California

Appeals court: Yelp must remove defamatory 3rd-party material about lawyer who won defamation case

Yelp must take down third-party material about a lawyer who won a defamation verdict against a former client, a California appeals court has ruled. Although the consumer review website had argued that it is protected by Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act from being held accountable for a third-party…

Jun 13, 2016 10:30 AM CDT

Law student in Mexico is reunited with his US mom 20 years after kidnapping

More than 20 years after her 1-year-old son was taken by his father from their home in 1995, along with all photographs of the boy, a Southern California mom has been reunited with her child—who is now a young man and had been about to start a University of Puebla…

Jun 10, 2016 1:00 PM CDT

FTC sues 2 law firms over claimed mortgage-rescue scheme that cost clients $15M in 2014

The Federal Trade Commission has sued two Southern California law firms, seeking to freeze their assets and appoint a receiver. It says Brookstone Law and Advantis Law raked in $15 million in 2014 by charging clients upfront fees for work such as “legal analysis” and promises of mass joinder in…

Jun 10, 2016 12:30 PM CDT

Judge puts on hold landmark San Francisco law mandating sugary beverage ad warnings

A plan to require warning labels on ads for sugar-added drinks in San Francisco is on hold, as the beverage industry pursues an appeal. After initially denying an injunction last month concerning the landmark legislation, which is believed to be the first law of its kind in the nation, a…

Jun 10, 2016 12:10 PM CDT

En banc 9th Circuit upholds California law requiring ‘good cause’ for concealed carry

In a big win for those who favor gun control, a divided en banc federal appeals court panel on Thursday upheld, against a Second Amendment challenge, a California law restricting concealed-carry permits to individuals who can demonstrate “good cause.” The 7-4 ruling by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals…

Jun 10, 2016 9:45 AM CDT

Lawyer who won $5.3M ‘Blurred Lines’ verdict files $20M suit over Ed Sheeran’s ‘Photograph’

A lawyer who represented singer Marvin Gaye’s family in last year’s monster $5.3 million “Blurred Lines” copyright verdict is back in court in another high-profile case over a hit song. This time attorney Richard Busch is seeking $20 million for two veteran California songwriters, contending that Ed Sheeran’s smash song…

Jun 8, 2016 4:46 PM CDT

Rapper Wiz Khalifa sues to void management and recording contract he signed as a teenager

Rapper Wiz Khalifa has sued his manager and former record company to void a contract he signed as a teenager, the Hollywood Reporter’s THR, Esq. blog wrote this week. Khalifa—a stage name for Cameron Jibril Thomaz—who is now 28, says he was induced to sign a “360 deal” against his…

Jun 3, 2016 3:20 PM CDT

San Francisco mulls fining, prosecuting home-share sites like Airbnb for listing unregistered units

In 2015, a law took effect in San Francisco that requires those who make short-term rentals available on sharing sites such as Airbnb, HomeAway and VRBO to register with local government. But only around 1,400 of an estimated 7,000 or more owners who rent rooms and entire homes to travelers…

Jun 3, 2016 11:53 AM CDT

California Assembly passes bill requiring state bar to reliquish control of its board to nonlawyers

The State Bar of California got a reprieve of sorts after the state assembly stopped short of passing a bill that would split up its regulatory and professional advocacy functions. Instead, the Recorder (sub. req.) reports that the assembly passed a heavily amended bill Thursday that would give the state…

Jun 3, 2016 11:06 AM CDT

Norton Rose Fulbright raids Sidley for 17-lawyer practice group and opens new San Francisco office

Megafirm Norton Rose Fulbright announced Thursday that it has hired Sidley Austin’s entire public finance practice group. The group includes six partners, and seven of the lawyers will establish a new San Francisco office for Norton Rose Fulbright—the 3,800-attorney megafirm’s 12th in the U.S. and 53rd worldwide, according to the…

Jun 3, 2016 9:47 AM CDT

Judicial candidates’ self-drafted ballot titles spur legal fights over accuracy

In California, it helps to alert voters that a judicial candidate is a “child molestation prosecutor.” A political consultant drafted that ballot description for a 2012 judicial candidate who won the race, the Los Angeles Times reports. Also popular are descriptions describing judicial candidates as prosecutors of gangs and violent…

Jun 2, 2016 8:26 AM CDT

Feds sue seeking forfeiture of $275K in life insurance for one of the San Bernardino shooters

The feds have filed a civil forfeiture action to wrest some $275,000 in life insurance proceeds from survivors of one of the San Bernardino shooters. “Terrorists must not be permitted to provide for their designated beneficiaries through their crimes,” said U.S. Attorney Eileen Decker in a written statement announcing the…

Jun 1, 2016 11:20 AM CDT

Will California lawyers have to pay bar dues in 2017? Bill is rejected amid debate on state bar

A bill authorizing 2017 bar dues for California lawyers includes modest changes in the state bar’s governance structure, but it doesn’t go far enough for lawmakers who refused to approve the legislation on Tuesday. Opponents said they would like to see additional negotiations on reform before approving the bill, the…

Jun 1, 2016 6:54 AM CDT

California lawyer pledges to fund college for 27 kindergartners

Elder law attorney Marty Burbank knows all about planning charitable donations. But when he pledged to fund the college educations of 27 kindergartners in Anaheim, California, he says, "it just kinda came to me."

Jun 1, 2016 3:20 AM CDT

Veterans Village of San Diego provides holistic services, including homeless court and legal aid

Shellie Bowman still remembers how clearing a lengthy criminal record affected one client at the Veterans Village of San Diego, a comprehensive homeless services agency.

Jun 1, 2016 1:10 AM CDT