Case ID: f-appx_469/html/0575-02.html
Source: Caselaw Access Project
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Date Created: 2024-08-24T03:29:51.129683

CELLCO PARTNERSHIP, Plaintiff-Appellee, v. Jason HOPE; et al., Defendants-Appellants.
    No. 11-16445.
    United States Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit.
    Argued and Submitted Feb. 17, 2012.
    Filed Feb. 27, 2012.
    
      Paul Kipp Charlton, Esquire, Lindsi Michelle Weber, Gallagher & Kennedy, P.A., Phoenix, AZ, Scott B. Cosgrove, Marcos D. Jimenez, Kasowitz Benson Torres & Friedman LLP, Miami, FL, for Plaintiff-Appellee.
    Célico Partnership, Miami, FL, pro se.
    Dennis I. Wilenchik, Esquire, Wilenchik & Bartness, P.C., Phoenix, AZ, for Defendants-Appellants.
    Before: FISHER and IKUTA, Circuit Judges, and SEABRIGHT, District Judge.
    
      
       The Honorable J. Michael Seabright, District Judge for the U.S. District Court for Hawaii, sitting by designation.
    
   MEMORANDUM

The district court did not abuse its discretion in holding that Verizon was likely to succeed on its claim for tortious interference with contractual relations. Verizon adduced evidence that defendant Eye Level Holdings, LLC (JAWA) took actions (including measures to conceal its actions from Verizon) whose necessary consequence was to burden Verizon’s contracts with its wireless subscribers by making it more costly for Verizon to meet its obligation to prevent unauthorized charges on its subscribers’ bills. See Restatement (Second) of Torts § 766A (1979); see also Snow v. W. Sav. & Loan Ass’n, 152 Ariz. 27, 730 P.2d 204, 212 (1986); Plattner v. State Farm Mut. Auto. Ins. Co., 168 Ariz. 311, 812 P.2d 1129, 1134 (Ariz.Ct.App.1991). Nor did the district court abuse its discretion in finding that Verizon was likely to suffer irreparable harm in the absence of preliminary relief because “[e]vidence of threatened loss of prospective customers or goodwill certainly supports a finding of the possibility of irreparable harm.” Stuhlbarg Int’l Sales Co. v. John D. Brush & Co., 240 F.3d 832, 841 (9th Cir.2001). Thus, the district court did not err in granting Verizon’s motion for a preliminary injunction.

Nor did the district court err in determining the scope of the preliminary injunction, because the district court could reasonably determine that a court order was necessary to prevent JAWA from continuing its tortious interference through the use of affiliated LLCs. Moreover, even if the preliminary injunction order had some redundancies, it was sufficiently clear to comply with Rule 65 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. See A & M Records, Inc. v. Napster, Inc., 284 F.3d 1091, 1097 (9th Cir.2002).

We reject JAWA’s argument that the Illinois class action settlement precluded Verizon’s claim, because Verizon was neither a named party to that action, see, e.g., Northbrook Prop. & Cas. Ins. Co. v. GEO Int’l Corp., 317 Ill.App.3d 78, 250 Ill.Dec. 586, 739 N.E.2d 47, 49-50 (Ill.App.Ct.2000), nor in privity with a party to that action, see Yorulmazoglu v. Lake Forest Hosp., 359 Ill.App.3d 554, 295 Ill.Dec. 887, 834 N.E.2d 468, 472-73 (Ill.App.Ct.2005).

The district court did not abuse its discretion by denying JAWA’s motion for a preliminary injunction, because JAWA was not likely to succeed in showing that Verizon engaged in improper conduct. Verizon’s actions against JAWA likely constituted a valid exercise of its contractual authority, see Mac Enters. v. Del E. Webb Dev. Co., 132 Ariz. 331, 645 P.2d 1245, 1250 (Ariz.Ct.App.1982), and were driven by valid business considerations, see Neonatology Assocs. v. Phx. Perinatal Assocs., Inc., 216 Ariz. 185, 164 P.3d 691, 695 (Ariz.Ct.App.2007).

We deny Verizon’s request for attorney’s fees because JAWA’s appeal is not “wholly without merit.” Operating Eng’rs Pension Trusts v. B & E Backhoe, Inc., 911 F.2d 1347, 1356 (9th Cir.1990) (internal quotation marks omitted).

AFFIRMED. 
      
       This disposition is not appropriate for publication and is not precedent except as provided by 9th Cir. R. 36-3.