Opinion ID: 2974667
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Irreparable Harm/Balance of Harms

Text: Detroit Diesel also challenges the district court’s conclusion that plaintiffs would suffer irreparable harm if preliminary injunctive relief were denied. Citing Golden v. Kelsey-Hayes Co., 845 F. Supp. 410, 415 (E.D. Mich. 1994), aff’d 73 F.3d 648 (6th Cir. 1996), the district court concluded that “reduction of benefits and imposition of additional insurance costs on retirees constitutes irreparable harm because of the financial hardship on retirees on fixed incomes, emotional distress and possible deprivation of life’s necessities by reallocating scant resources to pay for much needed health care.” Dist. ct. op. pp. 10-11, JA 26-27. Detroit Diesel contends the factual record relied on by the district court is too thin to justify class-wide preliminary injunctive relief. Indeed, none of the three named plaintiffs has presented a factual showing of his or her own imminent irreparable harm. They have relied instead on declarations of five putative class members. Detroit Diesel also points out that even before the January 1, 2006 effective date of its attempted modification, some 100 of the putative class members had already elected the “cash-out” option, suggesting the modification may not be harmful to them at all. Viewed in the traditional sense, the record evidence does not justify class-wide injunctive relief. Yet, a detailed showing of irreparable harm is not necessarily prerequisite to preliminary injunctive relief. Golden, 73 F.3d at 657. The possibility and severity of irreparable harm are among the factors which the court balances in assessing the appropriateness of injunctive relief. Id. - 15 - No. 06-1157 Wood, et al. v. Detroit Diesel Corp. Moreover, evidence not unlike that presented in this case has been found sufficient by this Court to sustain preliminary injunctive relief in other similar situations. See Yolton, 435 F.3d at 584; Golden, 73 F.3d at 657. Indeed, the hardship, financial and emotional, that a new monthly expense of $260 to $834 would pose for most working class retirees hardly requires substantiation. In Yolton, this Court upheld the determination that a monthly premium contribution of $501 posed a sufficiently severe and irreparable hardship. The court quoted the district court’s reasoning with approval: [T]he Court can surmise that the putative class members overall cannot afford to contribute such an amount until the case is resolved. Unable to afford the $501 premium, Plaintiffs will lose their health insurance, will not be able to pay for necessary prescription medications, and will not receive all of the medical care that they need. Reimbursing Plaintiffs for their contributions at the end of the case, therefore, will not afford them relief. 435 F.3d at 584. This reasoning is equally compelling in this case. The impact of injunctive relief on Detroit Diesel is not insignificant. Detroit Diesel contends the injunctive relief costs it $600,000 per month. While this figure appears not to be substantiated in the present record, it can hardly be denied that the injunctive relief is expensive. Still, in view of Detroit Diesel’s admitted historical commitment to paying the costs of retirees’ health care benefits, as well as Detroit Diesel’s partial responsibility for the failure to reach agreement on funding of above-cap costs through the VEBA Trust or otherwise, we conclude the district court’s award of preliminary injunctive relief is not an abuse of discretion. See Yolton, 435 F.3d at 584; Golden, 73 F.3d at 657. - 16 - No. 06-1157 Wood, et al. v. Detroit Diesel Corp.