The Delaware Court of Chancery routinely entertains requests for the entry of a temporary restraining order (“TRO”) or preliminary injunction (“PI”) to prevent an imminent threat of irreparable harm; that is, a harm that is happening or will happen very soon and that cannot be remedied by money damages alone. Examples include preventing an M&A deal, preventing an executive subject to a noncompete from competing with his employer or accepting a position with a competitor, stopping the sale of real estate, and many other types of cases.

Parties generally seek a temporary restraining order when the time to act is short and the risk of irreparable harm is nearing. A TRO is a “special remedy of short duration” and is designed to prevent imminent, irreparable injury pending a preliminary injunction or final resolution of the matter. The primary focus of the court when analyzing a TRO motion is the likelihood of imminent and irreparable harm to the moving party.