the purpose of so restraining him, is called an Injunction Bill; the injunction may be the only object of the plaintiff in filing the bill, or it may be one of, or accessory to, several other objects. Some of the objects of an injunction bill, of most frequent occurrence, are to stay proceedings at law; to restrain a defendant in ejectment from setting up an outstanding term as a defence to the action, or a plaintiff from availing himself of a legal title against the defendant when the latter has the equitable title; to restrain the defendant from pirating the plaintiff's copyright, or infringing his patent; from committing waste, by felling timber, ploughing meadows or ancient pasture, or pulling down buildings, or from obstructing ancient lights, or the like; and generally where any act is threatened, or evidently in contemplation, or in the course of commission, the consequences of which would be an irreparable injury to the plaintiff's property, or for which the ordinary Courts of Law could afford him no adequate redress, the Court of Chancery will grant an injunction to restrain the commis

sion of it.

In treating of injunction bills, it is necessary, to a correct understanding of the subject, to divide them into two classes; viz. bills for injunctions to restrain proceedings at law, and bills for injunctions for other purposes, as there are various rules of practice applicable to one class which are not applicable to the other.

Where a bill has been filed, praying an injunction to stay proceedings at law, the subpoena is issued and served in the usual manner, and the plaintiff's agent should, before the expiration of eight days from the service, be furnished with the usual affidavit of service of the subpoena; if the defendant do not appear within the eight days, the plaintiff's agent will move for, and obtain the injunction. If the defendant have appeared in time, but do not put in his answer, plea, or demurrer, within eight days from the time of his appearance, in that case also the

plaintiff's agent will, in like manner, obtain the injunction, which in either of these cases is called the common injunction; the rule is the same in the case of an amended bill. If the defendant appears in time, and contrives to put in his answer within the eight days, or before the plaintiff has moved for the injunction, the latter has no alternative but to give a special notice of motion for the injunction, on which the defendant will, of course, instruct counsel to appear; and on what appears on the face of the bill and answer, the motion will be granted or refused, it being the rule that the plaintiff must show sufficient equity confessed in the answer, to entitle himself to an injunction. ayout sudok boog 8

The plaintiff, in an injunction cause, having obtained the common injunction to stay proceedings at law, may, (either before or after the answer of a defendant is put in, and whether such injunction be or be not continued to the hearing of the cause,) obtain an order as of course to amend his bill without prejudice to the injunction; and if the bill be amended pursuant to such order, the defendant may thereupon, and although he may not have put in his answer to the bill or the amendments, move the Court, on notice, to dissolve the injunction on the ground that the bill, Jas amended, does not, even if the amendments be true, entitle the plaintiff to the injunction. 279 ima

1

If the common injunction be obtained before the action at law is brought, it will prevent the defendant from bringing such action. If it be obtained after the action is brought, but before the plaintiff at law has delivered his declaration, it will prevent the plaintiff from declaring, or indeed taking any further step in the action; if it be not obtained till after the plaintiff has declared, it only stays execution, but the plaintiff may call for a plea, and proceed to trial and judgment in the action. Such proceedings will, however, be at the risk of the costs at law, if the defendant ultimately succeed in equity.

If the plaintiff in the action at law be abroad, so

"

that when the bill for an injunction is filed, the subpoena cannot be personally served upon him, the course is to apply to the Court by motion, that service of the subpoena upon his attorney in the action at law may be good service; this motion is made upon an affidavit by the plaintiff in equity, which states the material facts stated in the bill, the bringing of the action, and that the deponent is advised that he cannot safely proceed to the trial of the action until the defendant has put in his answer to the bill, and that he expects and believes that disclosures will be made by the answer, which will be material to his defence to the action, and will enable him to make a good defence thereto; or, if the fact be so, to the extent of greatly reducing the damages to be recovered in the action, and that the defendant lives, or then is, as the plaintiff believes, out of the jurisdiction of the Court, naming the place where the defendant is, or is supposed to be. On this affidavit an order will be made that service upon the attorney shall be good service. The subpoena is then served upon the attorney, and the proceedings are then governed by the same rules as where the service is personal.

As the common injunction (if obtained after declaration) does not stay the trial of an action, but only execution, it will constantly happen, in cases where the object of the bill is to obtain a discovery by the defendant's answer, of facts to be used as a defence to the action, that it is not sufficient to "enable the plaintiff to obtain that object, as the trial of the cause would take place before the defendant's time for putting in his answer expired. In such cases a separate application must be made to the Court to extend the common injunction to stay the trial of the cause, till the defendant has put in his answer. This application is made after notice of motion, upon an affidavit of the plaintiff, that he cannot safely proceed to the trial of the action until the defendant shall have put in his answer to the

bill, and that he expects and believes that the answer t of the defendant will contain a disclosure and discovery of facts material to his defence, which, together with the other evidence to be adduced on the trial of the action, will enable the plaintiff to make a good defence thereto. The notice of motion for this extended injunction may be given immediately after the order for the common injunction has been obtained, and the defendant cannot use affidavits to show cause against the motion; but if he can show from the plaintiff's own bill, that it is clear that no discovery can be elicited thereby, which can be ma terial to the defence of the action, he may do so; and if that is clearly made out, the extended injunc{} tion will not be granted.

If the defendant, after having appeared, obtain an order to refer the plaintiff's bill for scandal or impertinence, the common injunction cannot be obtained till the Master has made his report, finding the bill not scandalous or impertinent, or, if otherwise, until the scandalous or impertinent matter is expunged. If a defendant put in an answer, which is insufficient, the plaintiff must immediately file exceptions to it, and must refer them to the Master, and obtain and file his report, finding the answer insufficient, before he can obtain the common injunction; and if the defendant contrives to put in his further answer: before the motion is made, the motion would be irregular. Sometimes a defendant resorts to a reference for scandal or impertinence, or an insufficient answer, for the purpose of delay; but where the result shows that he was not justified in taking these steps, he will seldom obtain any advantage from them.

When the defendant has put in a sufficient answer to the bill, he may move to have the injunction dis- .... solved, and the plaintiff may show cause against this; on this motion no affidavits are used, but the matter is argued upon the bill and answer, and the Court either dissolves the injunction, or continues it till a

further stage of the cause, or makes it perpetual, according to the facts of the case.

D

We now come to the consideration of injunctions for other purposes than to stay proceedings at law, and these are always special injunctions, and are applied for on motion, either before the appearance or answer of the defendant, or after he has put in his answer; in the former case the motion is always made upon affidavits, sometimes without notice to the defendant, sometimes after notice; in the latter case always after notice, and, as a general rule, never upon affidavits.

Where an injunction is applied for before answer, the affidavits in support of the application must verify the material facts stated in the bill, and state such facts as may show the importance of the injunction issuing immediately; they must not be sworn until the bill is actually filed, for until then there is no cause in Court, and the country solicitor should be very particular in stating the title of the cause correctly, for a mistake in this respect would be fatal; and it is in general advisable, and always the safest. mode, to submit the drafts of the affidavits to counsel for his perusal and approval. The application for the injunction may be made immediately the bill is filed, and, as before observed, either upon notice of the motion being given to the defendant, or without such notice and if the motion be made upon notice, and the defendant have not appeared, an application must first be made to the Court for leave to give such notice, and it must be stated in the notice that such leave has been obtained. It is only in cases of extreme urgency, and where the injury which would result from the act to be enjoined against is likely to be done immediately, and if done will be irreparable, that the Court will grant the injunction where notice has not been given of the motion; and it is a general rule, that an injunction cannot be obtained after the defendant has appeared, without notice of the motion having been given, though under peculiar circum