Letters to the Editor

      MAYOR'S FAMILY VALUES
      Poor Thomas Saenz. What a rotten time to appear on the cover with Mayor Villaraigosa ["The Mayor's Advocate," July]. Will Mr. Saenz advise His Honor on whether his married name can be ordered restored to "Villar"?
      William Davis
      Los Angeles
     
      Just wondering: Does the mayor's advocate practice family law?
      Eric Bluemke
      Santa Ana
     
      ANOTHER GENDER-BIAS LETTER
      At the risk of beating the proverbial dead horse (of either sex), Marc Angelucci (July letter, responding to the April MCLE "Gender Bias in the Law") dilutes his otherwise valid point when he offers up Judge Judy in support of the proposition that female aggression is no longer equated with stridency. Judge Judy is a television caricature, offered up in the afternoon for the entertainment of the at-home crowd. One of the reasons she is so successful at earning viewers is the vicarious thrill of watching a mean mommy scolding bad boys and girls (from the safety of her guarded, raised dais). This is not a valid example of parity between male aggression and female aggression in the real world.
      Further, his list of antimale bias was going great (sentencing disparities, child-custody presumptions, etc.), but ended with a dud. Nightclubs promoting "Ladies Night" are antimale? Are you kidding? The clubs are not offering lower prices to women because they prefer women, and want to fill up their clubs with women drinking at lower prices. (Now there's a great business model for you.) The clubs love the men, want the men, and are busily attracting women through lower prices precisely so that the men will want to come in. If anything, it's a passive-aggressive affront to women. (Come on in, gals, and get liquored up. We have a bunch of guys in here looking for women with impaired judgment.)
      Otherwise, Mr. Angelucci's point is well taken: People who pontificate upon "gender bias" tend to focus primarily on antifemale bias. That perspective has historical weight, but it is foolish to persist in that viewpoint. Antimale bias is real, if not as pervasive as antifemale bias. Failing to give it sufficient weight in discussion tarnishes the credibility of your position.
      Mary Frederickson
      Riverside
     
      TEJON RANCH REDUX
      I have two responses to your article in the June issue about the proposed development at Tejon Ranch. First, the controversy around proposed developments on land that has significant ecological value, which is almost any open space, illustrates the correctness and environmental value of the indigenous peoples' concept that no one can own land. If Tejon Ranch were not privately owed, there would likely be no proposed development there, and the land could be protected in perpetuity.
      Second, as usual, the underlying problem of human overpopulation and incessant growth is not even mentioned. Without incessant population growth, there would be no incentive to ruin open space with development, because there would be no demand for new homes. Only by lowering human population will our environmental, and many other, problems be solved.
      Jeff Hoffman
      San Francisco
     
      THAT SETTLES IT
      Many of the tax consequences Robert Wood describes in his excellent June MCLE article "Taxing Matters in Settling Cases" can be managed through the use of a structured settlement. Plaintiffs using a structured settlement can choose when to receive the funds. Settlement money earns interest on either a tax-free (physical injury cases) or tax-deferred (all other cases) basis. Upon disbursement, the payment, comprised of both original funding plus investment income, retains the characteristic of the original settlement, i.e., tax-free for physical injury damages, taxable for everything else. There is no constructive receipt of properly structured funds until disbursement, no matter when the settlement occurred. Defendants conclude their involvement at time of settlement by funding a structured settlement annuity under the applicable tax code section.
      Teddy Snyder
      Beverly Hills
     
      CORRECTION: Due to errors in compiling "The California 50" [August], the total number of California attorneys for Greenberg Traurig was underreported. As of May 31, the firm had 178 attorneys in the state. In addition, Cox Castle & Nicholson should have been ranked; its 138 California attorneys place it at number 43. And 16 of Howard Rice Nemerovski Canady Falk & Rabkin's California partners in 2006 were women; a lower figure was printed in error. California Lawyer regrets the errors.
     
      California Lawyer welcomes letters to the editor and publishes excerpts from as many as possible. Please include your phone number and city of residence. Write to us at 44 Montgomery St., Suite 250, San Francisco, CA 94104, fax 415/296-2482, or email letters_callaw@dailyjournal.com.
     

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