This is the property of the Daily Journal Corporation and fully protected by copyright. It is made available only to Daily Journal subscribers for personal or collaborative purposes and may not be distributed, reproduced, modified, stored or transferred without written permission. Please click "Reprint" to order presentation-ready copies to distribute to clients or use in commercial marketing materials or for permission to post on a website. and copyright (showing year of publication) at the bottom.
Subscribe to the Daily Journal for access to Daily Appellate Reports, Verdicts, Judicial Profiles and more...

Special Reports


Section 230 turns 30: View our full coverage


Firm Profile

Brothers in Law

Mendez & Sanchez

2026-02-05

From The Archive


MCLE

California enacts law to speed contractor payment disputes on private projects

Feb. 4, 2026

SB 440 offers broader, more protective change order remed...

By Daniel F. McLennon

Judicial diversion fundamentals

Jan. 26, 2026

Judicial diversion lets courts pause misdemeanor cases, s...

By Michelle M. Ahnn, Holly L. Hancock-Goode

You can't cross examine a machine

Jan. 23, 2026

Proposed federal evidence rule would require AI-Generated...

By Anita Taff-Rice


Today's News

Torts/Personal Injury


Closing arguments ended in the Phoenix bellwether trial, with the plaintiff's counsel urging a $144 million verdict against Uber for alleged rape, while the ...


After 12 years of litigation, San Francisco Union Square Hilton agreed to a $12 million class settlement proposing to resolve claims it withheld mandatory b...


Ethics/Professional Responsibility


A San Francisco judge awarded former Farella lawyer Neil Goteiner $47,000 in fees after his dismissal from a malpractice lawsuit brought by the International...


Appellate Practice


Benjamin G. Shatz, a California-certified appellate specialist with more than two decades at Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, bolsters a trial group that the f...


Judges and Judiciary


Former state attorney Anthony Tartaglio is running to unseat San Francisco Superior Court Judge Michelle Tong, citing public criticism of her record as judic...


Antitrust & Trade Reg.


A federal judge said an antitrust challenge to Altria's stake in Juul should go to trial, rejecting summary judgment while expressing skepticism about plaint...


Columns

A recent Daily Journal guest article mischaracterizes ABA Opinion 518, wrongly suggesting that mediator's proposals imply lega...


A federal judge appointed Susman Godfrey's Rohit Nath and Keller Rohrback's William Dreher as co-lead counsel in authors' clas...


Immigration, Criminal, Administrative/Regulatory

Since 2019, South American Theft Groups have driven millions in losses across Los Angeles County, exploiting loopholes in Cali...



Verdicts & Settlements

Breach of Contract Pilot Thomas Logistics LLC ... $55,000,000
Retaliation Nancy Valla v. Dignity Heal... $27,500,000
Malpractice Phuong Ho, Trinh Nguyen v. ... $18,056,888
Battery Joseph Garza, individually,... $11,000,000
Discrimination Ross Byer v. City of La Palma $8,400,000
Negligence Tisha Hilario, individually... $4,000,000
Failure to Pay Alex Charalambous and Brian... $3,125,000
Wage and Hour Lary Martin James, individu... $2,500,000
Wage and Hour Luis Manuel Villalpando, By... $2,500,000
Overtime/Regular Rate Sandra Summers and Dariia F... $2,345,000

On the Move

Spaulding McCullough & Tansil LLP

Jan. 30, 2026


Thomas Del Monte was promoted to partner in Santa Rosa. The promotion was effective Jan. 1, 2026.

Del Monte has been an integral member of SMT's legal team since joining the firm, where he has focused on business and real estate matters. He brings deep experience covering virtually all standard business law matters, including business sales, corporate structure and governance, ownership and buy-sell agreements, debt and equity financings, securities law, equity compensation, IP strategy, contract drafting and negotiation, and real property transactions.


Details

Spaulding McCullough & Tansil LLP has 15 attorneys in 2 offices including 2. Among the law firm’s key practice areas are Business, Employment, Intellectual Property, Litigation, & Trusts and Estates. The firm’s website is www.smlaw.com

Featured Content


Community News

Community News


Ajay Krishnan joins the bench after a 20-year litigation career at Keker Van Nest & Peters, including 15 years as a partner.



Podcasts

Davis Wright Tremaine's Vid Prabhakaran joins In the Counsel's Chair to break down three of the biggest challenges facing the ...


Daily Appellate Report

Conservatorship

Conservatorship of A.B.

Where substantial evidence supported that conservatee--even on medication--lacked basic insight that he could not presently care for his basic needs without medication, renewal of conserv...


Securities

Construction Laborers Pension Trust of Greater St. Louis v. Funko Inc.

Funko's purportedly "forward-looking" statements about potential excess inventory risks were not entitled to PSLRA safe-harbor, where they implied that Funko was not already experiencing ...


Criminal Law and Procedure

U.S. v. Engstrom

Because defendant failed to provide a complete debrief to the government as required for safety-valve relief, district court erred in imposing a sentence below the statutory minimum.


Immigration

Montejo-Gonzalez v. Bondi

Applying categorical rule regarding traffic-caused lateness rather than considering the totality of the circumstances when deciding whether to reopen in-absentia removal order was an abus...


Civil Procedure

Higginson v. Kia Motors America

New trial was required where defendant's discovery misuse constituted an irregularity in the proceedings that prevented plaintiff from having a fair trial.