A preliminary injunction is where a court agrees to grant an injunction before a case concludes because if it waits too long, the plaintiff will suffer irreparable harm.
An injunction is where a court orders a party to do something or to refrain from doing something. For example, a plaintiff may ask a court to enjoin the government from enforcing a certain law.
But let’s say the plaintiff seeking the injunction can demonstrate that if they have to wait until the case ends before the court decides whether to grant the injunction it will be too late. For example, if a plaintiff wants to keep a defendant from building on certain property the plaintiff may be able to demonstrate that if the court waits until the case before deciding whether the defendant can build on the property or not it will be too late. Under these circumstances, the court may grant a preliminary injunction and prevent the defendant from starting to build on the property while the case is pending.
