California Case Summaries

Business Transactions

Primary practice area

4th District Court of Appeal, Business Transactions, Intellectual Property, Labor & Employment Law

Guild Mortgage v. CrossCountry Mortgage — Court Revives Claims Against Rival That Orchestrated Branch Defection, Rejects CUTSA Displacement

automatic / May 27, 2026

The Fourth District revives claims against a rival mortgage company that allegedly orchestrated a branch defection scheme, holding that all employees owe a duty of loyalty and that CUTSA does not displace interference or computer fraud claims.

Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, Business Transactions, Litigation

Olson v. FCA US, LLC — Car Manufacturer Cannot Force Consumer to Arbitrate Using Dealership’s Arbitration Clause

automatic / May 21, 2026

Ninth Circuit holds that an automobile manufacturer that was not a party to a consumer's lease agreement with a dealership cannot enforce the lease's arbitration or delegation clause, reaffirming Kramer v. Toyota and applying the California Supreme Court's Ford Motor Warranty Cases decision.

Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, Administrative Law, Business Transactions

Twenty-Nine Palms Band of Mission Indians v. Blanche — Ninth Circuit Holds California Cigarette Tax and Licensing Laws Apply to a Tribe’s Cigarette Sales to Other California Tribes

automatic / May 6, 2026

The Ninth Circuit affirms placement of a southern-California tribe on ATF's PACT Act non-compliant list, holding that the tribe's remote cigarette sales to other California tribes are off-reservation activities subject to California's licensing and excise-tax laws.

Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, Business Transactions, Environmental Law

County of San Bernardino v. Insurance Company of the State of Pennsylvania — Ninth Circuit holds policy’s aggregate limit does not apply to property damage, restoring per-occurrence coverage for Chino Airport environmental cleanup

automatic / April 23, 2026

The Ninth Circuit reverses the dismissal of the County of San Bernardino's coverage suit against ICSOP for cleanup costs at the Chino Airport, holding that the policies' aggregate limits provision is ambiguous and does not cap property-damage coverage.

Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, Business Transactions, Litigation

McAuliffe v. Robinson Helicopter — Ninth Circuit holds GARA’s rolling 18-year repose period restarts for replacement parts even without substantive alteration, reviving Hawaiian crash family’s wrongful-death suit against Torrance manufacturer

automatic / April 21, 2026

The Ninth Circuit holds that GARA's rolling provision restarts the 18-year statute of repose for replacement aircraft parts even when the new part is identical to the original, reviving a wrongful-death suit against Torrance-based Robinson Helicopter Company over a fatal Hawaiian sightseeing crash.

Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, Business Transactions, Litigation

Panelli v. Target Corporation — Ninth Circuit revives California consumer class action over allegedly impossible 800-thread-count cotton sheets, holding a literally false claim can deceive even when its falsity is verifiable

automatic / April 17, 2026

The Ninth Circuit reverses dismissal of a California consumer class action against Target over allegedly impossible 800-thread-count cotton sheets, holding that the literally false advertising framework applies when a label is unambiguous and that a physically impossible claim can still deceive a reasonable consumer.

Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, Business Transactions, Litigation

Brown v. The Brita Products Company — Ninth Circuit affirms dismissal of California consumer suit, holding no reasonable consumer expects a $15 water filter to remove every contaminant

automatic / April 16, 2026

The Ninth Circuit affirms dismissal of a California consumer class action against Brita, holding that no reasonable consumer would expect a low-cost water filter to remove every common contaminant when the packaging only claims to 'reduce' specific listed contaminants and directs buyers to a Performance Data Sheet.

4th District Court of Appeal, Business Transactions, Litigation

NNN Capital Fund I, LLC v. Mikles — Standing of Purported LLC Representatives Is a Jurisdictional Issue That May Be Raised at Any Time, Including After Arbitration

automatic / April 16, 2026

Fourth District vacates judgment confirming arbitration award and remands for the trial court to determine whether the purported liquidating trustees who brought the action on behalf of an LLC had standing under the company's operating agreement, holding that jurisdictional standing may be challenged at any time.

4th District Court of Appeal, Business Transactions, Litigation

Gonzalez v. Community Mortuary — Impracticability of Performance Is an Equitable Defense Tried to the Court, Not the Jury

automatic / April 8, 2026

Fourth District holds that impracticability of performance is an equitable defense that must be tried to the court rather than the jury and reverses a defense verdict in a breach of contract case arising from a Texas mortuary's body mix-up that resulted in the wrong body being buried in San Diego.

2nd District Court of Appeal, Business Transactions, Litigation

Jogani v. Jogani — $6.85 Billion Verdict in Brothers’ Real-Estate Partnership Suit Conditionally Affirmed; Lost-Profits Expert Testimony Excluded

automatic / February 24, 2026

Second District conditionally affirms a $6.85 billion verdict in a five-month trial over the Jogani brothers' real-estate partnership, but orders a remittitur because Shashi Jogani's damages expert testified to an undisclosed lost-profits opinion exceeding $1.9 billion.

4th District Court of Appeal, Business Transactions, Litigation

Grant v. Chapman University — University Statements About On-Campus Education Are Not Specific Enough to Form an Implied Promise of In-Person Instruction

automatic / February 5, 2026

Fourth District affirms summary judgment for Chapman University in a COVID-19 tuition-refund case, holding that the university's general descriptions of campus facilities and 'face-to-face' contact were not specific enough to form an enforceable implied promise of in-person education.

4th District Court of Appeal, Business Transactions, Litigation

Higginson v. Kia Motors America — Trial Court Should Have Imposed Terminating Sanctions for Kia’s False Discovery Responses About Engine-Defect Records

automatic / February 3, 2026

Fourth District reverses a defense judgment in a Song-Beverly action against Kia, holding the trial court abused its discretion by accepting Kia's false verified discovery responses about engine-defect records and failing to impose terminating sanctions when the falsity was revealed.

2nd District Court of Appeal, Business Transactions, Litigation

Towns v. Hyundai Motor America — Only the Buyer Has Song-Beverly Standing, but Insurance Payouts Don’t Reduce Restitution

automatic / January 16, 2026

Second District holds that under California's Song-Beverly Consumer Warranty Act, only the actual buyer has standing to sue for restitution, but a manufacturer cannot reduce its restitution by the amount of a third-party insurance payout the buyer received after the car was wrecked.

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