MANHATTAN (LN) — U.S. District Judge Margaret M. Garnett on Friday denied a special education parent's motion for a temporary restraining order seeking immediate payment for a student's pendency services, ruling the plaintiff failed to demonstrate irreparable harm and ordered the parties to file a joint status letter regarding a potential referral for discovery into multiple emergency motions filed counsel.
The plaintiff, represented by Jeffrey Arlen Spinner of Liberty & Freedom Law Group Ltd., sought the order to compel the New York City Department of Education to pay for services at iBrain, a provider that the plaintiff claimed was closing due to "staffing challenges related to delays in payments from the Department of Education."
Garnett noted that the plaintiff had previously filed a motion to compel compliance with a State Review Officer's decision and for contempt sanctions, which the court had denied. The new motion relied on an email from iBrain and a declaration from Spinner affirming the authenticity of similar emails to other parents.
"Injunctive relief, in any context, is 'an extraordinary remedy' that is 'never awarded as of right,'" Garnett wrote, citing the Supreme Court's decision in Winter v. Natural Resources Defense Council, Inc.
The judge ruled that the plaintiff had "entirely failed to brief the Winter factors," which require a showing of likelihood of success on the merits, irreparable harm, a favorable balance of equities, and public interest. Garnett emphasized that irreparable harm is the "single most important prerequisite" for such relief.
Even assuming the missed school days constituted irreparable harm, Garnett found the evidence insufficient. She noted it was unclear how long iBrain's closure would last and that the court had no basis to conclude the closure was caused by delayed payments, describing the evidence as "unsupported hearsay statements."
Furthermore, Garnett pointed out that the plaintiff did not explain how funding a single student's pendency would alleviate the broader financial problems iBrain faced, such as paying more than 200 staff members and past-due rent.
Garnett also noted that the plaintiff had filed emergency motions in several other cases based on the same emails, including Abreu v. Aviles-Ramos, Bruckauf v. Aviles-Ramos, Juca v. Aviles-Ramos, and Ramos v. Samuels.
In Ramos, Judge Liman had previously ordered the plaintiff, represented attorneys, to meet and confer with the DOE and file a letter regarding whether a referral to Judge Cave for discovery concerning the emergency motions would facilitate judicial economy.
Garnett ordered the parties to file a joint status letter by Friday, April 24, 2026, providing their views on whether such a referral would be efficient. She stated she would issue an order on the plaintiff's motion for a preliminary injunction after receiving the status letter.