Short answer. The Regional Trial Court designated as a Family Court has original and exclusive jurisdiction over VAWC cases. Where there is no such court in the place the offence was committed, Section 7 allows the case to be filed in the Regional Trial Court where the crime, or any of its elements, occurred, at the complainant's option.
What the law says
The Regional Trial Court designated as a Family Court shall have original and exclusive jurisdiction over cases of violence against women and their children under this law
RA 9262, Section 7 — Venue And Jurisdiction. Read the full provision →
The Family Court has jurisdiction
The section provides that the Regional Trial Court designated as a Family Court shall have original and exclusive jurisdiction over cases of violence against women and their children under this law. Two words carry the weight. Original means these cases begin in that court rather than reaching it on appeal. Exclusive means no other court shares the power to hear them where a Family Court exists. So the default forum for a VAWC case is the designated Family Court, and a case brought elsewhere is in the wrong court unless the fallback below applies.
The fallback where there is no Family Court
Section 7 anticipates that not every locality has a designated Family Court. In its absence in the place where the offence was committed, the case may be filed in the Regional Trial Court where the crime, or any of its elements, was committed, at the option of the complainant. Because acts of violence under the law can unfold across more than one place, the any of its elements language matters: it gives the complainant, not the accused, the choice of which competent court to file in when the conduct spanned several locations.
Why the choice matters
Giving the complainant the option, rather than fixing a single rigid venue, is meant to make the courts more accessible to the person seeking protection. Where the elements of the offence occurred in different places — for instance where economic or psychological abuse played out across locations over time — the complainant may choose among the courts that have a proper connection to the case. This flexibility is a deliberate feature of the law's protective purpose, easing rather than complicating the path to filing.
What this means, and next steps
Filing in the right court matters, because a case brought in a court without jurisdiction can be delayed or dismissed on that ground alone, costing time a complainant may not have. The first questions are whether a Family Court has been designated for the relevant place and, if not, where the elements of the offence occurred. These are matters to confirm with counsel or with the court before filing, so that the complaint starts in a court that actually has the power to hear it and can move without a jurisdictional detour.