The opinion
STATE OF MAINE SUPERIOR COURT
CUMBERLAND, ss CIVIL ACTION
DOCKET NO. RE-18-179
DALE HOLMAN,
Plaintiff
V. ORDER
WILLOW H01\1E OWNERS
ASSOCIATION,
Defendants
S~P : l 2018
J. __
Before the court is a motion by defendant Willow Home Owners Association (Association)
to dismiss the complaint in this action because it is duplicative of a prior complaint filed by plaintiff
Dale Holman. The Association argues that the only material difference is that Holman's new
complaint includes a request for a preliminary injunction, which according to the Association fails
to state a claim upon which relief may be granted.
Holman, who is representing himself, has filed two other lawsuits challenging actions taken
by Julian and Katherine Johnson, the Association, and various other parties with respect to
stormwater originating on property belonging to the Jewish Community Alliance of Southern
Maine in Portland. 1 As against the Association, Holman appears to contend that allowing the
discharge of stormwater into the Association drainage system was illegal or improper.
1
In the first lawsuit, Holman sued the Johnsons and named their property as a defendant. Holman v.
Johnson, CV-18-68. In the second lawsuit, based on the same factual allegations, Holman again sued the
Johnsons and added six additional defendants: the Association, the Jewish Community Alliance, and four
individuals who, according to Holman, illegally participated at an Association Board meeting in
September 2016 at which action was taken with respect to the stormwater issue. Holman v. Johnson, CV
18-143. Those two lawsuits have been consolidated.
Plaintiff Dale Holman-Pro Se
Defendant-Thomas McKean, Esq.
Holman could have simply filed a motion for a preliminary injunction in CV-18-143. 2 In
commencing a new action and seeking a preliminary injunction, however, Holman may have been
relying on the provision in M.R.Civ.P. 65(b)(l) that provides that an application for a preliminary
injunction "may be included in the complaint or may be made by motion."
Other than the omission of allegations relating solely to parties in CV-18-14 3 who are not
named as defendants in RE-18-179, there is virtually no difference between Holman's factual
allegations in CV-18-143 and his factual allegations in RE-18-179. The only new material, which
is contained in paragraphs 44-60 and the attachments thereto, concerns Holman's request for
injunctive relief and his contention that the Association has admitted that the Jewish Community
Alliance drainage has caused road damage that will require expensive repairs.
The court has reviewed the annexed documents referred to in paragraphs 44-56 and finds
no admissions or evidence in those attachments that the road maintenance issues discussed in those
documents are linked with or caused by the Jewish Community Alliance discharge into the
Association drainage system that is challenged by Holman in CV-18-68 and CV-18-143.
Treating the verified complaint in RE-18-179 as an application for a preliminary injunction,
the application is denied. Holman is seeking a preliminary injunction preventing the Association
from spending any Association funds or billing any homeowners while this action is pending. His
reasoning is that the defendants in CV-18-68 and CV-18-143 should be made to pay for damage
and remediation efforts. Complaint ,r,r 58-59.
A prerequisite for injunctive relief is irreparable harm, and irreparable harm cannot be
established if there is an adequate remedy at law. In this case injunctive relief is precluded because
2
The "Wherefore" clause in the complaint filed in CV-18-143 seeks unspecified injunctive relief.
2
Holman's complaints in CV-18-68 and CV-18-143 constitute an acknowledgment that Holman
has an adequate remedy at law.
Paragraph 60 of the complaint in RE-18-179 contains a conclusory allegation that Holman
and other homeowners will be subjected to irreparable harm if they have to pay for damage and
remediation of structural water damage. It bears emphasis that if he proves his claims, Holman
may recover damages for injury to his own property and any losses he has personally incurred.
Holman is entitled to represent himself, but he is not entitled to represent other homeowners or sue
on their behalf. He makes no factual allegations suggesting that he does not have an adequate
remedy at law in the form of monetary damages.
While Holman argues that an evidentiary hearing is necessary, the court is not required to
hold an evidentiary hearing on an application for a preliminary injunction and may rule on the
affidavits submitted or on the verified complaint. 3 C. Harvey, Maine Civil Practice§ 65:4 at 333
(2011). In this case, where Holman's verified complaint falls short of any showing or irreparable
harm - an indispensable prerequisite for preliminary injunctive relief- Holman's application may
be denied without a hearing. See, e.g., PC! Transportation Inc. v. Fort Worth & Western Railroad
Co., 418 F.3d 535, 546 (5th Cir. 2005).
Since the only aspect in RE-18-179 that is not already contained in CV-18-143 is the
application for a preliminary injunction, RE-18-179 is dismissed as duplicative. See Geary v.
Stanley, 2007 ME 133 ,r,r 14-16, 931 A.2d 1064. Accord, Oxbow Energy Inc. v. Koch Industries
Inc., 686 F.Supp. 278, 280-82 (D. Kan. 1988), and cases cited therein. 3
3
If the attachments referred to in paragraphs 44-56 of the complaint in RE-18-179 are relevant and
admissible, Holman is entitled to offer those in evidence in CV-18-143.
3
The entry shall be:
1. To the extent that plaintiff Dale Holman's verified complaint in this action constitutes
an application for a preliminary injunction pursuant to M.R.Civ.P. 65(b)(l), the application is
denied.
2. In all other material respects, the claims asserted in the complaint are essentially identical
to those asserted in plaintiffs complaint in CV-18-143, and accordingly this action is dismissed
as duplicative.
3. The clerk shall incorporate this order in the docket by reference pursuant to Rule 79(a).
Dated: September _t_(_, 2018
----Thomas
~ D. Warren
Justice, Superior Court
Entered on the Docket: 1/ i i(/S_ /
jvtC
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