California Municipal Law Blog
category:
Recent Court Decisions
by Sunny Huynh on May 17, 2018
posted in
Recent Court Decisions,
The First Appellate District recently issued a decision confirming that California law generally prohibits the deposition of a highly placed public officer absent a limited exception to that rule. The two-pronged exception applies when: (1) the high-ranking official has personal knowledge relating to material issues in the lawsuit and (2) the deposing party demonstrates the information to be gained is not available from any other source. The reasoning behind the general rule of prohibiting the depositions of high ranking officials is to prevent such proceedings from consuming an officials’ ... Continue Reading
tags:
Contractors State Licensing Board, Deposition, Litigation,
by Matthew S. Kane on February 11, 2018
posted in
Recent Court Decisions,
A recent court ruling in the First Appellate District of the California Court of Appeal may require cities to make changes to their procedures for hearing administrative appeals of substandard housing citations.
In Lippman v. City of Oakland, a landlord who owns rental property in Oakland appealed citations he received from the City’s Building Services Department for blight and substandard living conditions. The landlord’s claims on appeal were adjudicated by a single hearing officer who was appointed by the same Department that cited him.
... Continue Reading
tags:
Appeals of Administrative Citations, Building Code, Citations, Enforcement,
by Derek P. Cole on March 18, 2017
posted in
Elections, Recent Court Decisions,
In Napa County, a group of voters proposed an initiative that would enact a number of measures to protect the quality of watersheds and oak resources. In Wilson v. County of Napa, an appellate court recently found their initiative proposal defective because it did not comply with an important procedural requirement known as the “full text” rule.
Wilson is a good reminder to initiative proponents that the rules for qualifying initiatives can be unforgiving. Proponents must take great care to make sure they satisfy all the procedural requirements before submitting their proposed measures.
... Continue Reading
tags:
Elections, Full-Text Rule, Initiatives, Oak Woodlands,
by Derek P. Cole on March 2, 2017
posted in
Public Records Act, Recent Court Decisions,
The California Supreme Court has issued its long-awaited decision on whether public employee emails or text messages, sent and stored on the employees’ personal accounts, are public records. A unanimous Court held that such emails and text messages are disclosable records under the California Public Records Act. (City of San Jose v. Superior Court, decided March 2, 2017)
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tags:
California Public Records Act, California Supreme Court, Private Emails, Text Messages,
by Derek P. Cole on February 1, 2017
posted in
Public Records Act, Recent Court Decisions,
On January 27, 2017, the Daily Journal published our article on the California Supreme Court’s recent decision regarding public agency legal bills, and whether they are privileged. The full article can be accessed at this link: Daily Journal Article January 27
... Continue Reading
tags:
Attorney-Client Privilege, California Supreme Court, Law Firm Billing Invoices, Public Records Requests,
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