Insurance
Accepting Tender of Defense Allows Insurer to Control Fate of Litigation
By Rex Heeseman
In several respects, the leading case of Hamilton v. Maryland Casualty Co., 27 Cal.4th 718 (2002), demonstrates the val...
Family, Alternative Dispute Resolution
ADR Buzzwords Create Unrealistic Expectations for Divorcing Parties
By Franklin R. Garfield
Focus Column - Family Law - By Franklin R. Garfield - Buzzwords are a pervasive feature of most verbal landscapes. Every disci...
Intellectual Property, Constitutional Law
Bill Encourages States to Waive Immunity in IP Cases
By Stuart Meyer
The U.S. Constitution sets forth a federal system of sovereign states. It is common for states, through their universities and...
Forum Column - By Erwin Chemerinsky - Slowly, insidiously, the courthouse doors are being closed to litigants. One way this is...
A neighbor told me about a TV reality show he saw last week: "They showed you a real court with as many members as a football ...
Proposition 54, the so-called Racial Privacy Initiative, is based on the misguided notion that ignorance is better than knowle...
Government
Recall Delay by Court Prevents Violation of Equal Protection Clause
By Erwin Chemerinsky
Forum Column - By Erwin Chemerinsky - In ordering a delay of the recall election in Southwest Voter Registration Education ...
Forum Column - By David A. Lash - In the 2000 presidential election, Vice President Al Gore got half a million more votes than...
Insurance
'MacKinnon' Case May Change How Courts Interpret Insurance Contracts
By Rex Heeseman
MacKinnon v. Truck Insurance Exchange , 2003 DJDAR 9112 (Cal. Aug. 14, 2003), addressed the scope of the standard pollution ex...
Appellate Practice
'Palmer' Clarifies Valid Written Notice of an Entry of Judgment
By James C. Martin , Benjamin G. Shatz
Focus Column - Appellate Law - By James C. Martin and Benjamin G. Shatz - Properly calendaring judgment-notwithstanding-the-ve...
Forum Column - By Erwin Chemerinsky - Every law student learns that the outcome of constitutional cases concerning individual ...
Criminal
'Mean Justice' Agenda Leads To Ethical, Fiscal Dead End
By Robert L. Bastian Jr.
"Mean Justice" is the title of a book by Edward Humes about prosecutorial misconduct in Bakersfield. But it also is an apt des...
Alternative Dispute Resolution
Courts Struggle With Class Arbitration Questions
By Lawrence Waddington
Paralleling congressional attempts to limit class actions legislatively, federal and state courts continue to struggle judicia...
Forum Column - By Erwin Chemerinsky - Judicial review is most important when legislatures enact laws that are overwhelmingly p...
Health Care & Hospital Law
Health Care Crisis Demands Immediate Attention, Change
By David A. Lash
Forum Column By David A. Lash The health care crisis is being played out in our courtrooms and streets, with two recent event...
It has been said that the only things certain are death and taxes. As is evident from my last several columns, I must add "err...
Forum Column - By Mark Pulliam and Brandt Schmidt - In a recent pro-business ruling, the 2nd District Court of Appeal rejected...
Forum Column - By David A. Lash - Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca barely could hold the 50 mm assault weapon in his outstr...
Forum Column - By Erwin Chemerinsky - Constitutional rights have little meaning if they are not enforceable. The U.S. Supreme ...
Judges and Judiciary
'Sanchez-Scott' Decision Is Hardly Lapse in Judgment
By Lawrence Waddington
Forum Column - By Lawrence C. Waddington - Against the recommendations of Sens. Dianne Feinstein and Barbara Boxer, the Senate...
Forum Column - By Franklin R. Garfield - In "Collaborative Divorce Plan Provides Separation Skills" (Forum, April 14), Ron M. ...
Law Practice
Despite Iraq Victory, Bush's Policies Lead America Astray
By Robert L. Bastian Jr.
President Bush arguably made the correct decision to invade Iraq. Nevertheless, his leadership in foreign affairs does not mer...
Forum Column - By Joel A. Davis - A funny thing happened on the way to the U.S. Supreme Court in the case of Medical Board...
Judges and Judiciary
Extreme Cuts Will Threaten Access-to-Justice Programs
By David A. Lash
Forum Column - By David A. Lash and Mitchell A. Kamin - Over the past several years, the Judicial Council of California has se...
Civil Litigation
Procedural Rule Shouldn't Bar Meritorious Punitives Claims
By Aashish Y. Desai
While most litigators are familiar with the limitations on jury awards for noneconomic damages in medical-malpractice cases, f...
Like a river, a theme runs through my last several columns. It is the painful but important recognition that judges, like all ...
Forum Column - By Carole E. Handler, Jeffrey A. Tidus and David A. Lash - In Nazi-occupied Europe during World War II, justice...
Corporate
Foreign Business Entities Should Get Acquainted With State Rules
By Debra C. Scheufler
Adviser Column - Foreign Entities - By Debra C. Scheufler - Many foreign business entities, both corporations and limited liab...
Forum Column - By Erwin Chemerinsky - Few symbols are so vile as the burning cross. Throughout American history, bigots have u...
Forum Column - By David A. Lash - Mario Cuomo spoke in Los Angeles recently. He said that U.S. foreign policy would be best se...