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Cooperative Insurance – enforcing c lause 4(19) & burden on the court

Cooperative Insurance – enforcing c lause 4(19) & burden on the court.

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Cooperative Insurance – enforcing c lause 4(19) & burden on the court

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  1. Cooperative Insurance – enforcing clause 4(19) & burden on the court • D breached lease by closing grocery store, which was anchor store in P’s mall, well before D’s lease was over. P seeks to specifically enforce provision of lease against D that requires D to “keep the premises open for retail trade” • What is so burdensome on the court about ordering D to keep the premises open for retail trade? • What is likely to happen if the parties can’t agree as to the meaning of the term or on how to interpret the court’s order? Why is that a problem?

  2. Willing v. Mazzocone – still more reasons for denying injunctions • D demonstrated outside of P’s offices falsely accusing them of diverting money she paid them from testifying witness to themselves. • How is D’s insolvency relevant to the Pa. SCT’s decision in Willing? • Note – Willing is a minority approach. • Other situations where bankruptcy arises as a factor in the decision to issue an injunction: • D cut and took P’s trees. P seeks an injunction requiring D to plant replacement trees. But D is bankrupt so injunction would require spending $ on seeds, planting, etc. that D should be giving to other creditors. Will P get the injunction? • How is that situation different from Willing?

  3. Irreparable injury & multiplicity of suits • What is the nature of D’s action in Willing? • How often are Ps going to have to go to court? • How big are the actual damages from each libel? • Are damages an adequate remedy?

  4. Irreparable injury & multiplicity of suits -- two important points • Damages are inadequate precisely because they are small. • Kinds of cases where this issue most often arises: • Nuisance and minor trespasses

  5. Willing: More reasons to deny injunctions - equity policy & injunctions against libel Maxim: Equity will not enjoin a libel. Why? 1. How we originally viewed “property” 2. Libel is a fact-based inquiry

  6. Injunctions against libel/speech – 1st amendment policy reasons to deny injunctions • SCT has strong presumption against injunctions barring speech. • This is true even if the speech is subject to subsequent criminal punishment or civil lawsuits. • Rationales supporting presumption against injunctions restricting speech (aka prior restraints) • Injunctions chill more speech than subsequent punishment/civil lawsuits. • Injunctions prohibiting speech tend to be ex ante determinations of harm.

  7. So how does court treat different kinds of injunctions against speech? • Injunctions barring speech from occurring (e.g., suppressing it) are disfavored prior restraints • Unless they involve certain “low value speech” – e.g., obscenity, commercial speech • Maybe libel, invasion of privacy if VERY narrowly drafted • Even here courts won’t issue injunctions until after a FULL TRIAL on the merits – preliminary relief almost never allowed. • Injunctions regulating only the time, place, and manner of speech and which don’t regulate the content of speech are generally okay • E.g., prophylactic injunctions against abortion protestors in Chapter 4

  8. Specific performance of personal services contracts – another policy reason to deny an injunction • What is a personal services contract? • A legal agreement between two parties based on the individual and unique efforts of one party – i.e., special or unique talents of a particular party Examples: singer, actor, writer, artist (e.g., painter, woodcarver, TV personality) • Courts are reluctant to specifically perform contracts for personal services: • Impractical – difficult to compel services if person doesn’t want to give them • Involuntary servitude – the threat of criminal sanctions (contempt) for breach of a personal services contract renders agreement to work less voluntary • Courts will sometimes negatively enforce such contracts • If the contract period is still running – court will not allow the breaching party to work for anyone else (i.e., negative enforcement) • If the contract period is no longer running – courts are unwilling to negatively enforce unless there are exigent circumstances or if there is an express covenant not to compete after the K period

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