The primary assumption of the risk didn't shield a youth water polo league from liability for repeat concussions suffered by a goalie due to the league's failure to promulgate concussion management and return to play protocols, which resulted in goalie being returned to play while already concussed and suffering further injury. Read More
A new owner that succeeds to rights under an existing lease must disclose information about itself within 15 days of succeeding to the prior owner and may not serve a three-day notice to quit based on rent that fell due during any period of noncompliance by the successor owner with that requirement, but this rule does not apply to a… Read More
Defendant’s repeated kicks and punches of the plaintiff was sufficient evidence of malice and/or intent to injure, thus providing sufficient justification for a punitive damages award. Read More
Husband's debt owed to a family partnership of which wife is a limited partner was non-dischargeable in husband's Chapter 11 bankruptcy, even though the debt was owed to the partnership, not wife directly. Read More
A plaintiff's success in fending off a demurrer, summary judgment motion, or other pretrial motions does not immunize it from a later finding that the False Claims Act cause of action was frivolous and corresponding award of attorney fees. Read More
Connecticut-resident defendant was not subject to personal jurisdiction in California in this paternity action, because although defendant knew that plaintiff resided in California and would likely have the child here, those contacts of the plaintiff cannot be attributed to the defendant. Read More
Motions to quash a subpoena on an internet service provider may be pursued even after the subpoena has been withdrawn, since there is no assurance in a voluntary withdrawal that the subpoena will not be reissued later, further harassing the same party for his exercise of free speech rights. Read More
Because the notice of abatement of nuisance was properly served by city and because plaintiff did not timely file an administrative appeal thereafter, plaintiff did not exhaust his available administrative remedy and was barred from suing in court to challenge the abatement order. Read More
Sheriff’s office could be sued for negligence after it voluntarily assumed the duty of searching for a missing biker but negligently delayed the search effort until the following morning, by which time the biker had died. Read More
Defendant’s motion to dismiss class action for plaintiff’s failure to bring to trial within five years should have been granted; trial court miscalculated the relevant time period when it failed to include a 43-day period during which the court stayed the filing of pleadings and the service of discovery requests while the parties met and conferred on a case management plan. Read More
Plaintiff stated a viable claim for unjust enrichment after it contracted with a property owner to appeal property tax assessments in return for 30% of any resulting refund, but the property was foreclosed upon by defendant before the tax refund came through. Read More
A plaintiff may state a claim under 42 USC 1981 for denial of equal rights in making or enforcing contracts by showing that race was a factor in the decision not to contract, even if not the but-for cause of the decision. Read More
None of the exceptions to hearsay rule applied to permit admission of plaintiff’s supervisor’s testimony that he had seen defendant’s name on invoices and shipping orders for asbestos-containing pipes. Read More
Since an employer must pay workers for time spent on employer-provided transportation only when the employer requires the workers to use that transportation, defendant was not required to pay its technicians for time they spent driving from home to their first appointment of the day using company vehicles, because employees could return the company vehicles at the end of each… Read More
When plaintiff’s attorney improperly used a mini-opening to try to precondition potential jurors to vote in plaintiff's favor, the trial court did not abuse its discretion in not allowing mini-opening statements to the second and third venires of prospective jurors. Read More
Civil Code 1668 bars enforcement of a release as to fraud and statute-based claims if any element of the complete tort (such as reliance or damages) still remains unsatisfied at the time the release is signed. Read More
For limitations purposes, the client discovered malpractice claim against a lawyer who structured a transaction when the other party to the transaction threatened to sue client based on the transaction’s structure. Read More
The Right to Repair Act precludes class actions premised on a violation of the Act’s standards for new residential construction. Read More
The extra costs allowed when a 998 offer is rejected may not be collected by a defendant in an action under California’s Fair Employment & Housing Act unless the defendant shows that the action was frivolous, unreasonable, or groundless when brought, or the plaintiff continued to litigate after it clearly became so. Read More
Attorney fee award in connection with damages for breach of a settlement agreement is reversed for lack of admissible evidence of the attorney fees reasonably incurred since the only witness at trial lacked meaningful knowledge of these matters. Read More
