Just yesterday, we were fortunate to secure a TRO against our client's former employee who had gone rogue in (alleged) violation of his contractual and fiduciary duties to our client - without even needing to argue it before the Court.
"How did that happen?" you ask.
Truth be told, there were a few ingredients - some of which were completely beyond our control - that came together to enable this excellent, albeit interim, result for our client.
How We Managed to Secure a TRO in Our Client's Favor - Without Needing to Argue the Issue Before the Court
First, we were fortunate in that our case was assigned to a judge whose rules require both sides to meet and confer before ruling on a formal application for injunctive relief to see where both sides can agree in advance, and thereby limit the issues that require the Court's determination. That, of course, leads us to the next point ...
Second, our adversary proved willing to "talk Turkey," meaning he was amenable to most of the relief that we were requesting to enjoin his client from doing, which in this case, simply meant that the defendant had to cease and desist from some truly outrageous conduct. (Quite candidly, I imagine that had we ended up arguing this issue before the judge, defendant's counsel would have faced a daunting hurdle in trying to explain why his client should be allowed to persist in that behavior).
That being said, based on the sheer litany of lawyer jokes out there (yes, even my mother used to keep tomes of lawyer jokes in the bathroom so guests could get a good laugh), it should come as no surprise that there are many, many lawyers and law firms out there that are more than happy to litigate over Every. Single. Issue. - even if there is no valid reason to do so. Therefore, Point #2 above should certainly not be taken for granted.
The Upshot
There are times where, if the stars are aligned in terms of the facts of your case, the judge assigned to your case, and the adversary you draw, you can accomplish some terrific things for your client rather expeditiously, and at a substantially reduced cost to them. Unfortunately though, this is often the exception rather than the rule.
