Due process prevails. A common mistake is pleading damages (other than as limited in Family/PI/wrongful death cases) according to proof without providing the defendant with a number of possible damages. The result is a default but no money to the plaintiff. The law states a default judgment cannot exceed the type and amount of relief
Broker Must Disclose all Material Facts, Even if Obtained from a Neighbor! (In Ryan v Real of the Pacific, (2019) 32 Cal.App.5th 637)
The Court held that a broker must disclose that the seller’s neighbor told him he planned to remodel and his remodeled house would overlook the seller’s pool and interfere with the view. This case case also found expert broker testimony is not always necessary to find breach of a broker’s duty care. The Court stated
Landlord’s Must Disclose if a CASp Report Exists Civil Code Section 1938 requires commercial landlords to state in every lease executed on or after July 1, 2013, whether the property being leased has been inspected by a Certified Access Specialist (CASp) (Civil Code §1938
January 1, 2017, Civil Code § 1938 was expanded to require:
A Certified Access Specialist (CASp) report can reduce the minimum statutory damages and allow for a stay of the lawsuit pending a mediation session with the court. Effective January 1, 2017, revised Code Section 1938 also requires:
- A commercial property lessor shall state on
Amended Complaint Must be Filed 9 Court Days Before the Demurrer hearing (CCP §472)
The trial court research attorneys s are now happier! No longer can an amended pleading be filed the morning before the demurrer hearing! As of 2018, amended Code of Civil Procedure §472 now provides:
(a) A party may amend its pleading once without leave of the court at any time before the answer, demurrer, or
Professionalism Trumps Freedom of speech in the court room (which is a good thing) Bus. Code §6068(b)
The moral fiber of our society continues to degrade. The following is an attorney ethics issue and as a reminder attorney’s are held to a higher standard.
After a trial on a sexual harassment claim resulting in an $8,080 jury verdict, and a $7,000 costs award, Plaintiff’s counsel was upset he was not awarded the
Insurer Does Not Have a Duty to Defend for Accidentally Trimming Neighbors Tree
A homeowner’s liability insurer does not have duty to defend a lawsuit after the insured intentionally pruned trees on another’s property without permission. The intentional act of hiring a contractor to prune is not an “accident” within the meaning of the policy’s coverage provision, even if the insured mistakenly believed the trees were on the
A Medical Marijuana Card Still Has Some Benefits
In California while recreational cannabis is all the rage after January 1, 2018, the California. Medical marijuana laws under California’s “Compassionate Use” Act still provide some benefits. Including:
- Patients with valid medical marijuana ID cards are exempt from paying state sales and use tax applicable to recreational marijuana sales.
- Medical marijuana patients can, with a
What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas even, if it caused conception!
Intimate Sexual Contact Alone Does Not Constitute Minimum Contacts. A California woman conceived a child in Connecticut but filed a paternity and child support suit in California against the father living in Connecticut. The trial court denied his man moved to quash service of summons based on lack of personal jurisdiction. The Court of Appeal reversed, holding the man’s knowledge that the mother resided in California and the foreseeability that unprotected sex may lead to birth of a child were insufficient to establish the requisite minimum contacts. The appellate court explained that jurisdiction must be based upon facts showing a “substantial connection” to California following Walden v. Fiore (2014) 571 U.S. 277, 289. (David L. v. Superior Court (Cal. App. 4th Dist., Div. 1, Nov. 26, 2018) 2018 Cal. App. LEXIS 1067.) The father seems to regularly travel to California on business trips, and he and the woman had sex on those trips including a prior pregnancy. However, the Court dismissed these as insufficient contacts for the paternity issue. For more salacious details, which may have influenced the Court, look here …
Continue Reading What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas even, if it caused conception!
61% of the time Trial Verdicts Are Usually the Same as a Pre-Trial Settlement Offers
In an article by Sanford Gage, who is a very good mediator, 9,000 California settlement decisions were analyzed over 41 years comparing rejected pretrial settlement offers and actual trial results. Sixty-one percent of the time, the plaintiffs obtained an award that was the same or worse than the result the plaintiff would have achieved by
GAO Study Shows Federal Court Plaintiffs Only Win 35% Of The Time!
In law school you are taught “if you are a defendant remove the case to the Federal Court”. University of Connecticut law professors Alexandra Lahav and Peter Siegelman studied 30 years of data from the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts supporting that directive. According to the law profs, the winning rate for plaintiffs in