Litigation

Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, Litigation, Real Estate Law

Coffey v. Fast Easy Offer — Ninth Circuit Broadens TCPA Telephone Solicitation Definition to Include Indirect Sales Pitches

automatic / June 4, 2026

The Ninth Circuit reversed dismissal of a TCPA class action, holding that unsolicited calls asking homeowners if they want to sell their property qualify as telephone solicitations because the caller's underlying purpose was to encourage the purchase of real estate brokerage services.

Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, Constitutional Law, Litigation

Welsh v. Loudbear — Tribal Officials Sued Individually for RICO Violations Cannot Claim Sovereign Immunity

automatic / June 4, 2026

The Ninth Circuit reversed dismissal of a civil RICO action against tribal officials, holding that officials sued in their individual capacities for money damages are not protected by tribal sovereign immunity and the tribe was not a required party.

Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, Civil Procedure, Immigration, Litigation

Lnu v. Blanche — Ninth Circuit Suspends Two California Attorneys for Filing AI-Hallucinated Citations and Repeatedly Lying About It

automatic / June 3, 2026

Ninth Circuit suspends two Orange County attorneys for six months after they filed briefs with AI-generated fake case citations and repeatedly denied the use of generative AI to the court.

2nd District Court of Appeal, Civil Procedure, Litigation, Personal Injury & Tort

Harland v. City of West Hollywood — Premature Filing Against a Public Entity Cannot Be Cured by Dismissing and Refiling

automatic / June 2, 2026

California’s Second District Court of Appeal holds that a plaintiff who sues a public entity before the 45-day claims-response period expires cannot cure the defect by voluntarily dismissing and refiling after the claim is denied.

California Supreme Court, Constitutional Law, Criminal Law, Litigation

People v. Barrera — Death sentence affirmed for torture-murder of two young children, with key rulings on expert hearsay and lesser-included-offense instructions

automatic / June 1, 2026

The California Supreme Court unanimously affirmed the death sentence of a Los Angeles father convicted of the torture-murders of two young children, holding that months of deliberate beatings, starvation, and medical neglect provided sufficient evidence of premeditated torturous intent, and that confrontation clause error in admitting a non-testifying expert's hearsay was harmless in light of the overwhelming independent evidence of abuse.

California Supreme Court, Constitutional Law, Criminal Law, Litigation

People v. Chhuon and Pan — Defense Counsel’s Guilty Concession Over Client’s Objection Requires Full Reversal in Capital Case

automatic / June 1, 2026

The California Supreme Court reverses a death-row defendant's convictions entirely because his attorney conceded guilt over the client's explicit objection — a structural constitutional error requiring automatic reversal — while affirming the co-defendant's death sentence and vacating both defendants' gang enhancements under California's reformed gang statute.

California Supreme Court, Constitutional Law, Criminal Law, Litigation

People v. Demolle — California Supreme Court Affirms Death Sentence in 1999 Child Murder; Clarifies Fourth Amendment Detention Rules and Victim Impact Testimony Scope

automatic / June 1, 2026

The California Supreme Court affirms a death sentence for the 1999 rape-murder of an Oakland 11-year-old, holding that a suspect who voluntarily accompanies police to the station and is briefly placed in a lockable interview room has not been seized under the Fourth Amendment — and clarifying when victim impact testimony from a teacher may be admitted at a capital penalty phase.

1st District Court of Appeal, Administrative Law, Environmental Law, Litigation

Dummer v. City and County of San Francisco — City Has Discretion to Plan Fishing Program Before Opening Reservoir to Public

automatic / May 29, 2026

The First District holds that San Francisco has discretion to develop a fishing program and complete CEQA review before applying for a water supply permit to open the Calaveras Reservoir to public fishing.

5th District Court of Appeal, Civil Procedure, Labor & Employment Law, Litigation

Cortina v. North American Title Co. — Appellate Court Reverses 19-Year Wage-and-Hour Class Action Over Trial Errors

automatic / May 29, 2026

The Fifth District reverses a 19-year wage-and-hour class action over improper judicial reference and flawed statistical sampling, reinforcing Duran's rigorous requirements for misclassification class trials.

California Supreme Court, Civil Procedure, Litigation

J.O. v. Superior Court — California Supreme Court Curbs Blanket Peremptory Challenges to Judges Under CCP Section 170.6

automatic / May 28, 2026

The California Supreme Court overrules Solberg and holds that courts may now scrutinize alleged blanket peremptory challenges to judges under CCP section 170.6, adopting a Batson-like three-step procedure to protect judicial independence.

1st District Court of Appeal, Criminal Law, Litigation

People v. Brinston — Court Reverses Denial of Compassionate Release for Severely Incapacitated Prisoner

automatic / May 28, 2026

The First District reverses the denial of compassionate release for a prisoner whose severe medical deterioration — complete loss of lower extremity function, fused spine, and incontinence — made any realistic possibility of future harm impossible.

2nd District Court of Appeal, Civil Procedure, Litigation

Kostandian v. American Honda Motor Co. — Court of Appeal Reverses Denial of Arbitration in Lemon Law Case, Enforces Warranty Booklet Clause

automatic / May 27, 2026

The Second District Court of Appeal reversed denial of arbitration in a lemon law case, holding that the plaintiff failed to dispute the existence of arbitration agreements in both the lease and the manufacturer’s warranty booklet.

Appellate Division (Superior Court), Litigation, Real Estate Law

SVF Grosvenor Del Rey Corp. v. Schwarz — Eviction Notice Invalidated for Omitting Contact Name and Phone Number in Mail Payment Option

automatic / May 27, 2026

The Appellate Division holds that a three-day pay-or-quit eviction notice is void where the mail payment option lists only a “leasing office” without the name and telephone number of a specific person, as required by Code of Civil Procedure section 1161(2).

2nd District Court of Appeal, Civil Procedure, Litigation

Watson v. Prof. Business Management Corp. — Nonsignatory Cannot Compel Arbitration Based Solely on Boilerplate Agency Allegations

automatic / May 26, 2026

California appellate court holds that a nonsignatory defendant cannot compel arbitration by relying on generic boilerplate agency allegations in an unverified complaint as judicial admissions.

2nd District Court of Appeal, Civil Procedure, Criminal Law, Litigation

In re N.S. — Juvenile Court Cannot Commit Minor to Secure Facility When Most Recent Offense Is Not a Qualifying Crime

automatic / May 26, 2026

California appellate court reverses juvenile's commitment to a Secure Youth Treatment Facility because the minor's most recent offense by date was not a qualifying crime under section 707(b).

2nd District Court of Appeal, Constitutional Law, Criminal Law, Litigation

People v. Cardenas — Defendants Have the Right to Argue Aggravating Sentencing Factors to a Jury

automatic / May 26, 2026

California appellate court rules that defendants must be allowed to argue aggravating sentencing factors to a jury, reversing an upper-term firearm enhancement where the trial court denied closing argument on those factors.

Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, Administrative Law, Constitutional Law, Litigation

Thakur v. Trump — Ninth Circuit Rules Terminating Research Grants Over DEI Viewpoints Likely Violates the First Amendment

automatic / May 26, 2026

The Ninth Circuit held that federal agencies likely violated the First Amendment by terminating University of California research grants based on recipients' perceived viewpoints on DEI and environmental justice, while ruling that a separate class of grant termination challenges falls outside district court jurisdiction under the Tucker Act.

Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, Constitutional Law, Criminal Law, Litigation

United States v. Johnsen — Hash-Value Matches Can Establish Probable Cause Without Visual Confirmation of Files

automatic / May 26, 2026

The Ninth Circuit held that hash-value matches between a suspect's files and known child pornography can establish probable cause for a search warrant without agents first downloading and visually confirming the files.

1st District Court of Appeal, Environmental Law, Litigation

Chemical Toxin Working Group v. Best Naturals — Court of Appeal Rules Substantial Compliance Applies to Proposition 65 Pre-Suit Notices

automatic / May 22, 2026

California's First District Court of Appeal holds that the doctrine of substantial compliance applies to Proposition 65 pre-suit notice requirements, reversing a trial court that dismissed a toxic-substances lawsuit for failing to identify a responsible individual by name in the notice.

Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, Civil Procedure, Litigation

Hedrington v. United States — Ninth Circuit Holds California Law Governs Claim Preclusion in FTCA Cases

automatic / May 22, 2026

The Ninth Circuit holds that under its binding precedent in Filice, California state claim preclusion law—not federal law—governs the preclusive effect of FTCA judgments, and a statute-of-limitations dismissal has no preclusive effect under California law.

1st District Court of Appeal, Criminal Law, Insurance Law, Litigation

People v. Bankers Insurance Co. — Trial Court Retains Bond Jurisdiction After Off-the-Record Finding of Sufficient Excuse

automatic / May 21, 2026

First District affirms bail bond forfeiture, holding that a trial court's on-the-record acknowledgment of an off-the-record explanation for a defendant's nonappearance suffices to retain jurisdiction over the bond under Penal Code section 1305.1.

2nd District Court of Appeal, Labor & Employment Law, Litigation

Husband v. Target Corporation — Employer Not Charged with Knowledge of Undisclosed Bipolar Disorder Based on Erratic Behavior Alone

automatic / May 21, 2026

Second District holds that an employee's erratic and irrational behavior at work — including statements about killing his stepmother and inanimate objects laughing at him — did not charge employer with knowledge of a mental disability under FEHA, because disability was not the 'only reasonable interpretation' of the behavior.

4th District Court of Appeal, Criminal Law, Litigation

People v. Tyus — Court Affirms Section 1172.6 Relief for Teenage Accomplice but Requires Conviction Redesignation

automatic / May 21, 2026

Fourth District affirms that People failed to prove teenage accomplice guilty of murder under current law at section 1172.6 evidentiary hearing, but remands to redesignate his manslaughter conviction as attempted robbery rather than dismissing the case entirely.

6th District Court of Appeal, Administrative Law, Litigation

Beale v. Department of Motor Vehicles — Electric Bicycles Are Not Motor Vehicles and Riders Cannot Lose Their Driver’s Licenses for Refusing Chemical Tests

automatic / May 21, 2026

Sixth District holds that an electric bicycle is not a 'motor vehicle' under the Vehicle Code, and the DMV cannot suspend a rider's driver's license for refusing a blood-alcohol test after being stopped while riding an e-bike under the influence.

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.