GUEST COLUMNS
Wednesday, August 26, 2026
California's 2023 partition law was well intentioned, but it overlooked how California property law actually works. A 2026 update can fix those oversights and create a more perfect partition.
Early court rulings are divided over whether AI-generated litigation materials are protected by privilege or the work-product doctrine, while judges are increasingly restricting the use of public AI tools in discovery over confidentiality and data privacy concerns.
Monday, August 24, 2026
With NIL valuations and endorsements influencing every stakeholder in college sports--from the players and coaches to a school's administration--it's time to embrace the new reality and help student-athletes make informed decisions or step aside.
Comet's $40 million trade secret verdict unraveled on appeal, illustrating how midtrial claim changes, jury instructions, and an all-or-nothing damages strategy combined to turn "remarkable" evidence of misappropriation into reversible error.
Friday, August 21, 2026
San Francisco's expanded Fair Chance Ordinance prohibits employers from basing adverse employment decisions on out-of-state convictions or unresolved arrests for conduct lawful in California in four categories.
A recent debate over California's Proposition 45 has raised a surprisingly basic question: "Are data centers eligible for the measure's streamlined review process?"
Wednesday, August 19, 2026
ICE's planned use of electric-shock G.L.O.V.E. devices raises serious legal and accountability questions about whether deploying them against protesters can satisfy constitutional use-of-force standards without clearer rules, stronger justification and meaningful oversight.
As courts grapple with whether algorithmically generated feeds are "expressive," the answer may determine the extent of social media platforms' First Amendment rights in the age of AI.
Monday, August 17, 2026
California employers and unions can obtain workplace violence restraining orders quickly, yet few use them. Understanding the streamlined process can help protect employees from recurring threats, violence and harassment.
AT&T's effort to retire traditional landline service in California presents a classic federalism dispute over the boundary between federal authority and state regulation of essential communications infrastructure.
Friday, August 14, 2026
Workplace Violence Restraining Orders under CCP § 527.8 offer retailers a far more effective way to stop recurring violence, threats and harassment than toothless trespass warnings, with more than 90% of respondents complying once served.
The Supreme Court's decision in Chatrie v. United States holds that geofence warrants seeking Google location data constitute Fourth Amendment searches, requiring California law enforcement to satisfy probable cause and particularity when using the increasingly common investigative tool.
Wednesday, August 12, 2026
Two verdicts, one summer: What Byrne v. Ameris Bank and Glick v. City of Los Angeles should teach every employment lawyer, mediator and GC.
AI is reshaping legal practice, but attorneys must use it competently and ethically to avoid becoming the next cautionary headline.
Monday, August 10, 2026
When a driverless car breaks the law in California, the violation now goes to the manufacturer's regulator instead of to a driver. That works until someone dies, because homicide still requires a mind, and the law has spent two thousand years looking for one.
The Ninth Circuit's Theis decision clarifies public employees' workplace speech protections, holding that when employees speak as part of their jobs, employers -- not employees -- control the message.
Friday, August 7, 2026
IRS Form 4669 serves a legitimate purpose in worker-classification disputes but requiring it in employment settlements may be both inappropriate and premature.
Purpose-built AI tools that catch curable defects before filing and flag issues during court review--from pleadings and default judgments to class and PAGA settlements--could be developed to help alleviate the added caseload pressure AI itself is expected to create.
Wednesday, August 5, 2026
How rideshare screening actually works, when a driver's criminal record matters and what a passenger injured by an Uber driver has to prove in a California negligence case.
You thought there'd be no math?!
Monday, August 3, 2026
California's enforcement of Senate Bill 54 faces competing legal challenges, with one lawsuit attacking the statute's constitutionality and another arguing the implementing regulations unlawfully weaken the law.
The Trump administration's rollback of federal and California vehicle emissions standards threatens to worsen the state's already severe ozone pollution and increase costs for consumers.
Friday, July 31, 2026
Law firms that treat AI as more than a technology purchase--while preserving human judgment and client relationships--will gain the greatest advantage.
Family Law's evolution over 250 years, from Visigothic codes through Seneca Falls to a diverse modern bench, shows the Founders built a legal system designed to grow alongside scientific and social change.
Wednesday, July 29, 2026
California's Motor Carriers of Property Permit Act may provide a new legal theory for holding delivery platforms such as Uber Eats, DoorDash and Amazon directly liable for injuries caused by unpermitted couriers, regardless of Proposition 22's independent contractor protections.
DREAM Court's trauma-informed, collaborative approach brings together courts, attorneys, social workers and community partners to support children affected by commercial sexual exploitation and help families find safety, healing and long-term stability.
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NEWS
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General News
Wednesday, August 26, 2026 |
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| Newsom signs immigration-worker privacy bill, setting up First Amendment fight. | |
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General News
Wednesday, August 26, 2026 |
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| Nearly everything Anna Wallack and Lindquist McDonough sell in their boutiques is made by a community of designers who share a commitment to making things by hand, remaining independent and supporting one another. Together, they are shaping the way we shop and dress. | |
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General News
Wednesday, August 26, 2026 |
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| Epic Games says newly discovered accounts showing a minor continued playing Fortnite after disaffirming its user agreement require reconsideration of a judge's refusal to compel arbitration. | |
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General News
Monday, August 24, 2026 |
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| When she bought a sliver of land on the side of Highway 1 in Bodega Bay, California, Qing Tang-Oxley didn't fully understand how difficult it would be to build a house on the steep site, which dropped sharply to the water. But there were signs. | |
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General News
Monday, August 24, 2026 |
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| Jacob Emrani is urging a Los Angeles federal judge to reconsider allowing Uber's racketeering claims to proceed, citing a new ruling in New York that dismissed a similar RICO case against personal injury lawyers and medical providers. | |
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General News
Monday, August 24, 2026 |
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| Measures would protect media access to public proceedings, restrict secret immunity and anonymity agreements and curb abusive litigation against domestic violence victims | |
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General News
Friday, August 21, 2026 |
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| As part of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act passed last summer, Congress rewrote the rules for certain student loans. | |
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General News
Friday, August 21, 2026 |
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| A 2-1 9th Circuit panel allowed former Structure Therapeutics CFO Ding Ding to leave arbitration for court after discovering evidence supporting a sex-based harassment claim, with Judge Johnnie Rawlinson sharply dissenting. | |
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General News
Friday, August 21, 2026 |
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| U.S. District Judge Consuelo B. Marshall rejected the defendants' efforts to overturn or reduce the verdict but declined Hyundai Motor's request to increase the award. | |
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General News
Wednesday, August 19, 2026 |
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| The bond market is a global giant, with more than $58 trillion in assets in the United States alone. | |
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General News
Wednesday, August 19, 2026 |
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| A federal judge questioned limits on Midjourney's discovery into entertainment studios' AI development, suggesting their use of copyrighted works could be relevant to licensing markets and Midjourney's fair-use defense. | |
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General News
Wednesday, August 19, 2026 |
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| Meta and 29 state attorneys general are battling over Section 230 jury instructions before opening statements Tuesday in a trial alleging illegal data collection and deceptive practices targeting young users. | |
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General News
Monday, August 17, 2026 |
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| The proliferation of Flock cameras, a brand of automated license plate readers that employ artificial intelligence to identify and track vehicles, has divided the public and rattled civil liberties watchdogs. | |
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General News
Monday, August 17, 2026 |
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| A Los Angeles judge set the first trial over FAIR Plan's handling of smoke-damage claims from the 2025 wildfires for October 2027 and allowed individualized discovery for all 21 bellwether households. | |
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General News
Friday, August 14, 2026 |
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| This year's El Niño, which is expected to be record-breaking, is already strong and having big effects, nudging up global temperatures and causing dry spells and crop failures on multiple continents. | |
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General News
Friday, August 14, 2026 |
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| A federal judge delayed a final ruling on whether 7-Eleven can expand its defenses against Pop Mart's intellectual property claims after the retailer cited new authority concerning ownership of U.S. trademark rights to Labubu and The Monsters toys. | |
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General News
Friday, August 14, 2026 |
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| A federal judge ruled that California's SB 261 is not preempted by federal securities law, finding the measure requires companies to disclose climate-related financial risks but does not dictate how they conduct their business. | |
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General News
Wednesday, August 12, 2026 |
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| Since the first Trump administration gave insurers leeway in 2019 to offer extra benefits not covered by traditional Medicare, officials have signaled things have gone a little too far. They are fine-tuning some restrictions. | |
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General News
Wednesday, August 12, 2026 |
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| Writing for a unanimous court, Chief Justice Patricia Guerrero said California's chronic shortage of court reporters cannot leave litigants who cannot afford private reporters without a meaningful record for appeal. | |
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General News
Wednesday, August 12, 2026 |
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| The ruling arose from multidistrict litigation before U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers in the Northern District of California involving thousands of lawsuits against social media companies. | |
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General News
Monday, August 10, 2026 |
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| A terrible boss is the stuff of both sitcoms and nightmares, and you don't get to pick your own. But what if the boss was replaced by artificial intelligence? | |
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General News
Monday, August 10, 2026 |
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| The union says state regulators understated the economic effects of autonomous commercial vehicles and failed to account for threats to driving jobs. | |
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General News
Monday, August 10, 2026 |
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| U.S. District Judge David O. Carter signaled he may seek a temporary compromise to avoid disrupting housing and services while the legal fight plays out. | |
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General News
Wednesday, August 26, 2026 |
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| A divided 5th District Court of Appeal rejected a compelled-speech challenge to the city's renaming of a street for Cesar Chavez, even though Fresno has since restored the street's former name following allegations against the labor leader. | |
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General News
Monday, August 24, 2026 |
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| A San Francisco judge ordered an advertiser's antitrust claims against Google to arbitration, finding the requested injunction primarily benefits commercial advertisers rather than the general public. | |
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General News
Friday, August 21, 2026 |
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| The 105-page order kept alive claims under the federal Electronic Funds Transfer Act, the California Consumer Privacy Act, and theories of negligence, contract, fiduciary duty, implied covenant and due process. | |
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General News
Wednesday, August 19, 2026 |
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| A proposed nationwide Johnson & Johnson talc settlement could resolve most California ovarian cancer claims, though opt-outs and excluded plaintiffs could keep portions of the coordinated Los Angeles litigation alive. | |
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General News
Monday, August 17, 2026 |
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| A Los Angeles judge rejected Ray J's anti-SLAPP bid against Kim Kardashian and Kris Jenner, finding a jury could conclude his racketeering accusations were defamatory and that his reliance on ChatGPT did not establish a reasonable basis for believing they had violated federal law. | |
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General News
Friday, August 14, 2026 |
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| Anthropic urged a San Francisco judge to find Reddit's state law claims preempted by the Copyright Act, while Reddit argued its claims contain additional elements that take them beyond copyright. | |
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General News
Wednesday, August 12, 2026 |
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| Policyholders and California FAIR Plan are at odds over when bellwether trials should begin and how broadly discovery should proceed in litigation over smoke damage claims from the 2025 Los Angeles wildfires. | |
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General News
Monday, August 10, 2026 |
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| The Pasadena employment lawyer declined to talk about criticisms of the ABA but said she hoped to spend time listening to the needs of America's lawyers | |