Altman v. County of Santa Clara

Background

Janice Altman and the other plaintiffs filed an application for a temporary restraining order, or alternatively a motion for a preliminary injunction. A temporary restraining order is short-term emergency relief intended to preserve the existing situation and prevent irreparable harm until a hearing can occur. The defendants are the County of Santa Clara and the other defendants identified in the case caption.

Reasoning

Under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 65(b)(1), a court may issue a temporary restraining order without written or oral notice to the opposing party only when specific facts show that immediate and irreparable injury will occur before the opposing party can be heard, and the moving attorney certifies efforts to provide notice and explains why notice should not be required.

The court found that the plaintiffs made no effort in their application to satisfy Rule 65(b)(1). In particular, they did not show immediate and irreparable injury that outweighed the need to allow the defendants a reasonable opportunity to respond. The court also noted that the plaintiffs waited ten days between filing their original complaint and seeking the requested relief.

Ruling

The court denied the request for a temporary restraining order. It expressly stated that it was not deciding whether a preliminary injunction would be appropriate. The defendants’ opposition was due by April 24, 2020, at 5:00 p.m.; the plaintiffs’ reply was due by May 1, 2020, at 5:00 p.m.; and the court set a preliminary-injunction hearing for May 13, 2020, at 2:00 p.m.