Traditionally, Irish and English courts were reluctant to allow injunctions in the context of contracts for personal services where the injunction would effectively force one party to work for another, or would compel an employer to continue to employ someone.

Some recent cases suggest exceptions to this principle, depending on the relationship of trust and confidence which exists. However, such exceptions are open to lenient interpretation, and arguably, given the implications involved, it should never be appropriate to grant injunctions in the context of contracts for personal services.

Critically discuss this statement considering the rationale for the general principle that injunctions would not be granted in the context of contracts for personal services and exceptions to this. In your answer, you should refer to relevant case law and academic commentary