Opinion
March 2, 1995
Appeal from the Supreme Court, New York County (Harold Tompkins, J.).
State courts are without power to restrain Federal court proceedings in in personam actions (Donovan v. City of Dallas, 377 U.S. 408, 412-413; see also, General Atomic Co. v. Felter, 434 U.S. 12, 17; General Atomic Co. v. Felter, 436 U.S. 493, 497; Cone Hosp. v. Mercury Constr. Corp., 460 U.S. 1, 21, n 24). We therefore vacate the injunction granted by the trial court, which was based upon a misperception of the breadth of the holding in Cone (supra), and violative of the Supremacy Clause of United States Constitution, article VI, § 2.
In addition, the trial court erred by not entertaining, and granting Merrill Lynch's application for a preliminary injunction (CPLR 7502 [c]; see, Blumenthal v. Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner Smith, 910 F.2d 1049), due to the likelihood of the respondent's success on the merits, given the nature of the employment and non-solicitation agreements, the waiver signed by the petitioner, and the prejudice which would flow from denying this relief.
Concur — Murphy, P.J., Sullivan, Rosenberger and Ross, JJ.