The court shall examine the application, supporting affidavit, and other papers on record and shall issue a temporary protective order, which shall state the amount sought to be secured by the attachment under the application for the right to attach order, upon the filing of an undertaking as provided by Sections 489.210 and 489.220, if it finds all of the following:
§ 486.020.Findings Required For Issuance
Title 6.5. Attachment · Chapter 6. Temporary Protective Order · Last amended 1983 · Last verified July 28, 2026
In one sentenceSection 486.020 requires the court to make four findings before issuing a temporary protective order: that the claim supports attachment, that the plaintiff has shown probable validity, that the order is not sought for an improper purpose, and that irreparable injury would follow without it.
Full Text of § 486.020
(a) The claim upon which the application for attachment is based is one upon which an attachment may be issued.
(b) The plaintiff has established the probable validity of the claim upon which the application for the attachment is based.
(c) The order is not sought for a purpose other than the recovery upon the claim upon which the application for the attachment is based.
Plain-English Summary
Before a temporary protective order can issue, the court has to look at the application, the supporting affidavit, and anything else already on file in the case. Section 486.020 lists four findings the court must make, all of them, not just one: the underlying claim is the kind attachment may reach, the plaintiff has established the probable validity of that claim, the plaintiff is not seeking the order for some purpose apart from recovering on the claim, and the plaintiff would suffer great or irreparable injury (again measured under § 485.010) without the order.
Even after those findings are made, the order does not issue for free. The plaintiff still has to file an undertaking under §§ 489.210 and 489.220 — the security that protects the defendant if the attachment later turns out to have been wrongful. Once that undertaking is filed, the order issues stating the dollar amount the underlying application seeks to secure.
Frequently Asked Questions
What must a California court find before issuing a temporary protective order?
That the claim supports attachment, that the plaintiff has shown its probable validity, that the order is not sought for any purpose beyond recovering on that claim, and that the plaintiff would suffer great or irreparable injury without it.
Does the plaintiff have to post a bond before the order issues?
Yes. Section 486.020 conditions issuance on the plaintiff first filing an undertaking as provided by §§ 489.210 and 489.220.
What does the order itself say?
It states the amount sought to be secured by the attachment under the underlying application for a right to attach order.
Amendment History
Amended by Stats. 1982, Ch. 1198, Sec. 42.5. Operative July 1, 1983, by Sec. 70 of Ch. 1198.
Source & verification. Section text is reproduced verbatim from
the Deering's California Codes Annotated / vLex. Enacted by the California Legislature.
Last verified July 28, 2026.
· Official source
Also known as: findings required temporary protective order californiaundertaking bond temporary protective order attachment