Carney v. Hadley

Citations

• 32 Fla. 344

Syllabus

<p>1.As a general rule two conditions must concur to give a court of equity jurisdiction to enjoin a mere trespass on property : First, tlie complainant’s title must bo admitted, or legally established ; and, second, the trespass must be of such a nature as to cause irreparable damage, not susceptible of complete pecuniary compensation. The inadequacy of the legal remedy is the foundation and indispensable prerequisite for the interposition of chancery in such cases, for the reason that a legal remedy has been devised to redress such wrongs, and so long as this i emedy is adequate, equity has no right to interfere.</p> <p>2. The practicó of granting injunctions in cases of trespass, it seems, is more liberal now than it was formerly, but a clear case of the inadequacy of the legal remedy must still be shown in order to justify the “interference of the court of chancery.</p> <p>3. While insolvency alone of the defendant may not be sufficient to authorize an injunction, yet it is an important element in many cases in determining whether or not a court of chancery should act in granting injunctions.</p> <p>4. In cases of repeated trespasses where it becomes necessary to quiet a rightful, admitted or established possession, chancery has often interposed to prevent a multiplicity of suits, although there may be a remedy at law. This court will not, however, grant an injunction against one person merely because he is guilty of repeated trespasses, where the legal remedy affords an adequate and complete redress in damages. The rule seem ingly well sustained by authority is that before a court of chancery will interfere to prevent a multiplicity of suits, there must be several persons controverting the same right, and each standing upon his own pretension of right.</p> <p>5. Whenever the complainant’s title is disputed in cases of tresi>ass, a court of equity will not interfere by injunction on the ground of a multiplicity of suits until he has successfully established his