Keke Palmer Has Temporary Sole Custody of Infant Son Leo: What Happens Next? Legal Experts Explain

An L.A. court granted Palmer a restraining order against Darius Jackson and her request for temporary sole custody of their son until a Dec. 5 hearing

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Keke Palmer and Darius Jackson

Following a judge’s decision to grant Keke Palmer a temporary restraining order against Darius Jackson, along with temporary sole custody of their 8-month-old son Leo, Jackson is currently barred from coming within 100 yards of them both.

The temporary restraining order also states that Jackson is not allowed to have visitation with his son, with a hearing set for Dec. 5 to determine further action on the temporary arrangement.

What happens next? PEOPLE spoke with California-based family law attorney David Glass and New York-based attorney Marilyn Chinitz, a matrimonial partner at the Blank Rome LLP, who are not connected to the case.

In a declaration submitted with Palmer’s request for a TRO, the Nope star alleged multiple instances of physical violence, and the filing included screenshots of what appeared to be security footage of a male striking a female over a sofa.  Palmer also alleged that Jackson abused her multiple times over a two-year period.

Related: Keke Palmer Gave Darius Jackson ‘a Lot of Chances’ Before Restraining Order Filing: Source (Exclusive)

Keke Palmer/Instagram

Keke Palmer and her baby Leo

Domestic violence restraining orders, which typically last three to three-and-a-half weeks, are “almost always granted, almost regardless of what the allegations are, as long as there’s some sort of allegation of abuse,” says Glass. “And the court will typically grant sole legal and physical custody to the parent making the allegations.”

While Jackson’s lawyer could try to fight the visitation prohibition before the early December court date, it would most likely fail in Los Angeles County, adds Glass.

“I’ve never seen it work,” he says. “You’ve got to wait your three-and-a-half weeks until you get to court and get to tell your side of the story.”

Moreover, the Los Angeles County court system “really frowns upon” such emergency actions, he says, “especially if the court has already made a decision, even though it was one-sided, it was only based on Keke’s allegations. The judges are strongly encouraged not to go back and start changing things until that first hearing.”

Related: Inside Keke Palmer and Darius Jackson’s Struggles: ‘Las Vegas Was Beginning of the End,’ Says Source (Exclusive)

What will happen at the Dec. 5 hearing? Jackson will be able testify to his side of the story and may bring in close family or friends who have witnessed him as a father.

Chinitz predicts one common scenario: “His lawyer’s going to come in and say, ‘Look, he had an altercation with her, but he’s a good father. He needs to see his child and he’ll agree to supervised visitation.'”

But before any sort of visitation is granted, says Glass, “the court has to decide, did the abuse happen or didn’t it happen? And then as a secondary question, the court has to decide, was the child ever around to view this abuse? If all of those answers are no, then the court will put in a regular sort of custody schedule for the child. If one or two of those questions are yes, you’re probably looking at starting with supervised visitation and eventually, with good behavior, building up to something more standard.”

In a custody trial, Palmer’s mother Sharon — who spoke out on Instagram last week — may also end up testifying on her daughter’s behalf, says Glass. But that will require firsthand knowledge of any alleged abuse. “If you’re going to be a witness at any kind of hearing, in most states, you have to have physically witnessed it,” he says.

Ultimately, the court will determine how the estranged couple will handle legal custody (who makes the decisions for Leo) and physical custody (where the child lives). In the scenario of Palmer being named the sole physical custodial parent, that “means the child lives with her full time. But that doesn’t mean that he doesn’t get to see the child,” says Chinitz.

A source previously told PEOPLE that Palmer “did not want it to get to this point” of making their issues public, “but she did what she had to do.”

Reps for Palmer have not commented and a manager for Jackson had “no comment” when reached by PEOPLE.

Jackson appeared to address the situation in a post on X (formerly known as Twitter) last Thursday. Sharing a photo that showed him holding his son, he wrote: “I love you, son. See you soon.”

As for whether the publicity surrounding the ongoing legal proceedings could affect the case, Glass says likely not.

“The judges I’ve been in front of with a celebrity or known clients tend to not read any of that gossip,” he says. “They focus just on what’s in the pleadings themselves.”

If you are experiencing domestic violence, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233, or go to thehotline.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.

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