Before the Supreme Court hears its January oral arguments, it will conduct a session to remember former Justice Edward Panelli, who died in July (see also here, here, and here).

The January calendar will be another sparse one, with only three cases to be heard. This will be the fifth of 11 scheduled calendars this term and the court is on track to issue about 37 opinions for that period, which would be an historic low. (See here.) However, the court also started last term slowly and picked up the pace later, ending with 58 opinions.

On Tuesday, January 7, in San Francisco, the court will hear the following cases (with the issue or issues presented as summarized by court staff or limited by the court itself):

Escamilla v. Vannucci: What statute of limitations applies to a malicious prosecution action brought against an attorney when the claim does not arise from an attorney-client relationship? The court granted review in January 2024. More about the case here. Horvitz & Levy filed a successful request that the Court of Appeal publish its opinion in the case.

People v. Jasso: This is an automatic direct appeal from a January 2010 judgment of death. The court’s website does not list issues for death penalty appeals.  Counsel was appointed in November 2013. Initial briefing was completed in January 2017.  In December 2023, the court ordered supplemental briefing “[i]f appellant contends any changes in the law (including any ameliorative statute) since the filing of the reply brief are relevant to this appeal.” Supplemental briefing was completed in July of this year.

Madrigal v. Hyundai Motor America: When the court granted review in August 2023, it limited the issue to, “Do Code of Civil Procedure section 998’s cost-shifting provisions apply if the parties ultimately negotiate a pre-trial settlement?” More about the case here. Horvitz & Levy filed an amicus curiae brief supporting the defendant.

Briefs for all the cases will soon be posted here. The arguments will be live streamed. Opinions in the cases should file by April 7.