Devos v. Cunningham Group LLC

297 So. 3d 1176 (2019)

Facts

Ds had been employed by Ps when Ds terminated their employment without prior notice. Ps provided pathology and cytology services for Brookwood Baptist Medical Center. Ds had entered into employment agreements with Ps, in which they agreed that, if they provided Ps less than 12 months' notice of the termination of their employment, they would pay P an amount equal to one year's annual salary. The doctors also agreed that, for a period of two years after the termination of employment, they would not directly or indirectly solicit any customers that they came into contact with for Ps. Ps sued Ds seeking damages and injunctive relief. Ps also filed a motion seeking a preliminary injunction to prohibit the doctors from violating the nonsolicitation provisions of the employment agreements. Ps claimed that since Ds terminated their employment with Ps, the doctors had formed a new pathology business and had been soliciting Brookwood's business in violation of the nonsolicitation provisions of the employment agreements. On September 5, 2018, the trial court issued a TRO. On September 14, 2018, Ds filed a motion to dissolve the TRO and a response in opposition to Ps' request for a preliminary injunction. On October 4, 2018, the court entered an order granting Ps' motion for a preliminary injunction. The judge ordered the injunction upon Ps' posting of a $25,000 surety bond. On October 5, 2018, Ps deposited a surety bond of $25,000 with the trial-court clerk. Ds appealed. The trial court entered an order staying the trial-court proceedings pending resolution of the appeal but denied the request to stay the preliminary injunction. Ds then filed a motion to stay enforcement of the preliminary injunction in the appeals Court; that motion was denied on November 13, 2018. On December 17, 2018, Ds then moved in the trial court to enlarge the amount of the bond Ps had posted as security for the preliminary injunction. P testified that he had previously generated an average of $169,296 per month providing pathology services to Brookwood on behalf of Ds. D testified that he had been unable to generate revenue since September 2018 when the temporary restraining order was entered and that he had lost at least $300,000 in revenue that would have been generated if he were able to practice medicine unrestricted. Simmons (D) generated an average of $119,175 per month providing pathology services to Brookwood on behalf of Ps. Simmons (D) testified he had lost at least $240,000 in revenue that would have been generated if he had not been restrained by the injunction. Their motion was denied. Ds appealed.