Law Practice, Law Office Management
Lessons learned leading a law firm through the COVID-19 pandemic
By Danny Abir
The experience of managing a law firm during the 12-plus months since California Gov. Gavin Newsom issued his March 19, 2020, ...
Shaking up the legal ecosystem by introducing artificial intelligence
By Lance Eliot
A common mental trap entails thinking of the law and the practice of law in somewhat singular aspects as though crucial elemen...
Civil Rights
Women’s History Month: Equality still in progress
By Emilio Varanini, Ona Alston Dosunmu
From women’s rights champion Susan B. Anthony to historic athletes such as tennis great Serena Williams, the course of human h...
Civil Litigation, Alternative Dispute Resolution
Appealing orders on arbitration in federal court
By Gary A. Watt, Patrick Burns
Can a federal court order deciding whether to compel arbitration be appealed? It depends.
U.S. Supreme Court, Constitutional Law
Justices wrestle with line drawing in big property rights case
By Bryan W. Wenter
The Supreme Court heard arguments on Monday in a case that will decide whether allowing union organizers to enter an employer’...
Government, Antitrust & Trade Reg.
Biden’s FTC nomination signals crackdown on Big Tech
By Jeremy K. Robinson
The selection of antitrust scholar Lina Khan to join the Federal Trade Commission is the latest shot across the bow for the te...
Labor/Employment, 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals
High court to tackle evidentiary standard for retaliation claims
By Aaron L. Osten
The 9th Circuit has asked the California Supreme Court to address whether our Labor Code displaces the McDonnell Douglas burde...
Bad faith liability can arise even absent a demand within policy limits
By Peter S. Selvin
A recent appellate ruling demonstrates that bad faith liability for failure to settle may arise even in the absence of a deman...
Labor/Employment, Civil Rights, 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals
Ruling is a reminder on this Equal Pay Day
By Jennifer Reisch
A recent ruling by the 9th Circuit provides a timely lesson reminding us that it is long past time for employers to pay all wo...
U.S. Supreme Court, Entertainment & Sports, 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals
Battle over NCAA’s amateurism rules tips off later this month
By Jonathan Faria
On the eve of the Final Four round of the NCAA college basketball tournament, the NCAA will be fighting a battle of its own be...
Labor/Employment
California reenacts, expands paid sick leave related to COVID
By Lisa Reimbold
On Friday, California reenacted and expanded supplemental paid sick leave for covered absences related to COVID-19 through Sen...
As the trial got underway, pundits speculated that Sue Ann would end up with the largest divorce settlement in history.
Tax
Tax Day Was Extended to May 17, Extend to October to Cut Audit Risk?
By Robert W. Wood
Remember last year? The normal April 15 deadline last year was extended to July 15. That brought millions of taxpayers some re...
Law Practice, Ethics/Professional Responsibility, Civil Rights
To end racial discrimination in jury selection, abolish peremptory challenges
By Thomas J. Umberg
Study after study after study shows that peremptory challenges are used to discriminate against people of color, Batson notwit...
Labor/Employment, Health Care & Hospital Law
Employer vaccination programs: Wielding carrots and sticks
By Eva Yin, Mary O’Brien
As the U.S. continues to roll out its COVID-19 vaccination program, many employers are considering mandating vaccination to en...
Real Estate/Development, Land Use
Assembly Bill 3182 promises to break ground for new and existing ADUs
By Brenda K. Radmacher
Assembly Bill 3182 seeks streamline permitting for accessory dwelling unit construction as well as to limit the restrictions p...
Law Practice, Ethics/Professional Responsibility
The legal system is broken; it's time for change
By Ralph Baxter, Zachariah DeMeola
Arash Homampour's recent op-ed opens with the phrase, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it." Well, the legal system is broken. Dis...
Judges and Judiciary, California Courts of Appeal, Appellate Practice
Appellate academy appoints task force on delay, seeks comments
By Elliot L. Bien
Some problems produce benefits. They can even lead to lasting improvements.
Government, Corporate
COVID, corruption and climate justice are likely DOJ priorities
By Eddie A. Jauregui
Attorney General Merrick Garland has assumed the helm of the U.S. Department of Justice at a critical time.
Law Practice, Judges and Judiciary
Why we ‘just shut down our courts’
By Silvia R. Argueta, Diego Cartagena
“Why is it that we don’t just shut down our courts?” begins the March 3 op-ed article by former judge Mary Thornton House.
Construction, Civil Litigation, California Courts of Appeal
Ruling is bad news for contractors and their sureties
By Larry A. Rothstein
A recent appellate decision will have a major impact on the approximately 300,000 licensed contractors in California. Not in a...
U.S. Supreme Court
Use of ‘deliberative process privilege’ ruling is a narrow win for government
By Charles Yates, Damien M. Schiff
As the administrative state has expanded, so too has the importance of the Freedom of Information Act. FOIA ensures public scr...
Tax, Civil Litigation, Books
Guide to taxes, damages and settlements makes litigators’ jobs easier
By Jeremy Babener
Rob Wood’s treatise, “Taxation of Damage Awards & Settlement Payments,” has long been the go-to guide for tax issues surro...
Alternative Dispute Resolution
Mediator’s proposals: value and unintended consequences
By Greg Derin
When appropriate, a mediator’s proposal can be deployed to great effect. But it’s just one tool at a mediator’s disposal.
Law Practice, Ethics/Professional Responsibility, California Courts of Appeal
Adjudicating attorney fee disputes: A new Pech-ing order
By Patrick M. Maloney, Carl I.S. Mueller
A recent appellate ruling grants an advantage to attorneys caught up in fee disputes.
Technology, Law Practice
Thinking fast and thinking slow about the law and AI
By Lance Eliot
There is an ongoing theory that the mind has a twofold capacity of thinking fast and thinking slow. This controversial and arg...
Law Practice
Advocatus diaboli: Solving problems of case evaluation
By Curtis E.A. Karnow
Good lawyers discuss the negatives with clients; but that is tough to do with some clients at the same time as billing the hou...
Criminal, Appellate Practice
Man eavesdrops on himself with prostitutes; conviction upheld
By Dmitry Gorin, Alan Eisner
An appellate court upheld the conviction of a man found guilty of violating anti-wiretapping laws by filming himself with pros...
Labor/Employment, Government
The PRO Act and the future of American labor law
By Mark S. Spring
It would be the most comprehensive piece of labor legislation to be enacted since 1935, when the National Labor Relations Act ...
U.S. Supreme Court, Constitutional Law
Nominal damages sufficient for Article III standing; dissent warns of ‘major expansion’ of courts’ role
By Anna McLean, Michael A. Lundholm
The U.S. Supreme Court addressed the question whether nominal damages for a past violation of legal rights satisfies the redre...