Injunction 39343 225406304 2008-07-13T14:46:53Z 66.176.78.26 /* Basis of injunctions */ {{wiktionary}} An '''injunction''' is an [[equitable remedy]] in the form of a [[court order]], whereby a party is required to do, or to refrain from doing, certain acts. The party that fails to adhere to the injunction faces civil or criminal penalties and may have to pay damages or accept sanctions for failing to follow the court's order. In some cases, breaches of injunctions are considered serious criminal offenses that merit arrest and possible prison sentences. ==Basis of injunctions== At the core of injunctive relief is a recognition that monetary damages cannot solve all problems. An injunction may be permanent or it may be temporary. A [[preliminary injunction]], or an interlocutory injunction, is a [[provisional remedy]] granted to restrain activity on a temporary basis until the court can make a final decision after [[trial (law)|trial]]. It is usually necessary to prove the high likelihood of success upon the merits of one's case and a likelihood of irreparable harm in the absence of a preliminary injunction before such an injunction may be granted; otherwise the party may have to wait for trial to obtain a permanent injunction.. ==Temporary restraints== In the United States, a temporary restraining order (TRO) may be issued for short term. A temporary restraining order usually lasts while a motion for preliminary injunction is being decided, and the court decides whether to [[drop]] the order or to [[issue]] a preliminary injunction. A temporary restraining order may be granted ''[[ex parte]]'', that is, without informing in advance the party to whom the temporary restraining order is directed. Usually, a party moves ex parte to prevent an adversary from having notice of one's intentions. The order is granted to prevent the adversary from acting to frustrate the purpose of the action, for example, by wasting or hiding [[asset]]s (as often occurs in [[dissolution of marriage]]) or disclosing a [[trade secret]] that had been the subject of a [[non-disclosure agreement]]. ==Apprehended Violence Order== Sometimes, a court grants an '''apprehended violence order''' (AVO) to a person who fears [[violence]] or harassment from their harasser. A court can issue an apprehended violence order if it believes, on the balance of probabilities, that a person has reasonable grounds to fear personal violence, harassing conduct, [[molestation]], intimidation, or [[stalking]]. If a [[defendant]] knowingly contravenes a prohibition or restriction specified in the order, he or she can be subject to a fine, imprisonment, or both. ==Rationale behind injunctions== This injunctive power to restore the ''[[status quo ante]]''; that is, to make whole again someone whose rights have been violated, is essential to the concept of fairness (equity). For example, money damages would be of scant benefit to a land owner who wished simply to prevent someone from repeatedly [[trespass]]ing on his land. ==Injunctions in U.S. labor law context== After the [[United States government]] successfully used an injunction to outlaw the [[Pullman Strike|Pullman]] boycott in [[1894]] in the case of ''[[In re Debs]]'', employers found that they could obtain [[United States federal courts|federal court]] injunctions to ban strikes and organizing activities of all kinds by [[trade union|union]]s. These injunctions were often extremely broad; one injunction issued by a federal court in the 1920s effectively barred the [[United Mine Workers of America]] from talking to workers who had signed [[Yellow Dog contract|yellow dog]] [[contract]]s with their employers. Unable to limit what they called "government by injunction" in the courts, labor and its allies persuaded the [[Congress of the United States|U.S. Congress]] in 1932 to pass the [[Norris-LaGuardia Act]], which imposed so many procedural and substantive limits on the federal courts' power to issue injunctions as to effectively prohibit all federal court injunctions in cases arising out of labor disputes. A number of states followed suit and enacted "Little Norris-LaGuardia Acts" that imposed similar limitations on state courts' powers. The courts have since recognized a limited exception to the Norris-LaGuardia Act's strict limitations in those cases in which a party seeks injunctive relief to enforce the [[grievance]] [[arbitration]] provisions of a [[collective bargaining]] [[agreement]]. ==Common reasons for restraining orders== *[[stalking]] *[[domestic violence]] *[[harassment]] *[[bullying]] (in some cases) *[[Physical abuse|physical]] or [[sexual abuse]] *the wrongful transfer of [[real property]], also called [[fraudulent conveyance]] *the disclosure of sensitive information in line with the [[Official Secrets Act 1989]] (UK only) *[[trademark infringement]] *[[copyright infringement]] *[[patent infringement]] *[[trade secrets|trade secret]] disclosure *[[tortious]] interference of [[contract]] *[[criminal contempt]] *civil [[contempt]] ==See also== *[[Anti-social behaviour order]] (UK) *[[Anti-suit injunction]] *[[Anti-Injunction Act]] *[[Burden of proof]] *[[Civil litigation]] *[[Interim order]] *[[Cross-border injunction]] *[[Equity (law)]] *[[Equity court]] *[[Gang injunction]] *[[Lawburrows]] (Scotland) *[[Lawsuit]] *[[Mareva injunction]] *[[Peace bond]] *[[Protection From Abuse]] *[[Standing (law)|Standing]] ==References== *[http://barkingdogs.net/ducequity.shtml On the Difference Between Lawsuit, a Restraining Order, and an Injunction] *[http://www.slate.com/id/2182672/ How to file a restraining order against your crazy ex-boyfriend] [[Category:Equity]] [[Category:Judicial remedies]] [[Category:Legal terms]] [[de:Verfügung]] [[es:Acción jurisdiccional]] [[he:צו מניעה]] [[zh:禁制令]]