"It will be of little avail to the people, that the laws are made by men of their own choice, if the laws be so voluminous that they cannot be read…."
James Madison, Federalist 62
The pursuit of a perfectly detailed understanding of anything eventually loses the truth because one knows too much. Historians, for instance, in their microscopic focus on their craft, once concluded the ancient city of Troy never existed, until Heinrich Schliemann exhumed not only one Troy but seven.
Following the daily churn of statutes passed by legislatures and cases interpreting and reinterpreting them, one could be led to observe, as Mark Twain did of New England weather, that if you don’t like it, just wait a few minutes. But as many of the articles on this page will suggest, the law tends to follow rather fixed patterns. We hope these articles, many about legal outcomes that seem surprising, will suggest the law might be more predictable than you think.
TVA appellate attorney Tim Kowal publishes this weekly update of legal news for trial attorneys. You may subscribe by clicking here. Covid EXTENSIONS Have Expired, But Covid EXCUSES May Still Work The First Appellate District (Rowan v. Kirkpatrick, A160568) observes that while the Covid-related extended deadlines have passed, "Courts have long recognized the policy, based […]
TVA appellate attorney Tim Kowal publishes this weekly update of legal news for trial attorneys. You may subscribe by clicking here. NOT the Schoolhouse Rock Version of Cal. Supreme Court Review.First, a chilling Third District decision says if a sheriff's deputy asks you to check on a neighbor, omits the fact the neighbor had whispered […]
The inaugural episode of California Appellate Law Podcast discusses California's anti-SLAPP law, Code of Civil Procedure section 425.16 and several key decisions by the California Court of Appeal and the California Supreme Court. In 1992, California enacted Code of Civil Procedure section 425.16 which provides a mechanism for quickly dismissing frivolous lawsuits and awarding attorney’s […]
In a recently affirmed decision TVA obtained for the Chapter 7 bankruptcy trustee, the U.S. Bankruptcy Court held that a QPRT - generally irrevocable...
An attorney pursuing an appeal may be tempted to raise any and all arguments - however flimsy - before...
In today's litigious society, parties are quick to sue others but, due to the demands of life, defendants will oftentimes overlook...
In a recent decision TVA obtained for the Chapter 7 bankruptcy trustee, the U.S. Bankruptcy Court held that a QPRT - generally irrevocable...
Distressed homeowners subject to lender "dual-tracking" do not need to wait until the end of a lawsuit to recover attorneys' fees...
The one-year period to bring an action for malpractice typically begins after the lawyer last represented you...
"We are all familiar with the phrase, "caveat emptor": Buyer beware. This case deals with its less renowned cousin...
In the high-profile case City of San Jose v. Superior Court, the California high court recently held: "when a city employee uses a personal account to communicate...
Leeman v. Adams Extract & Spice Co. (Cal. Ct. App. May 21, 2015) says no. As they routinely do, a Prop-65 toxic-chemicals-warning case settles for a trifling amount of penalties but a heaping portion of attorneys' fees...
If you've been involved in litigation, you likely are aware of the "CCP 998 offer." CCP § 998 is a statutory carrot-and-stick...
In our February newsletter, we noted the California Supreme Court was reviewing whether the ambiguous spendthrift protections...
The judicial admission is a simple concept: when you take a position in a pleading, discovery response, or open court, you're stuck with it...
Is an employee leaving? Pay up. Pay in full. There is no 'A' for effort...
Retaining key personnel is vital to the success of any enterprise. However, the law's prohibition of trade restraints often makes it difficult...
The right judgment is not always the just result...
A recent opinion of the California Court of Appeal held a New York choice-of-law clause was ineffective to enforce a party's waiver...
Irrevocable trusts are often used to protect assets from the reach of creditors, but courts have chipped away...
With the recent publicity of Hulk Hogan's lawsuit against Gawker Media, and specifically the funding of the lawsuit...
"It is often said that good fences make good neighbors. One might wonder whether there actually is such a correlation...
In a recent property-dispute opinion, the Second District in Shoen v. Zacarias came to the perfectly sensible decision that equity is not aroused by a trespasser's inconvenience...
Pokemon Go-maker Niantec moved to dismiss the class action that alleges the wildly popular app causes droves of users to trespass on private property...
The high court recently published Park v. Trustees of the Cal. State Univ., reversing a split appellate-panel decision.
Despite best efforts to reduce expectations to a written contract, one can rarely estimate with much accuracy...
Originally published in Verdict
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A man is handing out leaflets in the train station, an old Soviet joke has it, when he is stopped by an officer. Examining the leaflets, the officer discovers they are just blank pieces of paper...
Originally published in OC Lawyer
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There are two kinds of developers: the pessimist, who sees a glass as half-empty, and the optimist, who sees the glass as four-fifths empty...