reference only. Statutes and codes such as FCA 841 are frequently amended, and no representation is made that the above version of FCA 841 is current. Updated statutes and codes may be available at the New York State Legislature Website. No statute should be relied on without understanding controlling case law which may further interpret it. An attorney should be consulted for legal advice.

If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to contact Mr. Barics at lawyer@jdbar.com or (631) 864-2600. For more articles and information, please visit www.jdbar.com.

J. Douglas Barics, Esq. – Divorce, family, matrimonial, trial and appeals lawyer in Long Island, New York.