Judge: Jon R. Takasugi, Case: 23STCV25336, Date: 2025-05-22 Tentative Ruling

Case Number: 23STCV25336    Hearing Date: May 22, 2025    Dept: 17

Superior Court of California

County of Los Angeles

DEPARTMENT 17

TENATIVE RULING

Plaintiff’s request for a preliminary injunction is DENIED, WITHOUT PREJUDICE.            

            On 10/17/2023, Plaintiff Ace Diversion, Inc. (Plaintiff) filed suit against 1530 Date Street, LLC (Defendant) alleging: (1) specific performance; and (2) breach of contract.

            On 5/6/2025, the Court granted Plaintiff’s ex parte application for a temporary restraining order (TRO) and set an OSC: re preliminary injunction.

            Now, the Court takes up Plaintiff’s request for a preliminary injunction.

Discussion

            Plaintiff seeks an injunction enjoining Defendant “from interfering with the use of or damaging a scale located at the property.” (Ex Parte App., 1: 24-25.)

            Under Code of Civil Procedure (CCP) sections 525 and 526, a preliminary injunction is appropriate only when (1) the plaintiff demonstrates a reasonable likelihood of success on the merits and (2) the balance of hardships tips decidedly in its favor. (Whyte v. Schlage Lock Co. (2002) 101 Cal.App.4th 1443, 1449.)

A preliminary injunction is not a stand-alone proceeding but rather a remedy intended to preserve the status quo and prevent irreparable harm in connection with the claims at issue in the underlying complaint. (See CCP § 526, subd. (a)(1), (a)(2).)

Here, as noted by Defendant in opposition, Plaintiff’s underlying Complaint concerns a contested option-to-purchase clause in a lease agreement, and makes no mention of the scale located on Defendant’s property. Indeed, the word “scale” does not appear anywhere in Plaintiff’s Complaint.

As such, the Court finds that it lacks a legal and factual foundation to issue injunctive relief related to the scale. If Plaintiff believes it has valid legal rights concerning the scale, the appropriate action would be to amend the complaint to allege the necessary facts and relevant causes of action, thereby affording Defendant the opportunity to respond and defend against those allegations.

Based on the foregoing, Plaintiff’s request for a preliminary injunction is denied, without prejudice.

It is so ordered.

Dated:  May    , 2025

   Hon. Jon R. Takasugi
   Judge of the Superior Court

Parties who intend to submit on this tentative must send an email to the court at smcdept17@lacourt.org by 4 p.m. the day prior as directed by the instructions provided on the court website at www.lacourt.org.  If a party submits on the tentative, the party’s email must include the case number and must identify the party submitting on the tentative.  If all parties to a motion submit, the court will adopt this tentative as the final order.  If the department does not receive an email indicating the parties are submitting on the tentative and there are no appearances at the hearing, the motion may be placed off calendar.  For more information, please contact the court clerk at (213) 633-0517.