No-contact orders are generally designed to put some space between two parties. Generally speaking, no-contact orders are designed to keep Person A from having any physical encounters with Person B once Person B has expressed that they are concerned about their safety or the safety of their children. The no-contact order is the court’s way of saying that there will be ramifications if Person A goes near Person B.
But no-contact orders also extend way beyond just in-person encounters. They also apply to things that happen on the phone or on the internet — two areas that used to be distinctly separate but which are now virtually the same since people use smartphones that can also go online.
For instance, perhaps your no-contact order says that you cannot contact the other party by phone or text. This shouldn’t be taken so literally as to assume that other types of communication are all right. Sending a direct message on Facebook or Instagram is little different than sending a text. On a modern smartphone, the only difference is which app the person has to open to read the message.
Contact via social media or messaging apps still counts as a contact. If bound by such an order, you cannot post on that person’s social media sites and then claim that you followed the no-contact order because you never saw them in person. They can still claim that this is harassment and it breaks the no-contact order.
If you’re facing a no-contact order, it’s important to know exactly how it works and what rights you have. You also need to know what you can do to defend yourself against unfair accusations.