Law Practice, Ethics/Professional Responsibility
Arbitration of malpractice claims is alive and well
By Brian Slome, Kenneth C. Feldman
At the minimum, clients should have the choice of going to binding arbitration. If they don’t want to go arbitration in the fu...
Government, Administrative/Regulatory
Delivery regulations appear to override local control of cannabis
By Scott E. Huber
In what appears to be a massive power grab, the Bureau of Cannabis Control recently approved regulations which override all lo...
Law Practice, Alternative Dispute Resolution
Dealing with a challenging client during mediation
By Peter J. Polos
While mediation has certainly gained popularity among civil litigators in California, our clients are not always easily convin...
U.S. Supreme Court, Intellectual Property
Justices need to hear Oracle v Google
By Peter S. Menell, David O. Nimmer
A matter of blockbuster significance is the subject of a current petition for certiorari. The case is Oracle v. Google. We sub...
U.S. Supreme Court, Government, Constitutional Law, 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals
Courts’ historical struggles with citizenship renunciation
By John S. Caragozian, Donald E. Warner
The federal government’s ignoble mass imprisonment of Japanese-Americans during World War II has a postscript: In 1944 and 194...
Government, 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals
Ruling is a victory in battle for affordable housing
By Jill Habig
The 9th Circuit recently upheld a Santa Monica ordinance regulating short-term rentals companies. This decision is a win not j...
People ask me all the time now if I believe legal education has "bounced back." I am convinced it has bounced, but I doubt it ...
U.S. Supreme Court, Government, Constitutional Law
An unlawful presidential act
By Erwin Chemerinsky
President Donald Trump is acting in an unconstitutional and unlawful manner in spending $8 billion to build a wall without con...
Criminal, Constitutional Law, California Courts of Appeal
The schizophrenic Sixth
By Brian M. Hoffstadt
The Bible may say, “No one can serve two masters.” But do these words of wisdom apply to the Sixth Amendment’s right to counsel?
Judges and Judiciary, California Supreme Court
Justice Brown and the old ACLU
By Mitchell Keiter
As a former chambers attorney for California Supreme Court Justice Janice Rogers Brown, I was surprised to read about her cons...
Government, 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals
Airbnb ruling allows ‘breathing room’ for local governments
By Christi Hogin
The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the city of Santa Monica’s ordinance regulating short-term vacation rental of res...
Banking, Administrative/Regulatory
What the 51 percent attack tells us about blockchain security
By Chaz M. Hales
In early January, Chinese blockchain security firm SlowMist and U.S.-based cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase separately announc...
U.S. Supreme Court, Securities
Thunder (Basin) struck: Are Ray Lucia’s rights meaningless?
By Joel Nolette
Last June, Ray Lucia won big at the U.S. Supreme Court. Yet Lucia finds himself once again facing SEC proceedings before a jud...
Immigration, Government, Constitutional Law
The Census battle continues
By Kaylan Phillips
In a case where the unusual has become the norm, all eyes will be on the Supreme Court to see if or how it addresses the Calif...
Civil Litigation, California Supreme Court, Appellate Practice
Projected admissibility
By Curtis E.A. Karnow
A July 2017 paper on quantum mechanics suggests the future influences the present. Our Supreme Court appears to have to come t...
Civil Litigation, Law Practice
To err is human, to sometimes forgive is CCP Section 473(b)
By Stephen J. Squillario
Fortunately, the Code of Civil Procedure offers a potential escape hatch when an attorney’s mistake, inadvertence, surprise, o...
Civil Litigation, California Supreme Court, Appellate Practice
Proper submission of pre-trial evidence: The twin hurdles
By Kasey Curtis, Charles Hyun
The term “admissibility” typically refers to evidence introduced at trial. A concept that is perhaps more nuanced, but typical...
of summary adjudication and summary judgment orders
Criminal, Constitutional Law
Newsom’s executive order violates promise to voters
By Michele A. Hanisee
During his campaign Gov. Newsom promised that although he does not support the death penalty, he would not interfere with the ...
Tax, Real Estate/Development
Investing in an opportunity zone? Find a fund manager you can trust
By Matthew J. Ertman
The new tax law created an incentive program which encourages investors to make long-term financial investments in opportunity...
The IRS can't take your passport exactly, but it can tell the State Department to do so. Whether this is a good idea can be de...
Criminal, Constitutional Law
Death penalty order creates as many problems as it solves
By David A. Carrillo, David Aram Kaiser
Governor Gavin Newsom's moratorium on executions was hailed in many circles for halting a death penalty process in California ...
Labor/Employment, Government
SB 142: More lactation accommodations or just more litigation?
By Michael J. Nader, Jill L. Schubert
Proposed law may actually impede lactation accommodations for working mothers and promote litigation.
Labor/Employment, Government, California Supreme Court
High court could revisit the ‘California Rule’ in new cases
By Christopher Waddell
While the California Supreme Court chose not to revisit the rule in the recent Cal Fire case, it could choose to do so in thre...
Civil Litigation
Litigation is critical to opioid crisis response
By Nora Freeman Engstrom, Michelle M. Mello
The opioid problem is monstrous and tentacular. Litigation is a critically important component of the response to the crisis: ...
U.S. Supreme Court, Civil Litigation, Appellate Practice
Equitable considerations won’t work, but will a motion for reconsideration or a Martian invasion?
By Jeremy S. Smith, Christopher Chorba
The Supreme Court holds that there are no equitable exceptions to Rule 23(f)’s 14-day deadline to file a petition for permissi...
Judges and Judiciary, California Supreme Court
California Supreme Court Historical Society grant honors Selma Moidel Smith
By Kathryn Mickle Werdegar
The funds may be used to defray the travel expenses of law students and graduate students needing to access archival materials...
U.S. Supreme Court, Labor/Employment, 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals
For life not eternity: What’s next for pay history?
By Eve I. Klein, Jennifer A. Kearns
Last month, the U.S. Supreme Court vacated the 9th Circuit’s pay history ruling for improperly relying on the vote and opinion...
Labor/Employment, Government
Bill aims to rein in the dark side of forced arbitration
By Eric B. Kingsley
There were rumblings in the past, but now the full force of the U.S. House of Representatives is coming for forced arbitration...
Civil Litigation
Presenting life care planner’s testimony while navigating Sanchez
By Brian S. Kabateck, Brian Hong
It’s a scenario that many trial lawyers dread: Your life care planner is on the stand. Just when she’s about to get into the d...
