Special Reports
Judicial Profile
5 decades in criminal law guide Judge Michael J. Popkins from the middle
MCLE
Arbitration clauses in commercial contracts: Strategic advantage or unnecessary constraint?
Commercial arbitration can offer privacy, expertise and s...
By Louis TambaroCIPA meets the modern web: California's data-tracking disputes and the path forward
As courts weigh whether routine website tracking violates...
By David S. Cunningham IIIProposed SB 690 eliminates pen register CIPA claims but leaves website privacy litigation intact
SB 690 could wipe out most pending pen register claims an...
By Logan Leonard
Today's News
Immigration
GEO Group sues California over new immigration detention rules
By David Houston
Private detention operator GEO Group is challenging California's new Civil Detainees' Bill of Rights Act, arguing the state cannot impose its own standards a...
A federal judge will end one of the nation's longest-running police monitorships after the Oakland Police Department achieved compliance with all 51 reforms ...
Technology
OpenAI sued over AI agents' alleged escape, Hugging Face cyberattack
By Daniel Schrager
A California nonprofit claims OpenAI is legally responsible after AI agents allegedly escaped a controlled testing environment and hacked Hugging Face, in a ...
Antitrust & Trade Reg.
Paramount-Warner Bros. merger wins final court approval
By Craig Anderson
An Oakland federal judge approved Paramount Skydance's acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery over objections from advocacy groups, cementing a deal with 12 ...
Antitrust & Trade Reg.
Newsom signs major expansion of California antitrust law
By Malcolm Maclachlan
AB 1776 gives state prosecutors new authority to pursue anticompetitive conduct by dominant companies, widening California's divergence from federal antitrus...
Labor/Employment
Lyft agrees to $272.5M settlement over California driver classification
By Douglas Saunders Sr.
Lyft will pay at least $237 million to drivers to resolve claims it misclassified them as independent contractors before Proposition 22, in what officials c...
Columns
While lawsuit settlements are generally taxable, construction defect and property damage recoveries often follow different rul...
Constitutional Law
The First Amendment at the stadium gate: Who controls speech on a public stage?
By K. Chike Odiwe
The First Amendment usually begins with a simple question: Did the government restrict speech? Macklemore's removal from Ed Sh...
Constitutional Law
Federal preemption takes center stage in California pipeline dispute
By Michael M. Berger
A federal court ruled that the Defense Production Act preempts conflicting California restrictions on restarting Santa Barbara...
Verdicts & Settlements
| Wrongful Death | Alexandra Rasey-Smith, Gord... | $5,800,000 |
| Wage and Hour | Paul Williams, on behalf of... | $5,200,000 |
| Malpractice | John Doe v. Roe Hospital | $4,700,000 |
| Wage and Hour | Eliza Serrano, individually... | $4,100,000 |
| Premises Liability | Jane Doe v. Roe Restaurant ... | $3,250,000 |
| Wage and Hour | Daniel Kelley, on behalf of... | $2,360,000 |
| Breach of Contract | Isabel Arteaga v. Calcrete ... | $2,000,000 |
| Intentional Misrepresentation | Tiffany Young v. Brian Rich... | $2,000,000 |
| Wage and Hour | Stephanie Jones, an individ... | $1,900,000 |
| Premises Liability | John Doe v. Roe Builders | $1,550,000 |
On the Move
Cozen O'Connor
Theresa Nolan joined Cozen O'Connor as a member in Los Angeles. The move was Sept. 21, 2026.
Details
Cozen O'Connor has 1000 attorneys in 34 offices including 3. Among the law firm’s key practice areas are litigation, corporate and regulatory law, government relations, insurance, and labor and employment. The firm’s website is https://www.cozen.com/
Featured Content
Insurance defense attorneys have long been on the front lines for their clients. Now they're facing a new threat: the carriers...
Alternative Dispute Resolution
JAMS neutrals examine how evolving PAGA reforms, shifting case law and data-driven claims are reshaping mediation strategies i...
Community News
RCBA Chief Financial Officer Christopher G. Jensen of Reid & Hellyer; Lord & Brooker APC and Master of Ceremonies Michelle M. Brooker, RCBA 2026-27 President Elisabeth A. Lord, and Solomon D. Droge
(Ret.) Jeffrey J. Prevost and Harlan B. Kistler of Law Offices of Harlan B. Kistler
Lucy Matevosyan of Matevosyan Law Group, honoree Virginia M. Blumenthal of Blumenthal & Moore APLC and RCBA 2026-27 President Elisabeth A. Lord of Lord & Brooker APC
Deputy Public Defender Steven L. Harmon, "James H. Krieger Meritorious Service Award" recipient and "E. Aurora Hughes Award for Service" recipient Virginia M. Blumenthal of Blumenthal & Moore APLC
Thompson & Colegate LLP's law clerk Laiba Malik and associate Jazmyne D. Alverson
Daniel E. Katz of Reid & Hellyer, RCBA 2026-27 President Elisabeth A. Lord of Lord & Brooker APC and (Ret.) Judge Kira L. Klatchko of JAMS
(Ret.) Judge Craig G. Riemer, Peter J. Mort of Murrieta and (Ret.) Jeffrey J. Prevost
Stephanie Barraza, Associate Business Manager at JAMS; San Bernardino County Deputy Public Defender Andrea J. Garcia and Juvenile Courts Attorneys' Desireá M. Tucker
Paul J. Molinaro of The Law Offices of Fransen & Molinaro LLP and Thomas W. Dominick of Fullerton Lemann Schaefer & Dominick LLP
Luz E. Essenwanger of Redlands and Michael Saavedra of Represent Justice
Riverside Unified School District Teacher Teri Stamen and Superior Court Judge Carol A. Greene
Teresa Sarenana, Giro Bevinetto, Arlene M. Dashkovitz of Law Office of Arlene Marie Cordoba and paralegal Sharol Vampola
Stream Kim's Elizabeth V. Duran, Amy Zhou, Michaele M. Gonzalez, Amy J. Osborne and Antonieta T. Leal
Riverside County Superior Court’s Presiding Judge Jacqueline C. Jackson and Supervising Judge Dean Benjamini
Financial Adviser Micki Hicks, U.S. Magistrate Judge David T. Bristow and Financial Adviser Karl Hicks
RCBA Past President Megan J.G. Demshki and Casey R. Johnson, both of Aitken Aitken Cohn
RCBA 2026-27 Vice President Lauren M. Vogt of Rizio Lipinsky Heiting and Past President Megan J.G. Demshki of Aitken Aitken Cohn
(Ret.) Judge Gloria C. Trask, Gordon W. Trask III of Glendora and Superior Court Judge Randall S. Stamen
(Ret.) Judge David S. Cohn of JAMS and Michael J. Marlatt of Thompson & Colegate LLP
Gary T. Montgomery of Thompson & Colegate LLP, 4th District Senior Appellate Court Attorney Mary Ann Forrest and Donald R. Lee of Dietz Gilmor & Chazen
Deputy City Attorney Neil D. Okazaki of Corona and Superior Court Judge Christopher B. Harmon
Reel Fathers Rights' David L. Taub, Merritt L. McKeon and Priyanka Bhattacharya
Juvenile Courts Attorneys' Desireá M. Tucker; Rizio Lipinsky Heiting's associate Joseph M. Ernatt, manager Joey Ross and associate Briana A. Heiting, also an RCBA Member-at-Large
Oliver P. Cleary of Law Office of Oliver P. Cleary, Jean-Simon Serrano of Rizio Lipinsky Heiting and Superior Court Commissioner Kelly Moran
RCBA Member-at-Large Edgar B. Lopez of Law Office of Edgar Lopez APC and Leo Herrera of Herrera Law PC
Senior Presiding Justice Manuel Ramirez and Jackie Hoar, settlement conference administrator at the 4th District Court of Appeal
JAMS' mediators (Ret.) Judge David S. Cohn and (Ret.) Judge Chad W. Firetag
RCBA Barristers President Nolan B. Kistler of the Law Offices of Harlan B. Kistler, Heather A. Green of Blumenthal & Moore APLC and Christopher A. Johnson of Reid & Hellyer
Paul Grech Jr. of Law Offices of Grech Packer & Hanks and (Ret.) Judge Harold W. Hopp
Wade Pyun, chief legal officer of Altura Credit Union and Ellen M. Peng of Riverside
RCBA 2026-27 President Elisabeth A. Lord of Lord & Brooker APC (center) with past presidents, board members, and honorees
RCBA Recognition of 50-Year State Bar Members: Daniel E. Olson of Riverside, Senior Presiding Justice Manuel Ramirez and James O. Heiting of Heiting & Irwin
Arturo M. Cisneros of Malcolm Cisneros, Teresa Cisneros and Superior Court Judge Randall S. Stamen
Virginia M. Blumenthal and Steven L. Harmon presented each other with the association's top service awards as Elisabeth A. Lord was installed as RCBA president.
Daily Appellate Report
Trusts and Estates
Nelson v. Nelson
The "paper contest" exception does not apply where a trust's No-Contest clause is subject to enforcement under the current statutory scheme that governs No-Contest clauses.
Criminal Law and Procedure
People v. Barraza
Hair attached to person's head was part of the body and not personal property, so forcibly cutting it did not satisfy the personal property element of robbery or attempted robbery.
Juveniles
In re X.G.
Juvenile court should have considered whether circumstances justified ordering less than full restitution where other individuals were involved in offense even though they were not adjudi...
Criminal Law and Procedure
People v. Atencio
Moving a robbery victim around her secluded property was incidental to the robbery, but abandoning the stolen property before reaching safety did not reduce the completed robbery to an at...
Criminal Law and Procedure
Jordan v. Superior Court (People)
An incompetent-to-stand-trial defendant facing revocation of outpatient treatment is not automatically entitled to a full evidentiary hearing with confrontation and cross-examination.