The statute protects not only present spouses but also former spouses.
Additionally, the Act embraces acts “by a person of the opposite sex with whom the aggrieved party lives or has lived as if married”, persons “related as parents and children, including others acting in loco parentis to a minor child, or as grandparents and grandchildren”, persons who “have a child in common”, persona who “are current or former household members”, and “persons of the opposite sex who are in a dating relationship or have been in a dating relationship”. A current marriage is, therefore, not a prerequisite to bringing an action under the domestic violence statute.
For purposes of this statute, a dating relationship is one wherein the parties are romantically involved over time and on a continuous basis during the course of the relationship. A casual acquaintance or ordinary fraternization between persons in a business or social context is not a dating relationship.
