Alternative Dispute Resolution
Mediating emotional employment disputes during COVID-19
By Stephen Sonnenberg
Before the pandemic, in workplaces different than many today, there was no shortage of employment disputes. Allegations of dis...
Security deposits are the most common fight we encounter between landlord and tenant — and the bigger the deposit, the bigger ...
Civil Litigation, Intellectual Property
When communications confer personal jurisdiction: a cautionary tale
By Garrett M. Fahy
It is a question many intellectual property lawyers navigating a potential infringement case have undoubtedly pondered: How ma...
A bill recently introduced in Congress would allow some college athletes to unionize and classify themselves as employees. As ...
Civil Litigation, Entertainment & Sports, Labor/Employment
US women’s soccer team files opening brief in fair pay case
By Garrett R. Broshuis
Bested by their rival Canada in the semifinals, they failed to reach the gold-medal match for a second straight Olympics. At t...
Civil Litigation, Entertainment & Sports
Black Windows: Scarlett Jo vs Disney
By Neville L. Johnson, Douglas L. Johnson
“The truth rarely makes sense when you omit key details.” These words, spoken by Florence Pugh to Scarlett Johansson in “Black...
Government, Tax
Congress has the power to shine a light on Trump taxes
By John H. Minan
Congressional attempts to secure former President Donald Trump’s tax returns and related tax information is in the news again ...
Entertainment & Sports
Olympic reflections: the rules, the judges, the organization
By Robert L. Bastian Jr.
If the most potent existential threats to the Olympic Games are war and terrorism, pandemic also makes the podium. This year, ...
Books, Entertainment & Sports, Law Practice
Q&A with ‘Lincoln Lawyer’ author Michael Connelly
By William Domnarski
Known mostly these days for his character Harry Bosch–he of the popular television series bearing his name–best-selling Los An...
If California is proud of its position as the nation’s progressive bastion, it is absurd that it lets its residents go bankrup...
Ethics/Professional Responsibility, Law Practice
Effective strategies for lawyers considering transitioning to retirement
By Shari L. Klevens, Alanna G. Clair
Attorneys may take varied views on the prospect of retirement. Some wish to remain practicing attorneys, or at least affiliate...
Administrative/Regulatory, Government
The CFPB’s war on discrimination
By Scott M. Pearson, John A. Kimble
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau will soon be weighing in on the national conversation on discrimination with actions,...
Whenever money changes hands, there are tax issues, and that is certainly true with the legal settlement by celebrity Chef Mar...
Over 20 years ago, during a business trip to Los Angeles, an old law school friend managed to sneak in an hour for dinner with...
Ethics/Professional Responsibility, Law Practice
Alzheimer’s: Will you know what to do?
By Robert M. Heller
Part 4: Litigators’ duties owed to clients with Alzheimer’s
As originally enacted in 1872, CCP Section 387 specified that “any person may, before trial, intervene” which courts interpret...
Civil Litigation, Construction
Insurers’ obligations versus indemnitees’ obligations
By Garret D. Murai
While a “subrogated insurer is said to ‘stand in the shoes’ of its insured, because it has no greater rights than the insured....
Besides using AI for the good of mankind, there is also the opposite side of the coin and the application of AI to commit crim...
America must do more to keep women veterans out of jail.
Family, Judges and Judiciary
Private judge in Jolie/Pitt case: no more flawed than usual
By Timothy D. Reuben, Stephanie I. Blum
In Jolie v. Superior Court, Angelina Jolie obtained a writ of mandate from the 2nd District Court of Appeal, Division 7 orderi...
Ethics/Professional Responsibility, Law Practice, State Bar & Bar Associations
Lawyers across the US are playing in the sandbox
By David M. Majchrzak, Heather L. Rosing
No, as enjoyable an image as it may conjure up, chances are that you probably won’t be seeing a large number of your bar colle...
Titles can be misleading... even my own
California Courts of Appeal, Contracts, Entertainment & Sports
An important contract lesson from ruling in ‘The Jungle Book’ case
By Jamil M. Aslam
On July 21, a California appellate court issued a significant decision involving royalty agreements
Appellate Practice, Law Practice
On trial court briefs: the judges speak
By Myron Moskovitz
Trial judges from across the state weigh in on proper brief writing — including their thoughts on attacks on opposing counsel.
Health Care & Hospital Law
MICRA magnifies problems with the California Medical Board
By Benjamin T. Ikuta
Ironically, while MICRA has threatened the lives and wellbeing of patients, it has not even helped doctors. Despite MICRA, th...
Alternative Dispute Resolution, Law Practice
Arbitrator disclosure rules meet legal creativity
By Fred Bennett
It not surprising that, for better or worse, the creative juices of lawyers considering arbitrator bias claims continue to flow.
In a recent case, the court denied the estate’s motion to discuss, finding that even non-willful penalties survived the taxpay...
Labor/Employment
Risk management strategies for the increasingly common ‘hybrid employee’
By Corinne Spencer, Antwoin Wall
For many employers, if not all, the COVID-19 pandemic has changed the landscape of the workplace. Particularly, the hybrid bus...
Law Practice
Q&A with journalist, former 9th Circuit clerk Dahlia Lithwick
By William Domnarski
Trained as a lawyer, with a year clerking on the 9th Circuit, Dahlia Lithwick writes for Slate, the influential online news ma...
California Supreme Court, Civil Litigation
State Supreme Court belatedly recognizes that 19th century statute of limitations decision lacks precedential value
By Scott P. Dixler, Sarah E. Hamill
In a recent ruling, the California Supreme Court analyzed how stare decisis applies to a 19th century decision with questionab...