Constitutional Law, Government
The authority to remove special counsel
By Steven D. Reske
Most pundits and politicians mistakenly believe if Special Counsel Robert Mueller is fired reviving the independent counsel la...
Appellate Practice, Civil Rights, Constitutional Law, Government, Civil Litigation, U.S. Supreme Court
Tension in free exercise rulings
By Gunnar B. Gundersen IV
States cannot deny direct funds to churches because they are churches -- at least when it comes to building playgrounds. This ...
Law Practice, Civil Litigation
Be careful what you post. It could cost you in court
By Mark B. Simowitz
Jill’s lawyer finally fleshed out why the insurance company was not considering the surgery: His client had posted pictures of...
Corporate, Intellectual Property
Equity compensation is about retention
By William E. Growney
The reality is that for most employees at most companies, a sale of the company may mean a new car or a down payment on a new ...
Civil Rights, Constitutional Law, Immigration, U.S. Supreme Court
Travel ban ruling raises more questions
By Hadar Aviram
On Monday, the U.S. Supreme Court issued decisions in several cases associated with the Trump administration's travel ban, rea...
Corporate
New accounting rule may lower perceived value of franchisors
By Barry Kurtz, Christopher L. Passmore
Franchisors will need to adjust their methods when accounting for franchise fees either this year or next, depending on whethe...
Appellate Practice, Civil Litigation, U.S. Supreme Court
Time up for securities class action opt-outs
By Anthony J. Dick, Christpher DiPompeo
In CalPERS v. ANZ Securities, the U.S. Supreme Court continued its trend of paring back class actions and enforcing strict tim...
Corporate, Intellectual Property
Proposed generic drugs legislation divides stakeholders
By William Diaz, Michelle Lowery
The CREATES Act of 2017 is proposed bipartisan legislation targeting actions by brand name drug manufacturers that can delay e...
Criminal, Tax
When disputing a tax bill, should you go ahead and pay?
By Robert W. Wood
After soccer star Cristiano Ronaldo was accused of criminal tax evasion, some sources suggested that his team would pay the $1...
9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, Appellate Practice, Criminal
9th Circuit ruling shows need to rein in civil forfeiture abuse
By Scott A. Meiner, Mahesha P. Subbaraman
The 9th Circuit recently rejected the use of coordinated successive traffic stops by the police to search a motorist's vehicle...
Constitutional Law, Government, Labor/Employment
Lawmakers must act to protect employees’ due process rights
By William M. Crosby
When a person's livelihood is at stake, the right to know the specific charges, identities of accusers and documents and othe...
Appellate Practice, California Supreme Court, Constitutional Law
Nice guys (get to keep their property after all)
By Michael M. Berger
A recent Supreme Court opinion cabins an older decision that has been derided as both bad law and bad policy.
Corporate, Mergers & Acquisitions, Securities
IPOs: people, planning and critical path items
By Sara L. Terheggen
Once a company has determined an IPO is the right choice for them and have implemented the necessary steps to prepare for beco...
Appellate Practice, Intellectual Property, Civil Litigation
Federal Circuit clarifies long-standing lost profits question
By Chris Marchese, Liz Ranks
The robustness of lost profits has been undermined in recent years by an unsettled issue - whether patentees must apportion lo...
Judges and Judiciary, Law Practice, Civil Litigation
Contractual attorney fees fundamentals
By Matthew Ross
The objective of this article and self-study test is to review entitlement to attorney fees pursuant to contracts.
Appellate Practice, California Supreme Court
Maybe, but not necessarily, entitled to fees
By Audra Ibarra
Or so the state high court said about contract attorney fees in cases dismissed on procedural grounds.
Contracts, Government
Bill is fair compromise on design professional liability
By D. Creighton Sebra, Christopher J. Menjou
Earlier this year, Gov. Jerry Brown signed Senate Bill 496, modifies design professionals' contractual duty to defend.
California courts have increasingly watered down or altogether ignored the substantial-factor requirement.
9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, Intellectual Property, Civil Litigation
Brand owners rejoice at Google ruling
By Simon J. Frankel, Ted Karch
The 9th Circuit recently held that "verb use [of a trademark] does not necessarily constitute generic use."
In examining the building blocks of consciousness in his new book, "From Bacteria to Bach and Back," Dennett starts with billi...
David Grann has a way with creating razor-keen suspense out of already tension-filled historical narratives. "Killers of the F...
Constitutional Law, U.S. Supreme Court
Giving offense is a viewpoint
By Blaine H. Evanson, Christina R.B. Lopez
The "disparagement clause" in Section 2 of the Lanham Act violates "bedrock" First Amendment principles and is therefore facia...
Criminal, Law Practice
Criminal competency in California courts
By Christopher M. Honigsberg
The procedure for determining competency for a criminal defendant confuses many attorneys, even criminal attorneys.
Administrative/Regulatory, Government, Health Care & Hospital Law
Fair Pricing Act puts price controls on hospitals run amok
By John Aiello
Republican health care reform proposals have grave consequences for the millions of Americans, though Californians might be fa...
Ethics/Professional Responsibility
How to help lawyers who are in distress
By J. Randolph Evans, Shari L. Klevens
The stigma surrounding substance abuse and depression often makes it difficult for those afflicted to ask for help or for thos...
Innocent, even careless mistakes can often be forgiven. Conduct that appears to be intentional, much less so.
Alternative Dispute Resolution, Law Practice
Co-mediation: When 2 heads are better than 1
By Lynn Duryee, Jeane Struck
Sometimes the combination of retired judge and former attorney provides just the right medicine to get the job done.
Corporate, U.S. Supreme Court
Lingering questions following Escobar
By Kimberly A. Dunne, Douglas Axel
One year ago, the U.S. Supreme Court endorsed the implied false certification theory under the False Claims Act.
9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, Constitutional Law, U.S. Supreme Court
Justices should hear 9th Circuit free speech case
By Mitchell Keiter
The First Amendment's protection of conscience is more important than ever in this polarized age. The political majority can a...
Administrative/Regulatory, Environmental & Energy, Government, Transportation
Paris or no Paris, auto emissions may fall
By Jeffrey Soble, Sarah Slack
U.S. auto manufacturers may be motivated to push ahead with green technologies regardless of the withdrawal from the Paris Agr...