James Gorman Insurance, Inc. v. Philadelphia Indemnity Insurance Companies

Filing 14

Judge Rya W. Zobel: ORDER entered denying 3 Motion for TRO; denying 3 Motion for Preliminary Injunction; denying 11 Motion for Injunctive Relief (Urso, Lisa)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
DISTRICT OF MASSACHUSETTS

CIVIL ACTION NO. 12-10976-RWZ

JAMES GORMAN INSURANCE, INC.
v.
PHILADELPHIA INDEMNITY INSURANCE COMPANY

ORDER
June 13, 2012
ZOBEL, D.J.

Plaintiff James Gorman Insurance, Inc. (“Gorman”), served as a non-exclusive
broker for defendant Philadelphia Indemnity Insurance Company (“Philadelphia”) in
connection with the sale of custom surety bonds pursuant to a Surety Producer
Agreement dated July 1, 2011. Philadelphia, in February 2012, gave notice to Gorman
that it intended to terminate the Agreement effective July 6, 2012, but on May 4, it
notified plaintiff of the immediate termination for a number of alleged breaches of the
Agreement, including plaintiff’s failure to remit premiums. The parties agree that all
disputes under the Agreement are subject to arbitration.
Plaintiff has filed a “Verified Complaint for Injunctive Relief in Aid of Arbitration”
which seeks to maintain the status quo, including most specifically, plaintiff’s rights to
continue to service existing bonds. Defendant countered with a cross-motion for a
mandatory injunction requiring plaintiff to return all Philadelphia corporate seals which
are needed to issue new bonds.

First, although both parties complain that the conduct of the other harms each, I
am not persuaded that either has shown irreparable harm.
Second, any decision granting the injunctive relief requested by either party
necessarily implicates the merits of the dispute which, as they agree, is for the
arbitrator.
The motions for injunctive relief (Dockets ## 3 and 11) are denied.

June 13, 2012
DATE

/s/Rya W. Zobel
RYA W. ZOBEL
UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE

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