Can you Get a Restraining Order for Harassment in Iowa Based on Job Threats and Past Conduct?

User Question:

Can you get a restraining order for harassment in Iowa based on Job Threats and Past Conduct? I have someone who got me terminated from a job in 2014 and is now threatening to do the same in 2025, based on information from my past (2006). Do I have the right to file a restraining order for harassment? 

Question 

Can you obtain an order of protection in Iowa for harassment when someone threatens your job based on old information—from a 2006 incident—and previously succeeded in getting you terminated in 2014? 

Overview 

When non-criminal threats target your livelihood—like warnings to sabotage your career—many wonder if Iowa’s civil protection tools will apply. Under Iowa law, orders of protection for harassment arise from Chapter 708.7. Understanding how that statute defines harassment—and how courts treat threats delivered by phone, email, or other means—reveals whether threats to your employment qualify for relief. 

Iowa Code § 708.7: Harassment Defined 

Iowa Code § 708.7(a) lists specific actions that constitute harassment when done “with intent to intimidate, annoy, or alarm another person”: 

• Communicating via telephone, telegraph, writing, or electronic means without a legitimate purpose in a manner likely to cause annoyance or harm. 
• Placing a simulated explosive or incendiary device in or near premises occupied by another person. 
• Ordering merchandise or services in another’s name or arranging delivery without their knowledge or consent. 
• Reporting or causing false criminal allegations to be made to law enforcement, knowing the information is untrue. 
• Disseminating images or recordings of another in full or partial nudity or engaged in sex acts without their consent. 

In addition, § 708.7(b) deems “personal contact” without a legitimate purpose to threaten, intimidate, or alarm as harassment, although newer revisions no longer limit harassment solely to face-to-face encounters. 

From Physical Proximity to Any Communication 

An earlier version of § 708.7 required that harassment involve “personal contact” in visual or physical proximity. Under that framework, threats conveyed remotely—like emails suggesting you’ll be fired—fell outside the statute unless delivered in person. 

In 2013, the legislature removed the strict proximity requirement, making remote communications (phone calls, emails, texts) squarely actionable so long as they were intended to intimidate, annoy, or alarm. 

Do Job Threats Qualify? 

Threats to sabotage your employment meet the statute if they satisfy these elements: 

• Intent to intimidate, annoy, or alarm you. 
• Delivery via phone, writing, or electronic means without a legitimate purpose. 
• Conduct likely to cause harm or substantial annoyance. 

A former coworker who warns you they’ll repeat the tactics that got you fired in 2014 is communicating with the intent to alarm you about your livelihood. That falls under the “electronic communication” prong of § 708.7(a)(1) and thus qualifies as harassment. 

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How to File an Order of Protection for Harassment 

Prepare Your Evidence 

• Collect all threatening communications (texts, emails, voicemails). 
• Note dates, times, and context of each threat. 
• Gather any witnesses who can confirm a pattern of harassment. 

Initiate the Petition 

• File in your local district court. 
• Complete an affidavit describing the threatening conduct and its impact. 
• Request an ex parte temporary order if you fear immediate harm. 

Serve the Respondent 

• Court staff or law enforcement delivers the order to the harasser. 
• They must receive notice before any full hearing. 

Attend the Full Hearing 

• Present your documented threats and witness testimony. 
• The respondent can offer defenses (e.g., legitimate purpose, free speech). 

Obtain the Final Order 

• If the court finds harassment by clear and convincing evidence, it issues a whole order of protection. 
• Violations of the order can lead to criminal penalties. 

Summary 

• Iowa Code § 708.7 explicitly covers remote threats to your job as harassment. 
• You do not need evidence of in-person contact—electronic communications suffice. 
• Gather clear documentation of each threat and follow the district court’s procedure for orders of protection. 

If you’re facing renewed threats to your employment based on past conduct, you have a statutory pathway to seek an order of protection under Iowa law. 

Conclusion 

Even after obtaining an order, keep a detailed log of any further harassment and notify law enforcement immediately if the order is breached. If you encounter resistance at the courthouse or your local clerk’s office, consider contacting O’Flaherty Law, P.C., to consult an attorney experienced in Iowa’s protective-order process for tailored support and advocacy. 

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Designed for general information use only. The content above does not constitute legal advice or the formation of an attorney/client relationship.