Also known as: interlocutory judgements · interlocutory judgement · interlocutory judgments · interlocutory order · interim judgment
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A judicial determination that resolves fewer than all claims or parties and leaves further proceedings necessary before a final judgment can be entered. Such a determination does not end the litigation on the merits.
ValleyCare moved to require a security bond from former patients suing for malpractice. The district court denied the motion. ValleyCare appealed immediately. The denial conclusively resolved a claimed right separate from the malpractice claims and would be lost if review waited until final judgment.
Star Jet obtained a preliminary injunction against Apex in a patent suit. The district court stayed the injunction pending PTO review. Star Jet appealed at once. The order granted injunctive relief even though enforcement was deferred, making it immediately appealable.
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
Equal Access Now sought a nationwide injunction against a benefits rule. The district court barred enforcement in only six states. The organizations appealed immediately. The partial grant and partial refusal of injunctive relief rendered the order appealable without awaiting final judgment.
An interlocutory order is immediately appealable under the collateral order doctrine if it conclusively determines a disputed question, resolves an important issue separate from the merits, and is effectively unreviewable after final judgment.
Supporting sources
Yes. The statute authorizing appeals from orders granting injunctions focuses on the grant itself rather than immediate effectiveness, so a simultaneous stay does not destroy appellate jurisdiction.
Supporting sources
A denial of a bond motion may be immediately appealable if it meets the three collateral order requirements, including that the claimed right would be lost if review is postponed until after final judgment.
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…wrongly, which the Court quite rightly disclaims, ante, at 26, I do not see how this issue is more important than any other interlocutory order that may place a litigant at a procedural disadvantage. For these reasons, I do not believe the District Court's order was appealable. Interlocutory orders are committed by statute to the…