California Supreme Court, Appellate Practice
Maybe, but not necessarily, entitled to fees
By Audra Ibarra
Or so the state high court said about contract attorney fees in cases dismissed on procedural grounds.
Government, Contracts
Bill is fair compromise on design professional liability
By D. Creighton Sebra, Christopher J. Menjou
Earlier this year, Gov. Jerry Brown signed Senate Bill 496, modifies design professionals' contractual duty to defend.
California courts have increasingly watered down or altogether ignored the substantial-factor requirement.
Civil Litigation, Intellectual Property, 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals
Brand owners rejoice at Google ruling
By Simon J. Frankel, Ted Karch
The 9th Circuit recently held that "verb use [of a trademark] does not necessarily constitute generic use."
In examining the building blocks of consciousness in his new book, "From Bacteria to Bach and Back," Dennett starts with billi...
David Grann has a way with creating razor-keen suspense out of already tension-filled historical narratives. "Killers of the F...
U.S. Supreme Court, Constitutional Law
Giving offense is a viewpoint
By Blaine H. Evanson, Christina R.B. Lopez
The "disparagement clause" in Section 2 of the Lanham Act violates "bedrock" First Amendment principles and is therefore facia...
Law Practice, Criminal
Criminal competency in California courts
By Christopher M. Honigsberg
The procedure for determining competency for a criminal defendant confuses many attorneys, even criminal attorneys.
Health Care & Hospital Law, Government, Administrative/Regulatory
Fair Pricing Act puts price controls on hospitals run amok
By John Aiello
Republican health care reform proposals have grave consequences for the millions of Americans, though Californians might be fa...
Ethics/Professional Responsibility
How to help lawyers who are in distress
By J. Randolph Evans, Shari L. Klevens
The stigma surrounding substance abuse and depression often makes it difficult for those afflicted to ask for help or for thos...
Innocent, even careless mistakes can often be forgiven. Conduct that appears to be intentional, much less so.
Law Practice, Alternative Dispute Resolution
Co-mediation: When 2 heads are better than 1
By Lynn Duryee, Jeane Struck
Sometimes the combination of retired judge and former attorney provides just the right medicine to get the job done.
U.S. Supreme Court, Corporate
Lingering questions following Escobar
By Kimberly A. Dunne, Douglas Axel
One year ago, the U.S. Supreme Court endorsed the implied false certification theory under the False Claims Act.
U.S. Supreme Court, Constitutional Law, 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals
Justices should hear 9th Circuit free speech case
By Mitchell Keiter
The First Amendment's protection of conscience is more important than ever in this polarized age. The political majority can a...
Transportation, Government, Environmental & Energy, Administrative/Regulatory
Paris or no Paris, auto emissions may fall
By Jeffrey Soble, Sarah Slack
U.S. auto manufacturers may be motivated to push ahead with green technologies regardless of the withdrawal from the Paris Agr...
Civil Litigation, Law Practice, Corporate
How to humanize a corporate defendant
By Robert F. Tyson Jr.
Learning to personalize the corporate client by telling their story -- family, pride of ownership, community standing and more...
Appellate Practice, Administrative/Regulatory
Publish or perish: A labraddoodle and a fire in Santa Barbara
By Daniel J. Herling
Who is responsible for a house fire that occurs when a dog is left alone with combustible dog food on a stovetop: the dog's ow...
U.S. Supreme Court, Civil Litigation, Intellectual Property
Patent ruling means business for NDCal
By Kathi Vidal, Tom Melsheimer
The Supreme Court's TC Heartland decision is likely to increase the number of filings, and more importantly the overall number...
California Supreme Court, Appellate Practice
California’s long arm slapped down by the Supreme Court
By Paul F. Utrecht
In a nearly unanimous opinion by Justice Samuel Alito, the U.S. Supreme Court just slapped down the California Supreme Court's...
As Rutherford B. Hayes said, "The calamity of insanity is one which may touch very nearly the happiness of the best of our cit...
There's widespread misunderstanding among employees about the legal consequences and scope of FMLA, especially when it comes t...
A few consideration worth thinking about in developing an effective compliance policy that exists beyond mere paper on a shelf.
If the FCC eliminates the net neutrality rules, ISPs would no longer be classified as common carriers, which would appear to c...
If you are at the point of deposing experts, chances are you are within two months of the trial date. Thus, you don't have a l...
Interestingly, Senate Bill 632 imposes no limit on the questioning done by the plaintiff's own counsel -- just that of the def...
It is tempting to say that like the soul, the Law too is a chariot drawn by two horses, Bureaucracy and the Quest for Justice,...
Civil Litigation, California Courts of Appeal, Appellate Practice
Ruling grapples with 998 offers, arbitration
By Gary A. Watt
While the procedural mechanics of 998 offers in the courts is well-settled, the same cannot be said for arbitration. And as a ...
Pepperdine law professors Robert Anderson and Derek Muller and the State Bar of California have failed to prove that an MBE cu...
Real Estate/Development, Probate, Construction
California contractors: Protecting assets from lawsuits
By William L. Porter
Since 1970, California law has granted California residents substantial protection for their assets from legal claims of credi...
The Statement of Facts section of your brief is not just a collection of facts. It's a story. People love to hear stories — if...