International Law, Government, Constitutional Law
FISC: Who’s watching the watchers?
By Jeffrey A. Aaron
The FISC should have applied the same standard for its amicus appointment as for the judges themselves, or that of an appearan...
U.S. Supreme Court, Tax, Government
2019’s top 10 California SALT developments
By Eric J. Coffill, Alexandra Louderback
While compared to some years in the past, 2019 was not a “big” year in terms of the overall number of California developments ...
Government, Administrative/Regulatory
TRACED Act gives the government bigger hammer to curb robocalling
By Artin Betpera
Earlier this month the Pallone-Thune Telephone Robocall Abuse Criminal Enforcement and Deterrence Act was signed into law. TRA...
Constitutional Law, 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals
9th Circuit 4th Amendment jurisprudence in action: Blight v City Manteca
By Kevin Allen
In a recent ruling, a unanimous panel upheld summary judgment for the defendants. The court found probable cause, reasonable s...
What to expect and how to prepare.
Law Practice, Labor/Employment, Civil Rights, Alternative Dispute Resolution
A significant blow to firms looking to arbitrate discrimination claims
By Gay C. Grunfeld, Cara E. Trapani
A California Court of Appeal decision has dealt a significant blow to law firms seeking to force women lawyers to arbitrate cl...
Environmental & Energy, Constitutional Law, 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals
9th: Climate is just too complicated for the courts
By Dave-Inder Comar
The en banc court's Jan. 17 message to the plaintiffs in Juliana v. United States, was clear: You're right about your constitu...
A while back, I dabbled in writing screenplays. One of the books on how to write a script said something that has stuck with m...
Labor/Employment
The impact of AB 5 on court interpreters in the private sector
By Esther M. Hermida
This will cause a major disruption to the legal system that relies on the availability of interpreters to communicate with cli...
U.S. Supreme Court, Health Care & Hospital Law
Insurers fight to get their promised Affordable Care Act premium subsidies
By Vinay Bhupathy, Christine Clements, Arytan Dahukey, Dhara Waghela
Three consolidated cases are the latest cases related to the Affordable Care Act to make their way to the Supreme Court. Last ...
Government, Administrative/Regulatory
Reforming the internet
By Douglas E. Mirell, Joshua Geller
Recognizing the sea change in information technology in the 21st century, Congress is finally beginning to consider in earnest...
Civil Litigation
Summary judgment after Sweetwater: Motions denied?
By Gary A. Watt, Rosanna W. Gan
Despite resolving what it described as narrow anti-SLAPP questions, the opinion has implications for summary judgment. In Swee...
Judges and Judiciary, Ethics/Professional Responsibility, Constitutional Law
Does the First Amendment permit excoriating remarks about judges?
By A. Marco Turk
In view of the increasingly fractured political climate providing more opportunities for expressions of displeasure with the j...
Legal Education, Law Practice
Solving the inclusion conundrum: Reflections on equity, inclusion and making change in the legal profession
By Noor-ul-ain S. Hasan
Legal profession surveys consistently show a persistent, systemic inclusivity problem: at 70% male and 88% white it is one of ...
The IRS taxes all income, whether in cash or in kind. Lottery winnings? Taxed. Gambling winnings? Taxed. Crypto? Yes, it’s tax...
Government, Constitutional Law
Equal Rights Amendment is still in play, if Congress wants it to be
By David A. Carrillo, Stephen M. Duvernay
On Wednesday, Virginia became the 38th state to ratify the amendment, pushing it over the three-quarters of states constitutio...
It is almost impossible to obtain a large jury verdict in an employment case outside the United States, and there are few plac...
U.S. Supreme Court, Bankruptcy
Supreme Court says ordinary understanding of ‘final decision’ isn’t dispositive in bankruptcy appeals
By David S. Kupetz
In an opinion issued on Tuesday, the Supreme Court addressed “the finality of, and therefore the time allowed for appeal from...
Government, Administrative/Regulatory
The right way to regulate artificial intelligence: The decision-based approach
By Bradford K. Newman
The regulatory focus must not be on hypothetical conundrums such as hyper-technical and uber-esoteric debates over the “proper...
The First Step Act was a very promising piece of legislation for criminal justice reform when it was signed into law by Presid...
Legal Education, State Bar & Bar Associations
Transparency needed in California bar exam results
By Mitchel L. Winick
Several recent articles in the Daily Journal have reported serious problems with the State Bar of California’s statistical rep...
Constitutional Law, California Supreme Court
The last decade in the United States Supreme Court
By Erwin Chemerinsky
Everyone seems to be making lists about what occurred in the last decade, so what about the Supreme Court over the last 10 yea...
Civil Litigation, Labor/Employment
California's 'request arbitration, go to jail' law remains on hold
By Anthony J. Oncidi
Late last year, the California Legislature enacted and Gov. Gavin Newsom signed into law an anti-arbitration statute that masq...
Ever the opportunist, candidate George Gascón is continuing his disinformation campaign with the hope of winning over progress...
Law Practice
Attorney triggers appellate court to clarify Section 128.5 sanctions
By Jeffrey P. Blum
As litigators we are aware of the vagaries and unforeseeable pitfalls involved in taking a case to court. Knowing the unpredic...
As a teacher, I am asked by students at the beginning of the semester whether I recommend that they memorize the rules.
Securities, Government, Corporate
What does the SEC have in store for 2020?
By Nicolas Morgan, Thomas A. Zaccaro
A number of factors — such as market trends, SEC initiatives, rule changes, and significant court cases — can push the SEC’s E...
U.S. Supreme Court, Constitutional Law, 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals
The 9th Circuit’s non-functional approach to the ministerial exception
By Josh McDaniel, Jacob M. McIntosh
The Supreme Court should reject the 9th Circuit’s approach and ensure that religious liberty is equally available to all faiths.
Tax, Government
Legal developments from 2019 affecting the nonprofit sector
By Erin Bradrick
What a year! As we close out 2019 and usher in 2020, here’s an overview of some of the key occurrences and legal developments ...
For privacy lawyers old enough to remember, December 2019 felt oddly reminiscent of December 1999. There was a lingering sense...