Legal Services of Northern California (LSNC) on October 5, 2018 honored the law firm of Janssen Malloy LLP for its forty-plus years of commitment to pro bono representation of citizens who are unable to afford legal services. Since the firm’s founding in 1976, the lawyers of Janssen Malloy LLP have been the steadfast anchor of the prop bono Civil Clinic … Read More
Can Counties Really Charge $10,000 Per Violation of County Zoning Ordinances?
As you may or may not be aware, Humboldt County is charging $10,000 per day per violation of County Codes related to unlicensed cannabis cultivation. Such violations include grading violations, building permit violations, and violations of the cannabis ordinance. The question is whether the County can really impose such a stiff penalty and what statute authorizes such a penalty? The … Read More
Employment Arbitration Agreements May Be Shown the Door
If the Governor signs AB 3080, 2019 will usher in a new era for employees in California. Initially intended to address “lawyer tactics” in response to workplace sexual harassment claims, the bill (1) makes it unlawful to require arbitration agreements as a condition of employment (and to retaliate against an employee who does not agree to arbitration) and (2) limits … Read More
Is There an Umbrella?
Most people would think I am referring to the kind of umbrella that protects you from rain, but today’s discussion is about the kind of “umbrella” or excess liability insurance that provides an additional layer of insurance coverage on top of an underlying policy. For example, automobile drivers are required under California state law to carry auto liability insurance coverage … Read More
Civil Code Section 813 – Protect Your Real Property!
California Civil Code section 813(link is external) provides a simple means for landowners to protect themselves from someone asserting prescriptive rights or adverse possession. It states, in relevant part: “The holder of record title to land may record in the office of the recorder of any county in which any part of the land is situated, a description of said land … Read More
Physician Assistant Arrest Reporting Requirements
California’s Business and Professions Code requires that Physician Assistants report only (1) the bringing of an indictment or information that charges the Physician Assistant with a felony and/or (2) the conviction of the Physician Assistant, including any verdict of guilty or plea of no contest, of any felony or misdemeanor. While that should seem simple enough, there is a regulation … Read More
Change in Definition of Mixed Light Cultivation of Cannabis
On July 13, 2018, the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) published its proposed regulations in the California Regulatory Notice Register, the first step toward adopting non-emergency regulations. The publication begins the formal rulemaking process and marks the opening of the 45-day public comment period. An important change in the proposed rules is the definition of mixed light. Under … Read More
Another Reason to Pay Your Property Taxes On Time
A claim or defense that is frequently raised in litigation involving easements is that an easement either was created or terminated (“extinguished” is the term most often used by the courts) because a party adversely possessed that easement. Code of Civil Procedure section 325 specifies the requirements for proving adverse possession: a hostile claim of right made continuously for a … Read More
The Defendant Went Bankrupt; Now What?
Any plaintiff’s lawyer will tell that you that it is never a good thing when a defendant files for bankruptcy. The conventional wisdom says the chances of ever recovering anything from the “debtor” (the defendant’s new name in the bankruptcy court) is slim to none. But there are still arrows in the quiver of the prepared and persistent trial counsel. … Read More
Latest U.S. Supreme Court Decision on Digital Privacy Marks Sea Change
Departing from prior precedent, the U.S. Supreme Court decided Friday that in order for law enforcement to collect a substantial amount of information from a cell phone provider about one of its subscriber’s whereabouts by using cell phone tower location information, the government must first apply for a search warrant. In Carpenter v. United States, No. 16-402, Chief Justice John Roberts, writing … Read More