9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, Alternative Dispute Resolution, Civil Litigation, Litigation & Arbitration
Uber drivers can still obtain appropriate relief through arbitration
By Michael H. Leb
Claims like those of individual drivers are exactly the types of claims that should be disposed through a process less formal ...
Civil Rights, Labor/Employment
When it comes to sexual harassment, how do we curb bad behavior?
By Eve H. Wagner
Bad actors don’t suddenly change their stripes because they were spoon-fed a few hours of mandatory training. So how do we cha...
Immigration, U.S. Supreme Court
Is Nielsen v. Preap a textualist nightmare?
By Seth M.M. Stodder
As the saying goes, "bad facts make bad law." Add in an unartfully drafted statute, and you have Nielsen v. Preap, the latest ...
Administrative/Regulatory, Transportation
Financial responsibility laws should cover electric scooters
By Allen Patatanyan
It’s time to plug this gaping hole in our motor vehicle laws.
Real Estate/Development
Prop 10 is the wrong approach to address the housing crisis
By Eric Maman
A middle ground is possible for rent control, but this year’s initiative to repeal Costa-Hawkins does the opposite.
I have been pondering "commensurability," an important concept in law, after my diagnosis with a rare, serious autoimmune dise...
Unless an alarm sounds to immediately constrain Musk’s Neverland-like banter and play, the clock in the Croc will draw ever cl...
Administrative/Regulatory, Corporate, Criminal
2nd Circuit Focuses FCPA Enforcement on Agency
By Laura Kabler Oswell, Nathaniel L. Green
The 2nd Circuit's ruling in United States v. Hoskins may provide further encouragement for foreign individuals and entities to...
To ensure that a plea is "knowing and intelligent," criminal defense attorneys must tread carefully through the briar patch of...
Entertainment & Sports, Intellectual Property, Civil Litigation
Down the Stairway to Heaven, and into district court
By Bennett A. Bigman
Based on a recent ruling by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, rock legends Robert Plant and Jimmy Page will return to a L...
Constitutional Law, U.S. Supreme Court
Taking back takings lawsuits
By Meriem L. Hubbard
This term the Supreme Court has a chance to overturn a decades-old decision that kept many property owners out of federal courts.
International Law, U.S. Supreme Court
Secret sales and prior art
By Craig E. Countryman
This term, the Supreme Court will consider whether, under the America Invents Act, a secret prior sale can invalidate a patent.
Contracts, Entertainment & Sports, Law Practice
Depp ruling probably won’t end the art of the (handshake) deal
By Pierre B. Pine
In a ruling heard ‘round the entertainment world, in August a superior court in Los Angeles said Johnny Depp’s oral contract w...
Criminal, Law Practice
Domestic violence: A scourge that knows no boundaries
By Yvette Lopez-Cooper
October is National Domestic Violence Awareness Month. For years, law enforcement agencies, social service providers, non-gove...
Ethics/Professional Responsibility, Law Practice
New rules modify unauthorized practice of law rules in California [Rule 5.5]
By Peter Weber
The new Rule 5.5 modifies former Rule of Professional Conduct 1-300, titled “Unauthorized Practice of Law.”
Labor/Employment
Review NLRB’s proposed rule to clarify its joint-employer standard
By Mellissa A. Schafer, Brandon A. Takahashi
On Sept. 14, the National Labor Relations Board proposed a rule to clarify the board’s position on this legal issue,
Ethics/Professional Responsibility, Law Practice
Closing old files will help your law firm reduce risk
By Shari L. Klevens, Alanna G. Clair
It does not always occur to attorneys to formally close the matter internally and to send a file closing letter to a client.
Alternative Dispute Resolution, Civil Litigation
The dollars and sense of a discovery referee
By Joyce Fahey
It’s surprising how often this sensible and cost-saving solution is overlooked.
The #MeToo movement and our changing culture have been the driving force behind new California laws that increase employers’ ...
Labor/Employment
Governor Brown didn’t sign all the employment law bills; here’s a few
By Chris Micheli
While we normally only address signed bills that have become new law in California, there were quite a number of significant v...
Intellectual Property
The writing is on the wall: Copyright protection for street art
By Victoria Burke
Recent cases have highlighted the question as to what, if any, intellectual property rights do graffiti artists, who use build...
State Bar & Bar Associations, Judges and Judiciary, U.S. Supreme Court
This is not the demeanor of a ‘well qualified’ judge
By Stephen F. Rohde
On Aug. 31, the American Bar Association gave Judge Brett Kavanaugh its highest rating of “Well Qualified” in connection with ...
Government, Labor/Employment, Civil Litigation
Bill is critical component of sea change in women’s rights
By Genie Harrison
Senate Bill 1300 finally eliminates the pass given to bad actors in the workplace that was rooted in the way the “severe or p...
Administrative/Regulatory, Government
First cybersecurity bill governing internet of things signed into law
By Vanessa Katz
Beginning on Jan. 1, 2020, the California IoT law will require that manufacturers of any device “capable of connecting to the ...
Ethics/Professional Responsibility, Law Practice
Internet advertising and the criminal law mill
By George K. Rosenstock
In the early 90s, the California Supreme Court ruled that the contact information for persons arrested could be released. This...
Constitutional Law, Environmental & Energy, U.S. Supreme Court
Authority over public lands and resources in (and out of) Alaska
By Matthew J. Sanders
After the U.S. Supreme Court hears arguments in November, will Alaska prove to be the exception or the rule for the future of ...
Constitutional Law, U.S. Supreme Court
The constitutional limits of the Chevron deference doctrine
By Larry Alexander
Chevron deference has been a quite controversial doctrine, both on and off the courts. The controversy has encompassed the doc...
Appellate Practice, California Courts of Appeal, Judges and Judiciary
Slumming it with facts on appeal, part 2 — going to the 909
By Benjamin G. Shatz
As we have seen, sometimes appellate courts do get their hands dirty with facts and will entertain a new fact for the first ti...
Administrative/Regulatory, California Supreme Court, Government
Hold up the original intent of the California Public Records Act
By Laura E. Murray
The California Supreme Court is considering whether to hear a case that could require the nation’s largest water agency to rel...
Law Practice
How will you honor this year’s National Celebration of Pro Bono?
By Laura Cohen, Michelle Takagishi-Almeida
There are plenty of opportunities for attorneys from any practice area or background to get involved in pro bono service year-...