The most common remedy in civil cases is money damages. However, there are two other types of remedies available to plaintiffs and civil courts; injunctions and specific performance orders.

Injunction:

An injunction is a court order telling a defendant to stop doing something. For example, a plaintiff may sue a defendant developer asking the court to issue an injunction to stop the developer from cutting down trees on land the developer owns because the plaintiff thinks the developer is hurting wildlife, and therefore violating the law by doing so. Sometimes, judges will issue a preliminary injunction to stop certain actions until the judge can make final more informed decision. When this happens, the judge will give the parties’ time to present evidence to support their respective positions before the judge decides on whether to issue a permanent injunction.

Specific Performance:

Specific performance is an order from the court telling a defendant to actually do something. While rare, specific performance is appropriate when money damages just won’t cut it. For example, if the object of the lawsuit is a unique antique which the defendant now refuses to sell to the plaintiff pursuant to a valid contract between the parties, the court would order the turning over of that specific antique to the plaintiff pursuant to the terms of the contract by issuing a specific performance order.