Rule 92.02.Temporary Restraining Order -- Notice -- Preliminary Injunction -- Bond -- Form and Scope.
Part III · Rule 92: Injunctions · Last amended July 1, 2010 · Last verified July 22, 2026
In one sentenceRule 92.02 sets Missouri's standard for temporary restraining orders, with and without notice, and for preliminary injunctions, requiring proof of immediate irreparable harm, adequate notice or a reason to skip it, strict time limits, and a bond before such an order takes effect.
(1)When Issued. The court shall not grant a temporary restraining order unless the party seeking relief demonstrates that immediate and irreparable injury, loss, or damage will result in the absence of relief.
(2)Proof Required. A party seeking a temporary restraining order shall support that request with a verified petition or affidavit reciting the specific facts that support the showing required by Rule 92.02(a)(1).
(3)Required Notice. Except as provided in Rule 92.02(b), no temporary restraining order shall issue without reasonable notice at least twenty-four hours before the hearing on the motion to the party against whom relief is sought.
(4)Form. A temporary restraining order shall be endorsed with the date and hour of issuance, shall be filed forthwith in the clerk’s office and entered of record, and shall set forth specific facts that support the showing required by Rule 92.02(a)(1).
(5)Duration. A temporary restraining order shall expire within such time after entry, not to exceed fifteen days, as the court fixes. The court may extend the order for additional periods, not to exceed fifteen days each, if the party seeking relief shows that the grounds specified in Rule 92.02(a)(1) continue to exist.
(1)When Issued. A party seeking a temporary restraining order without notice shall make the showing required under Rule 92.02(a). The court shall not grant a temporary restraining order without prior notice to the party against whom relief is sought unless the party seeking relief establishes that notice cannot be given or notice would defeat the purpose of the order.
(2)Proof Required. A party seeking a temporary restraining order without notice shall file a verified petition or affidavit reciting the specific facts that support the showing required by Rule 92.02(b)(1).
(3)Form. A temporary restraining order granted without notice shall be endorsed with the date and hour of issuance, shall be filed forthwith in the clerk’s office and entered of record, and shall set forth specific facts that support the showing required by Rule 92.02(b)(1). A temporary restraining order failing to set forth such specific facts is void ab initio.
(4)Duration. A temporary restraining order granted without notice shall expire within such time after entry, not to exceed ten days, as the court fixes. The court may extend the order for additional periods, not to exceed ten days each, after notice to the party against whom relief is sought. The court may dispense with such notice only if the party seeking relief establishes that notice cannot be given to the party against whom relief is sought or notice would defeat the purpose of the order.
(5)When Set Aside. On one day’s notice to the party who obtained the temporary restraining order without notice, or on such shorter notice as the court may prescribe, the adverse party may appear and move to dissolve or modify the order. At the hearing, the burden shall be upon the party seeking the temporary restraining order to establish a right to relief.
(6)Sanction for Failure to Provide Required Notice. If the court finds that a party obtaining a temporary restraining order without notice did not have a reasonable basis to proceed without notice, the party shall be presumed to have acted in bad faith and to have violated Rule 55.03(c). The thirty-day provisions of Rule 55.03(d)(1)(A) shall not apply to proceedings under this Rule 92.02(b)(6).
(1)Notice. A preliminary injunction shall not issue unless the party against whom relief is sought is given prior notice and an opportunity to be heard.
(2)Time. If a temporary restraining order is in effect for more than thirty days without a hearing on an application for a preliminary injunction, the court shall schedule a hearing at the earliest possible date. The hearing shall take precedence over all other matters except older matters of the same character. The hearing on the application for a preliminary injunction may be delayed past these limits if all parties consent.
(3)Consolidation With Hearing on the Merits. At any time the court may order the trial of the action on the merits to be advanced and consolidated with the hearing of the application for a preliminary injunction. Any evidence received upon an application for a preliminary injunction admissible at the trial on the merits becomes part of the trial record and need not be repeated at the trial. This Rule 92.02(c)(3) shall be so construed and applied to preserve any party’s right to trial by jury.
(d)Bond. No injunction or temporary restraining order, unless on final hearing or judgment, shall issue in any case, except in suits instituted by the state in its own behalf, until the plaintiff, or some responsible person for the plaintiff, shall have executed a bond with sufficient surety or sureties to the other party, in such sum as the court shall deem sufficient to secure the amount or other matter to be enjoined, and all damages that may be occasioned by such injunction or temporary restraining order to the parties enjoined, or to any party interested in the subject matter of the controversy, conditioned that the plaintiff will abide by the decision that shall be made thereon and pay all sums of money, damages and costs that shall be adjudged if the injunction or temporary restraining order shall be dissolved. In lieu of the bond the plaintiff may deposit with the court such sum, in cash, as the court may require sufficient to secure such amount.
(e)Form and Scope of Injunction or Temporary Restraining Order. Every order granting an injunction and every restraining order shall set forth the reasons for its issuance; shall be specific in terms; shall describe in reasonable detail, and not by reference to the petition or other document, the act or acts sought to be restrained; and is binding only upon the parties to the action, their officers, agents, servants, employees, and attorneys, and upon those persons in active concert or participation with them who receive actual notice of the order by personal service or otherwise.
Paragraph (a) is the same as Fed.R.Civ.P. 65(a). Paragraph (b) is the same as Fed.R.Civ.P. 65(b). Compare: Prior Rules 92.02, 92.16 and 92.19. Paragraph (c) is the same as prior Rule 92.09 except that “temporary” has been added before “restraining order.” Paragraph (d) is the same as Fed.R.Civ.P. 65(d).
Plain-English Summary
Rule 92.02 is the workhorse rule behind Missouri's version of emergency injunctive relief. It covers three related but distinct tools: a temporary restraining order granted after notice to the other side, a temporary restraining order granted without notice, and a preliminary injunction that follows a full hearing. Each has its own showing, its own paperwork, and its own clock.
For a temporary restraining order with notice, the party seeking relief must show, through a verified petition or affidavit reciting specific facts, that immediate and irreparable injury, loss, or damage will occur without it. Except in the without-notice situation, the opposing party must get reasonable notice at least twenty-four hours before the hearing. Once granted, the order must be dated and timed, filed and entered of record right away, and it expires within fifteen days unless the court extends it in additional fifteen-day increments upon a continued showing of the same grounds.
A temporary restraining order without notice is harder to get and shorter-lived. The moving party must establish that notice cannot be given or would defeat the order's purpose, and the order is void from the start if it does not spell out the specific facts supporting that showing. It expires within ten days, extendable in additional ten-day blocks, generally only after notice to the other side. The adverse party can move to dissolve or modify it on one day's notice, or on shorter notice if the court allows it, and if the court later finds no reasonable basis existed for skipping notice, the rule presumes bad faith and a violation of Rule 55.03(c). A preliminary injunction, by contrast, always requires prior notice and a chance to be heard, and if a temporary restraining order has run more than thirty days without a preliminary injunction hearing, the court must schedule one promptly; the court may also fold that hearing into the trial on the merits while preserving any right to a jury.
None of this relief comes free. Except in suits the state itself brings, the party obtaining an injunction or temporary restraining order must post a bond, or an equivalent cash deposit, sufficient to secure the amount at stake and any damages the other side suffers if the order is later dissolved. Whatever order ultimately issues has to explain its own reasons, describe the restrained conduct in specific detail instead of by reference to the petition, and it binds only the parties, their agents and attorneys, and others who act in concert with them after receiving actual notice.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between a temporary restraining order and a preliminary injunction under Rule 92.02?
A temporary restraining order is emergency, short-term relief meant to hold things in place, and can sometimes be granted without notice to the other side. A preliminary injunction always requires notice and an opportunity to be heard, and typically follows a fuller hearing while the case moves toward trial.
How long can a temporary restraining order last in Missouri?
A temporary restraining order granted with notice can last up to fifteen days, extendable in additional fifteen-day periods. One granted without notice is shorter, capped at ten days, with extensions generally requiring notice to the other side.
Can a Missouri court issue a temporary restraining order without telling the other side first?
Yes, but only if the party seeking the order shows that notice cannot be given or would defeat the order's purpose, and files a verified petition or affidavit with specific supporting facts.
What happens if a court later decides notice should have been given?
If the court finds no reasonable basis existed for proceeding without notice, Rule 92.02 presumes the party acted in bad faith and violated Rule 55.03(c), with certain grace-period protections under Rule 55.03(d)(1)(A) unavailable in that situation.
Does the person seeking a temporary restraining order or injunction have to post a bond?
In most cases, yes. Rule 92.02(d) requires a bond, or an equivalent cash deposit, sufficient to cover the enjoined amount and any damages if the order is later dissolved, except in suits brought by the state itself.
What happens once a temporary restraining order has been in effect for thirty days?
If no hearing on a preliminary injunction has taken place by then, the court must schedule one at the earliest possible date, and that hearing takes precedence over most other matters on the docket.
Can evidence from a preliminary injunction hearing be used later at trial?
Yes. Rule 92.02(c)(3) allows the court to consolidate the preliminary injunction hearing with the trial on the merits, and evidence admissible at trial that was received at the hearing becomes part of the trial record without needing to be repeated.
Source & verification. Rule text and amendment history are
reproduced verbatim from the Missouri State & Federal Court Rules, adopted by the
Supreme Court of Missouri. Last verified July 22, 2026. ·
Official source
Also known as:TROtemporary restraining orderpreliminary injunctionMissouri TRO requirementsinjunction bondrestraining order without noticeemergency injunction Missouri