It’s quite unlikely to gain any traction as an election issue, but one report made the connection between Justice Tani Cantil-Sakauye’s confirmation election and the controversy over a Judicial Council proposal to raise the pay of Administrative Office of the Courts employees.  The story notes, “The Judge chairing th[e] committee recommending the pay hike, Tani Cantil-Sakauye, in on [...]

We’ve written two posts about the California Supreme Court confirmation/retention election on Tuesday’s ballot, when the people will vote “yes” or “no” on two sitting justices (Ming Chin and Carlos Moreno) and California’s Chief Justice designee (Tani Cantil-Sakauye). But, with no opponents and no organized opposition, how do these judges campaign?  One way is appearing on the [...]

The following is our summary of the Supreme Court’s actions on petitions for review in civil cases from the Court’s conference on Wednesday, October 27, 2010. The summary includes those civil cases in which (1) review has been granted (not including grant-and-transfers), (2) review has been denied but one or more justices has voted for [...]

As we mentioned in this post, Tuesday’s election will be a particularly important one for the California Supreme Court.  Chief Justice nominee Tani Cantil-Sakauye must be confirmed by the voters in order for her to take over from current Chief Justice Ronald M. George on January 2.  But will they vote to confirm her?  According [...]

The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear oral argument in San Francisco on November 3 in an important UCL standing case, Kwikset Corp. v. Superior Court (Benson), no. S171845, which presents the following issue:  “Does a plaintiff’s allegation that he purchased a product in reliance on the product label’s misrepresentation about a characteristic of the [...]

Rule 8.25(b)(3) of the California Rules of Court provides that “[a] brief, a petition for rehearing, an answer to a petition for rehearing, a petition for review, an answer to a petition for review, or a reply to an answer to a petition for review is timely if the time to file it has not [...]

The following is our summary of the Supreme Court’s actions on petitions for review in civil cases from the Court’s conference on Wednesday, October 20, 2010. The summary includes those civil cases in which (1) review has been granted (not including grant-and-transfers), (2) review has been denied but one or more justices has voted for [...]

In case you’re wondering about our artwork—like what a legal blog has to do with a painting of mountain peaks—I thought I would write a quick post to explain.  The artwork on our blog is part of the mural The Eastern Sierra in Fall, by noted Marin County artist Willard Dixon.  The mural hangs over [...]

A few days ago, the Daily Journal [subscription required] published a great article by Court of Appeal Justice Richard Mosk about his dad, the late Supreme Court Justice Stanley Mosk, who served 37 years on the Court, longer than any other justice.  The article focuses on proceedings before the Los Angeles Board of Education to [...]

As we mentioned in this post, one reason to keep an eye on our summaries of the Court’s weekly conference reports is to take note of when justices vote to grant review in cases where review is denied.  Such “protest votes” can signal that the issues presented are of statewide importance and are of interest [...]

The Supreme Court announced that it will file two opinions on Monday at 10:00 a.m.  The opinions will be posted on the court’s website.  And when they say 10:00 a.m., they mean it; you can set your watch by the posting. Both cases were argued on September 7, so the court still had plenty of time before its [...]

The following is our summary of the Supreme Court’s actions on petitions for review in civil cases from the Court’s conference on Wednesday, October 13, 2010. The summary includes those civil cases in which (1) review has been granted (not including grant-and-transfers), (2) review has been denied but one or more justices has voted for [...]

A Daily Journal article (Chief George Anointed Successor - subs. required) reports today on the role that Chief Justice Ron George played in Governor Schwarzenegger’s appointment of Third District Court of Appeal Justice Tani Cantil-Sakauye to take over George’s role as our high court’s Chief.  It appears that George encouraged that choice after observing how effective [...]

When clients ask how long it will be until the Supreme Court decides a case, we tell them it depends on the length of three time periods, only two of which are predictable.  We can give a ballpark estimate of how long briefing will take:  give or take an extension or two, the rules set the deadlines [...]

The Court’s criminal docket is substantial because Article 6, section 10, of the California Constitution confers original jurisdiction on the Court in habeas corpus proceedings, while Article 6, section 11, confers appellate jurisdiction on the Court when a judgment of death has been imposed.  As a result, as Court-watcher Gerald F. Uelman wrote in a [...]

The San Francisco Federalist Society will sponsor a panel discussion on October 18 entitled “The Future of the California Supreme Court: How Will It Shape California’s Economy and Society?”  The panelists will include former Third District Court of Appeal justice Daniel Kolkey, Chief Assistant Attorney General Dane Gillette and Horvitz & Levy’s own Jeremy Rosen.  [...]

In a recent article in the Daily Journal [subscription required], staff writer Laura Ernde documented the remarkable unanimity of the California Supreme Court under outgoing Chief Justice Ronald M. George and asked whether such unanimity will continue under his likely successor, Justice Tani Cantil-Sakauye.  According to Santa Clara University law prof Gerald F. Uelman, Ernde [...]

As previously mentioned in this post, the special oral argument sessions in Fresno were televised.  They’re now available online, and can make for an interesting diversion (say, hypothetically speaking, for a group of appellate lawyers having a lunch time gathering in the conference room).  For example, one can view Tuesday’s oral argument in Pineda v. [...]

The Court held no conference today, October 6, 2010, because it is hearing oral argument in Fresno.  Accordingly, no action was taken on petitions for review and no opinions were ordered published or depublished.

For you Unfair Competition Law mavens out there, the always thought-provoking Kim Kralowec at the UCL Practitioner has a post today discussing the California Supreme Court’s approach to the nature of restitution under the UCL.  She highlights Clark v. Superior Court (2010) 50 Cal.4th 605, 614-615, in which the Court recently held restitution under the [...]