State Bar & Bar Associations
State Bar will fine attorneys who don’t get re-fingerprinted
By Lyle Moran
The agency plans to fine attorneys up to $175 if they don’t re-submit prints on time
Civil Litigation, Alternative Dispute Resolution
Judge: Tesla can’t compel contractor to arbitrate
By Andy Serbe
An Alameda County judge has denied Tesla Inc.’s attempt to compel arbitration via an unsigned agreement with a former contractor.
4th District Justice Richard T. Fields aims to consistently produce high-quality opinions.
Gov. Jerry Brown appointed two appellate court justices and 21 superior court judges across the state Friday.
Judges and Judiciary
9th Circuit Judge Sandra Ikuta has the ear of high court conservative justices
By Nicolas Sonnenburg
In a term with an unusually low number of certiorari grants, the justices agreed to review 13 cases from the 9th U.S. Circuit ...
Litigation & Arbitration
Trial to begin in dispute over Beats headphones
By Steven Crighton
A former hedge fund manager who helped develop the earliest iteration of Beats headphones will have a second chance to prove t...
9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals
Rare 9th Circuit special prosecutor order may be re-decided en banc
By Justin Kloczko
The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals will take a vote on whether to rehear en banc its rare order appointing a special prosec...
Civil Litigation
Judge denies class certification in Theranos investor case
By Joshua Sebold
Investors suing blood testing company Theranos Inc. lost some leverage when a magistrate judge in San Jose denied a motion to ...
Law Practice
Appellate boutique opens San Francisco office, hires Sedgwick lawyer to run it
By Caroline Hart
Boutique appellate firm Horvitz & Levy LLP expanded outside of the Los Angeles area for the first time, opening an office ...
The merger doubles Lathrop’s Los Angeles office roster.
Criminal, 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals
Officers involved in Occupy Cal protests entitled to qualified immunity, 9th Circuit says
By Nicolas Sonnenburg
Police officers and university administrators involved in dispersing crowds during Berkeley’s 2011 Occupy Cal protests are ent...
Judges and Judiciary
50 years on, U.S. magistrate judges have more responsibilities
By Blaise Scemama
Since Congress created the position in 1968, U.S. magistrate judges have increased significantly and so have their responsibil...
A federal judge said he was seriously considering punishing Fitbit Inc. and its attorneys for allegedly attempting to abuse th...
Labor/Employment, California Courts of Appeal
Nullification of farmworker decertification election wrong, state appellate court rules
By Meghann Cuniff
Setting the stage for another state high court labor battle, an appellate court panel has ruled that the state Agricultural La...
Intellectual Property, Entertainment & Sports
Jay-Z wins 9th Circuit “Big Pimpin’” battle
By Steven Crighton
Moral rights under Egyptian law do not extend to economic rights, a 9th Circuit panel found.
Criminal, California Supreme Court
Liu dissents in death penalty affirmance over dismissal of black jurors
By Winston Cho
The state Supreme Court affirmed a death penalty verdict Thursday for a defendant convicted of rape and torture in an opinion ...
Immigration
Magistrate judge doubtful about certifying immigrant class
By Chase DiFeliciantonio
A federal magistrate judge was skeptical at oral arguments on Thursday about whether she should certify a nationwide class of ...
A $3.5 million class action settlement over claims that a San Fernando Valley landfill was such a nuisance neighbors couldn’t ...
Law Practice, Education Law, State Bar & Bar Associations
First Asian American lawyer in California remembered a century later
By Caroline Hart
A century ago, Chan Chung Wing was the first Asian American attorney to be admitted to the California State Bar. The Asian Ame...
Law Practice, Intellectual Property
Venable hires intellectual property litigator from Stradling
By Andy Serbe
Venable LLP hired as a partner Sarah Brooks, an intellectual property litigator who moved from Stradling Yocca Carlson & R...
Jeffer Mangels partner Mark Adams revived a creative calling to balance out his law career.
Mediator Jeane Struck makes a point of developing relationships with both sides early on.
Civil Litigation, Banking
Wells Fargo to settle class action regarding fake accounts
By Joshua Sebold
A federal judge said he would approve the final settlement in a class action alleging Wells Fargo Bank NA employees offered re...
Civil Litigation, 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals
9th Circuit affirms jury verdict for prisoners in LA jail brutality case
By Nicolas Sonnenburg
A federal jury correctly awarded nearly $1 million in damages to five Los Angeles county inmates who were beaten by sheriff's ...
Judges and Judiciary, Ethics/Professional Responsibility
San Mateo County judge admonished for improper remarks
By Winston Cho
The Commission on Judicial Performance publicly admonished San Mateo County Superior Court Judge Lisa A. Novak for making impr...
Civil Litigation, Government
Phone records lead to settlement in death of entertainment lawyer
By Justin Kloczko
The family of a well-known entertainment lawyer who was killed when a distracted sheriff’s deputy ran into him has reached an ...
9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals
‘Monkey selfie’ case may go en banc before 9th Circuit
By Nicolas Sonnenburg
A judge on the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has requested the court rehear en banc the famed “monkey selfie” case, indica...
A crop of district attorney races across California have been defined by progressive challengers, including defense attorneys ...