18. (1) A relevant order shall take effect on notification of the making of the relevant order concerned being given to the respondent.

(2) Oral communication to the respondent by or on behalf of the applicant of the fact that a relevant order has been made, together with production of a copy of the relevant order, shall, without prejudice to the sufficiency of any other form of notification, be taken to be sufficient notification to the respondent of the making of the order.

(3) If the respondent is present at a sitting of the court at which the relevant order is made, that respondent shall be taken for the purposes of subsection (1) to have been notified of its making.

(4) A court may direct that a relevant order be served personally by a member of the Garda Síochána on a respondent who is not present at a sitting of the court at which the order is made in any case where—

(a) there are reasonable grounds for believing that the respondent may evade service of the order, or

(b) there is any other good and sufficient reason to so direct.

(5) In this section, “relevant order” means—

(a) a safety order, barring order, interim barring order, emergency barring order or protection order, or

(b) an order varying an order referred to in paragraph (a).