Manchester 0161 832 2500 | London City 0204 505 8080 | London Finchley 020 8349 0321
Secure Payment
When to Call Injunction Solicitors for Effective Dispute Resolution • BBS Law
The reference to an “injunction” can be something of a misnomer.
Taken at its true meaning, an injunction is simply an order made by a court requiring or refraining someone from taking certain specified steps. An injunction order is a serious matter, the breach of which is punishable by contempt of court which could potentially lead to committal to prison.
“Permanent” injunctions can be granted by the court to provide a long-term relief to an aggrieved Claimant, for example, to prevent the continued trespass on land.
However, when talking in general terms about an injunction, we are typically thinking about circumstances where a court grants an emergency injunction (known as the grant of interim relief).
There are a number of different scenarios where a court may be prepared on an emergency basis to order someone to do something – or stop them doing something – at the outset of a dispute, for a short period of time until the dispute can be resolved by the court.
A typical example of this scenario is an application for interim relief to prevent an ex-employee taking steps to compete with his former employer in breach of the terms of his former employment contract.
The employee/Defendant may be arguing (for a multitude of reasons) that he is not bound by the terms of the contract and that he is therefore free to compete without restriction. However, in certain circumstances the court may be prepared to prevent the ex-employee from taking any steps to compete in the short term in order to protect the Claimant’s business – essentially to keep the status quo in place – until the court is in a position to decide the “rights and wrongs” of the case.
That however is just one example of where a court may be prepared to grant emergency interim relief. Other examples include freezing injunctions (which restrict dealing with assets), search orders (permitting a search of a Defendant’s property for the purposes of preserving evidence), privacy injunctions (preventing for example the publication of information), orders for delivery up of property, and orders for other property related issues (for example restraining trespass or preventing a party from transferring a property to another).
Again the purpose of these orders is to provide a short term protection to the Claimant by holding the current position in place until the court can decide matters.
A party considering that it may need to apply to the court for interim relief should consider carefully whether there are grounds to do so and the likelihood of the court granting the order, which will obviously depend on the particular circumstances of the case.
The risk of proceeding where an order is unlikely to be granted is the wasted costs of pursuing the application and (if the opponent has been given notice of the application) the possibility of also having to pay their costs.
In general, in order to grant interim relief, the court has to be initially satisfied that there is “a serious question to be tried” i.e. establishing whether the Claimant has a good case. If so, the court must consider the “balance of convenience“, in other words whether the grant of the order is appropriate which will involve a number of factors not least whether the payment of damages would be an adequate remedy rather than the court granting an injunction.
As part of that deliberation, the court will consider the damage/injustice that would be served to the Claimant if no injunction was granted, including the consequences if the steps that the injunction is designed to protect are indeed taken, and what irreparable damage may be caused to the Claimant in those circumstances.
There are a couple of important issues to consider in terms of the proposed application.
Firstly, a Claimant considering such an application will usually be required to proceed with speed. The fact of any significant delay in pursing the application may persuade the court that the circumstances do not justify the grant of interim relief (on the basis that if there was a scenario that required protection, the Claimant would have acted more quickly).
Secondly and importantly, a Claimant applying for an injunction will be expected to provide to the court a “cross undertaking in damages“, which is essentially an undertaking to pay to the Defendant whatever the court may assess by way of compensation, if the court later finds that the injunction was wrongly granted.
Using the above employment scenario as an example, if the ex-employee persuades the court that his contract of employment was not valid or enforceable, but where the injunction had prevented him from competing (and potentially working) for a period of time, the Claimant/employer will be expected to compensate the ex-employee for any provable losses in accordance with the cross undertaking (that it would have been required to provide as a condition of the grant of the injunction).
This for example may amount to several months of lost earnings.
As will be appreciated this is a complicated area of law and it’s crucial that a party considering pursuing an application for emergency interim relief urgently seeks sensible and commercial legal advice.
The litigation department at BBS Law have a team of solicitors who have significant experience of dealing with these type of applications, regularly advising both Claimants looking to issue applications and Defendants who have either been served with an application or who have already been made subject to an order.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is an injunction and when might I need one?
An injunction is a court order directing someone to either act or refrain from certain actions. Injunction solicitors take immediate action to prevent harm or maintain the status quo during a legal dispute.
You may need an injunction to preserve assets, enforce non compete agreements, protect intellectual property, restraining harassment and to address urgent environmental concerns.
To obtain an injunction you must demonstrate the urgency and likelihood of success plus provide proof that alternative remedies have been ineffective. Seeking guidance from experienced injunction solicitors is crucial due to the complexities involved in each case.
How do I know if I should apply for an injunction?
Time is often of the essence in injunction cases, delays can weaken your case as the court may question why immediate action wasn’t taken if the situation was urgent.
At BBS Law our injunction solicitors advise you to act promptly to prevent irreparable harm or loss as obtaining a court order or freezing injunctions may require expedited action to preserve assets.
The urgency of the situation may necessitate rapid action to secure the necessary relief that you require.
What criteria does the court consider when granting an injunction?
When a court is considering granting an injunction it typically looks at whether there is a serious issue to be tried. The court also weighs the balance of convenience taking into consideration factors such as the harm you would suffer without the injunction versus the harm to the opposing party if the injunction is granted.
How quickly do I need to act if I believe I need an injunction?
Significant delays could weaken your case, as the court may question why immediate action wasn’t taken if the situation was urgent. So you should act as fast as possible and seek help from legal professionals to guide you.
How can BBS Law assist me in seeking or defending against an injunction?
At BBS Law our litigation department specialises in handling injunction cases, including various types of injunctions such as interim injunctions and freezing orders. If you are seeking to apply for an injunction or defending against one our experienced injunction solicitors can provide you with the guidance and representation you need for an effective resolution.
We understand the urgency of such matters so we act swiftly to protect your rights and assets in court to ensure that your interests are safeguarded throughout the legal process.
