Judge Marcella O. Mclaughlin, Case 37-2023-00039635-CL-BC-CTL 2023-11-17 Tentative Ruling

Judge: Marcella O. Mclaughlin, Case: 37-2023-00039635-CL-BC-CTL, Date: 2023-11-17 Tentative Ruling

SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA,

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HALL OF JUSTICE

TENTATIVE RULINGS - November 16, 2023

11/17/2023 01:30:00 PM C-72 COUNTY OF SAN DIEGO

JUDICIAL OFFICER:Marcella O McLaughlin

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Civil - Limited Breach of Contract/Warranty OSC - Non-Sanction 37-2023-00039635-CL-BC-CTL CAFE AU LAIT LLC VS DEBSSI [IMAGED] CAUSAL DOCUMENT/DATE FILED: Notice of Hearing, 10/06/2023

The motion for preliminary injunction is DENIED.

'A superior court must evaluate two interrelated factors when ruling on a request for a preliminary injunction: (1) the likelihood that the plaintiff will prevail on the merits at trial and (2) the interim harm that the plaintiff would be likely to sustain if the injunction were denied as compared to the harm the defendant would be likely to suffer if the preliminary injunction were issued.' Smith v. Adventist Health System/West (2010) 182 Cal.App.4th 729, 749. The court's determination must be guided by a 'mix' of the potential merit and interim harm factors. Butt v. State of California (1992) Cal.4th 668, 678. The moving party bears the burden of establishing entitlement to the relief sought. O'Connell v. Superior Court (2006) 141 Cal.App.4th 1452, 1481.

In this case, although plaintiff has demonstrated a likelihood of prevailing on the merits, it has failed to establish that it would suffer irreparable harm if the preliminary injunction is not issued. Goodwill is 'a form of property the impairment or destruction of which can be remedied through an award of damages.' Lee v. Luxottica Retail North America, Inc. (2021) 65 Cal.App.5th 793, 806. The generally applicable rule is that 'if monetary damages afford adequate relief and are not extremely difficult to ascertain, an injunction cannot be granted.' Thayer Plymouth Center, Inc. v. Chrysler Motors Corp. (1967) 255 Cal.App.2d 300, 306.

Moreover, while some courts have recognized that a loss of goodwill may constitute irreparable harm in certain circumstances (see Donahue Schriber Realty Group, Inc. v. Nu Creation Outreach (2014) 232 Cal.App.4th 1171), plaintiff has not made such a showing here. Mr. Sattarin's conclusory assertion that defendant 'has solicited Plaintiff's customers to his competing coffee shops' is insufficient to support issuance of the requested injunctive relief. (Sattarin Ex Parte Decl., ¶ 6.) Accordingly, the motion is denied. See White v. Davis (2003) 30 Cal.4th 528, 554 ('To obtain a preliminary injunction, a plaintiff ordinarily is required to present evidence of the irreparable injury or interim harm that it will suffer if an injunction is not issued pending an adjudication of the merits.').

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