Opinion ID: 437193
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: The Standard for Granting a Preliminary Injunction

Text: 18 We note as a threshold matter that the district court applied the proper legal standard for granting a preliminary injunction. In its Memorandum of Decision filed August 17, 1982, the district court found that the appellants' contentions raised serious questions regarding the seismic safety of the Fremont facility and that the dangers to the students if they remained at the facility decidedly outweighed the hardships the state defendants would sustain if additional seismic tests were ordered. In this circuit, a preliminary injunction is properly granted if the moving party has demonstrated either a combination of probable success on the merits and a possibility of irreparable injury, or that serious questions are raised and the balance of hardships tips sharply in the moving party's favor. Beltran v. Myers, 677 F.2d 1317, 1320 (9th Cir.1982) (emphasis in original). The balance of hardships is a critical element in justifying a preliminary injunction, and the public interest is also an important factor strongly to be considered. See Lopez v. Heckler, 725 F.2d at 1498 (citing extensive authority). 19 In the instant case, the state defendants do not argue that the balance of hardships fails to tip sharply in favor of the appellants or that the preliminary injunction is not in the public interest. The tests ordered by the district court will cost the state approximately $200,000. Weighed against that relatively small sum is potentially the safety of blind and multi-handicapped students. We agree with the district court that under the circumstances the balance of hardships tips sharply in favor of the handicapped students. 20 The state defendants' arguments in opposition to the preliminary injunction are directed to the legal and factual merits of the case. Our task is, therefore, to review the district court's conclusion that the students demonstrated probable success on the merits or, in the alternative formulation, that the students raised serious legal questions. Beltran, 677 F.2d at 1320.