Is civil harassment a violation of the law?
Yes. In California, civil harassment is unlawful conduct under Code of Civil Procedure section 527.6, but the term generally describes a civil basis for obtaining a restraining order, not a standalone criminal offense. The underlying conduct may also constitute a crime, and violating a resulting restraining order is separately criminalized.[1]
Civil Harassment Under California Law
California law defines harassment as one or more of the following:
“Unlawful violence, a credible threat of violence, or a knowing and willful course of conduct directed at a specific person that seriously alarms, annoys, or harasses the person, and that serves no legitimate purpose.”[1]
For a knowing and willful course of conduct, the conduct must:
- Consist of a series of acts showing continuity of purpose;
- Be directed at a specific person;
- Serve no legitimate purpose;
- Be conduct that would cause a reasonable person to suffer substantial emotional distress; and
- Actually cause the petitioner substantial emotional distress.[1]
Constitutionally protected activity is excluded from the statutory definition of a “course of conduct.”[1]
Civil Remedy Versus Criminal Offense
| Conduct | Legal consequence |
|---|---|
| Civil harassment as defined in section 527.6 | Supports a petition for a temporary restraining order and an order after hearing prohibiting harassment |
| Violation of a civil harassment restraining order | Misdemeanor punishable by a fine, imprisonment, or both |
| Stalking, criminal threats, assault, battery, or other independent offenses | May be prosecuted separately under applicable criminal statutes |
A person who has suffered statutory harassment may seek a temporary restraining order and an order after hearing prohibiting harassment.[1] The court may issue personal-conduct restraints, stay-away orders, no-contact orders, and related orders.[1]
The California Court of Appeal has explained that section 527.6 is an expedited civil remedy intended to protect an individual’s safety, happiness, and privacy.[4] Thus, conduct can qualify as civil harassment even if it does not meet the more demanding elements of a criminal threat.[4]
When It Becomes a Criminal Violation
The harassment itself is not automatically a criminal offense merely because it meets the civil-harassment definition. However, separate criminal liability may arise if the conduct independently violates a criminal statute. For example, California’s stalking statute criminalizes repeatedly following or harassing another person while making a credible threat intended to place that person in reasonable fear for the person’s safety or the safety of the person’s immediate family.[2]
In addition, intentional and knowing violation of a restraining order issued under section 527.6 is a misdemeanor:
“Any intentional and knowing violation of a protective order ... or of an order issued pursuant to Section 527.6 ... of the Code of Civil Procedure ... is a misdemeanor.”[5]
Section 527.6 also provides that willful disobedience of a temporary restraining order or order after hearing is punishable under Penal Code section 273.6.[3]
Bottom Line
Civil harassment is a violation of California law in the sense that it is legally actionable and can support a civil restraining order. It is not, by that label alone, necessarily a crime. The conduct may be criminal if it independently constitutes stalking, criminal threats, assault, battery, or another offense, and violating an issued civil-harassment restraining order is itself a misdemeanor.