Court Can Intercede to Preserve Right of Newly Indigent to Access Arbitration
Weiler v. Marcus & Millchap Real Estate Inv. Servs., Inc., No G053953 (D4d3 Apr. 30, 2018)Plaintiff is in an arbitration with her real estate investment advisor. But she claims she’s out of money...
View ArticleThe Fait Accompli Exception
Smythe v. Uber Techs., Inc., No. A149891 (D1d3 Jun. 8, 2018)This is kind of interesting. You might have noticed that ridesharing drivers often have both Lyft and Uber stickers on their cars. Plaintiff...
View ArticleDeath Shall Not Quiet My Title
Cnty. Line Holdings, LLC v. McClanahan, No. B278790 (D2d6 May 2, 2018)Debtor owns some real property in Ventura that is subject to two judgment liens. After Debtor dies, the junior lienholder executes...
View ArticleBut Can You Delegate the Legality of the Delegation to the Arbitrator?
Nielsen v. Contracting v. Applied Underwriters, Inc., No. D072393M (D4d1 May 23, 2018) It is well-settled that an arbitration agreement can delegate questions of arbitrability to an arbitrator, but...
View ArticleSad Target Stays Sad, But the Lawyers Get Paid
La Mirada Ave. Neighborhood Assoc. of Hollywood v. City of L.A., No. B282137 (D2d2 May 3, 2018)On the corner of Western and Sunset, there’s a Target that has been sitting half-completed for the better...
View ArticleUCL Penalties Case Goes to a Jury
Nationwide Biweekly Admin., Inc. v. Superior Court, No. A150264 (D1d1 Jun 12, 2018)Before yesterday, had I been asked whether there’s a right to jury trial in an case brought by a public prosecutor...
View ArticleIs This Charles Guy Privy With Everyone?
Charles v. Sutter Home Winery, Inc., No. B275295 (D2d4 May 9, 2018)This is a Prop. 65 case about whether there needs to be a disclosure about trace amounts of arsenic that appears in some wine. There’s...
View ArticleThe Baral-Park 1-2 . . .
Newport Harbors Offices & Marina, LLC v. Morris Cerullo World Evangelism, No. G054146 (D4d3 May 9, 2018) This is a long-running real estate litigation over a sublease to an office building in the...
View ArticleThe Law Is Not Evidence.
Contractors’ State Licensing Bd. v. Superior Court, No. A153684 (D1d1 May 9, 2018)An electrical contractor is in a disciplinary proceeding with Contractors’ State License Board. That’s before an ALJ....
View ArticleIf It Evades Review, It Evades Preclusion
Samara v. Matar, No. S240918 (Cal. Jun. 25, 2018)The Supreme Court here upholds a 2017 Court of Appeal ruling, albeit on slightly different grounds.To oversimplify the facts a bit, Plaintiff sued...
View ArticleInspector General Investigations Merit Anti-SLAPP Protection
Blue v. Cal. Ofc. of the Inspector General, No. C083195 (D3 May 10, 2018)Some prison Guards sued the Office of the Inspector General, a body created to provide oversight over internal affairs...
View ArticleInherent Power Reaches Beyond the Pale
Huang v. Hanks, No. C084702 (D3 May 10, 2018)Plaintiff, who is apparently mentally ill, has sought civil harassment restraining orders against, inter alios, Tom Hanks, Monica Lewinski, and the Dali...
View ArticleMaxim Maximalism
Nat’l Shooting Sports Foundation v. California, No. S239397 (Cal. Jun. 28, 2018).Those who toil in the mines of California state law know that the Civil Code has included since its 1872 inception a...
View ArticleToo Many Hits on the American Pipe
Fierro v. Landry’s Restaurant Inc., No. D071904 (D4d1 May 14, 2018)Plaintiff brings a wage an hour class action against his employer. But a prior class action with identical claims had apparently been...
View ArticleUC Whistleblower Needs Not Exhaust to Sue
Taswell v. Regents of the Univ. of Cal., No. G053960 (D4d3 May 14, 2018)The Government Code contains a statutory scheme to protect UC employees who become whistleblowers. They can vindicate their...
View ArticleEvery Stupid Case Isn't a SLAPP
Yeager v. Holt, No. C079897 (D3 May 16, 2018)Famed test pilot Chuck Yeager got successfully sued for fees by his former attorney. He apparently retaliated by suing the attorney for malpractice, breach...
View ArticlePublic Posting Is Consent Under the SCA
Facebook v. Superior Court, No. S230051 (Cal. May 24, 2018)Back in 2017, the Court of Appeal held that the Stored Communications Act prevented a criminal defendant from subpoenaing Facebook and...
View ArticleBe Careful What You Don't Pray For
Airs Aromatics v. CBL Data Recovery Techs., Inc., No. D072624 (D4d1 May 25, 2018)I covered the issues in this case three years ago in the Dhawan case. But just in case you forgot, Code of Civil...
View ArticleAnti-Vaxer Benchslap!
Brown v. Smith, No. B279936 (D2d Jul. 2, 2018)Talk about calling bullshit. The Court here took judicial notice that the factual allegation at the core of Plaintiffs’ theory was false and thus that it...
View ArticleHave at It, Court of Chancery . . .
Bushansky v. Soon-Shiong, No. D072213 (D4d1 May 25, 2018)Over the past decade, it has become increasingly prevalent for corporations to enact what are called forum-selection bylaws. These require...
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