Court Opinion

ID: 9528298
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-07 03:39:30.892025+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T13:26:44.996995
License: Public Domain

Donworth, J.
(dissenting)—I am of the opinion that the writ of prohibition should be denied because the superior court has jurisdiction of the parties and of the subject matter of the action. It is not threatening to act either without jurisdiction or in excess of its jurisdiction.
The question whether, under the showing made in the trial court, an injunction pendente lite should issue in the form contemplated involves the merits of the controversy and may be reviewed by us only upon appeal or application for a writ of certiorari.
Assuming, without deciding, that the superior court is threatening to commit error by entering the proposed injunction, this court has several times stated that it will not issue a writ of prohibition to prevent the commission of error. Our most recent discussion of this subject is found in In re Jones, 39 Wn. (2d) 956, 239 P. (2d) 856, in which we said:
“Rem. Rev. Stat., §§ 1027 and 1028, require the existence of two conditions to make a writ of prohibition available: (1) absence or excess of jurisdiction; (2) absence of a plain, speedy and adequate remedy in the ordinary course of legal procedure. State ex rel. O’Brien v. Police Court, 14 Wn. (2d) 340, 128 P. (2d) 332; State ex rel. New York Cas. Co. v. Superior Court, 31 Wn. (2d) 834, 199 P. (2d) 581; State ex rel. Troy v. Superior Court, 38 Wn. (2d) 352, 229 P. (2d) 518. As we said in State ex rel. Prentice v. Superior Court, 86 Wash. 90, 149 Pac. 321, and repeated in State ex rel. Cheson v. Superior Court, 22 Wn. (2d) 947, 157 P. (2d) 991, and State ex rel. Case v. Superior Court, 23 Wn. (2d) 250, 160 P. (2d) 606:
“ ‘Where the superior court has jurisdiction of the subject-matter in controversy, prohibition will not lie to prevent an erroneous exercise of such jurisdiction, where there is an adequate remedy by appeal or writ of review. The writ is not issued to prevent the commission of mere error, nor to take the place of an appeal, or perform the office of a writ of review for the correction of error. The writ will only issue to inferior courts where they are proceeding, or *519threatening to proceed, without, or in excess of, their jurisdiction.5 55
I do not see in the instant case any threatened action by the trial court without, or in excess of, its jurisdiction and, therefore, dissent from the action of this court in ordering the writ of prohibition made permanent.
Hamley, Weaver, and Olson, JJ., concur with Don-worth, J.