Cornell Pump Co. v. City of Bellingham

A trial court may require a party that wrongfully obtains a temporary restraining order to pay the costs and fees associated with dissolving the order. The purpose of this equitable rule is to discourage parties from unnecessarily seeking injunctive relief. This rule has a limited application in the public bidding context because a *229disappointed bidder cannot obtain any relief once the contract has been signed and cannot receive damages. Thus, in many public bidding cases, awarding attorney fees may not be appropriate. There is not, however, an absolute bar to attorney fees in the public…