Using Bluebook style in state court is like talking with a foreign accent: you will be understood and accepted, but it’s not h...
Civil Rights, Judges and Judiciary
Inconsistent court websites prevent access to justice
By Anthony Pinggera
Though we do not have a duty to actively assist our opponents in litigation in navigating an arcane system, we should make mor...
Appellate Practice, Ethics/Professional Responsibility, Law Practice, Litigation & Arbitration
How not to screw up your case in arbitration, part one
By Christopher David Ruiz Cameron, Kathy Fragnoli
In our view, it is a mistake bordering on malpractice for the respondent's counsel to put off the opening statement.
Appellate Practice, Law Practice, Tax
‘Pay me tomorrow’ may not defer tax on lawyers
By Robert W. Wood
Plaintiff lawyers can actually use a benefit most other people – including other lawyers – can’t: structured legal fees. Reduc...
Appellate Practice, Ethics/Professional Responsibility, Law Practice
Dressed to deceive
By Myron Moskovitz
Dressing a client to mislead a jury? It’s time to call it what it is - rank deception - and somehow put some limits on it.
Civil Litigation, Ethics/Professional Responsibility, Law Practice
Attorney public/private partnerships receive a boost
By Charles H. Abbott
The 4th District affirming the agreement between San Diego and private lawyers may encourage more public-private partnerships ...
Administrative/Regulatory
SEC suffers judicial setbacks for administrative hearings
By Nicolas Morgan, Kenneth Herzinger
These decisions will likely bring most SEC administrative proceedings to a screeching halt, at least in the Fifth Circuit.
Ethics/Professional Responsibility, Legal Education, State Bar & Bar Associations
Elimination of the bar exam would be a dangerous development
By Jason Tolerico
A “non-exam pathway” would undoubtedly allow many students to obtain licensure who are not minimally competent. Internship pro...
Ethics/Professional Responsibility, Government, Judges and Judiciary
Connecting California to the Courts
By Paul A. Bacigalupo
To combat misconceptions about our courts and return the public’s trust in the judiciary, it is essential for the entire legal...
Ethics/Professional Responsibility, Judges and Judiciary, Law Practice
In defense of old White men – A vanishing breed. On second thought – good riddance
By Arthur Gilbert
To my ear the tone was tinged with derision. I tried to shrink my slight, elderly frame into the grain of my big leather chair...
Entertainment & Sports
Stream It Tonight! Presumed Innocent (1990)
By Michael Asimow, Paul Bergman
The film begins with a shot of an empty courtroom and Sabich’s voice-over solemnly explaining that if a jury “cannot find the ...
California Courts of Appeal, Government, Land Use
Government cannot bind itself, nor its successors, not to govern
By Michael G. Walker
Nonetheless, boards persistently try to do just that. A common route they take to reach that result is by settlement of litiga...
Ethics/Professional Responsibility, Law Practice
Ego and insecurity hinder diversity
By Christopher C. Melcher
California Courts of Appeal, Environmental & Energy
Can a bee ever be a fish? Ah, definitions…
By Michael M. Berger
“The issue presented here is whether the bumble bee, a terrestrial invertebrate, falls within the definition of fish, as that ...
Civil Litigation, Criminal, Government
Will the Uvalde police be criminally prosecuted?
By Louis J. Shapiro
The only other previous police officer to be charged for failing to confront a gunman in the context of a school shooting was ...
Civil Litigation
Remote litigation: Why Johnny Depp went to a Virginia court to get Heard
By Harry J. Nelson, Yehuda Hausman
Because of California’s tough Anti-SLAPP statutes, Depp’s legal team likely calculated that it would be easier, and less risky...
Civil Litigation, Contracts
Prime contractors need to ensure subcontractors are licensed
By Garret D. Murai
On Sept. 28, 2015, Hoffman and his crew began to remove the tree. Before they could finish, however, Todd told Hoffman and his...
Constitutional Law, Intellectual Property, Technology
Twitter could become a safe haven for cyberbullies
By Christa H. Ramey
The public debate around free expression and censorship ramped up when COVID skeptics, election deniers and conspiracy theoris...
Even when the geofenced area and time window are narrowly tailored, there still remains the question: Is the geofence supporte...
Ethics/Professional Responsibility, Law Practice, Technology
Grumpy old guy finally bows to technology
By Louie H. Castoria
Keeping up with changes in the law practice, including law tech’s benefits and risks, makes good business sense.
Appellate Practice, Family, Law Practice
The transgender child custody discussion
By Scott J. Nord
Before we can talk about custody issues regarding transgender children, we must understand the important and complicated conce...
Of course, but for the fallibility of human nature, there would be no need for laws, including those governing the workplace.
Mergers & Acquisitions, Securities
M&A dry powder will drive spending spree
By Sara L. Terheggen
The volatile capital markets make M&A a more likely path for companies who are unable to raise capital or execute other ty...
Gascón’s policy allows for defendants to be diverted, meaning there is no conviction. If there is no conviction, there is no s...
Civil Litigation, Government, Technology
Self driving car expectations on a collision course
By Miguel A. Custodio
While other automakers have had lawyers draw up dreamy names to call attention to the fact that the car won’t drive itself, Te...
Constitutional Law, Ethics/Professional Responsibility, U.S. Supreme Court
The lessons of the leak in Dobbs
By Robert A. Schapiro
How should the leak figure into law school teaching? Perhaps this dramatic departure from accepted norms presents an important...
Constitutional Law, Covid Columns, Litigation & Arbitration
COVID shutdowns and the Constitution
By Michael M. Berger
An unused gym or restaurant is merely an empty shell of a building, not something economically beneficial or productive. Neith...
Judges and Judiciary
Do American judges have the security they need?
By James J. Brosnahan
The executive and legislative branches have the power to command money for security personnel. Celebrities and extremely wealt...
Contracts, Entertainment & Sports
Contract negotiations and free agency…in collegiate athletics?
By Frank N. Darras
For those tossing tomatoes from the cheap seats arguing paying college athletes was going to destroy college sports…locker roo...
Civil Rights, Corporate, Government
Despite recent adverse rulings, shareholder activism continues
By Kimberly Jaimez, David Oliwenstein
Notwithstanding the above rulings, many shareholder groups remain steadfast in their demand for diversity at the top.