Case Updates

When a client requests the preparation of a purchase or sale agreement for limited liability company (LLC) interests, counsel should always gather additional information prior to the preparation of such an agreement to obtain a complete picture of the exchange. Read more

Summary: A California appellate court has held that a fraudulent transfer claim attacking a collusive stipulated judgment between a judgment debtor and his brother is not subject to the litigation privilege. [Chen vs. Berenjian, 2019 Westlaw 1397592 (Cal.App.).] Read more

July 12, 2019 the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) sent its rule to repeal the 2015 Waters of the U.S. (“WOTUS”) Rule to the White House Office of Management and Budget (“OMB”) for interagency review. OMB reviews are limited to 90 days with no minimum period for review. The final rule is the first step in the two-step repeal-and-replace process undertaken by the Trump administration. Once the White House interagency review is complete, EPA can formally repeal the 2015 WOTUS Rule and move forward with finalizing its replacement rule. Read more

Recent California legislation addresses issues arising from two well publicized emerging technologies, bitcoin and blockchain. The more recent, Assembly Bill (“AB”) 1489 governs regulatory and substantive law in respect of virtual currency or bitcoin. AB 2658, enacted late last year, creates a committee to study and report on the use of blockchain, bitcoin’s underlying technology, in various contexts and transactions. Both these bills recognize the importance of harmonizing existing law with actual practice utilizing new and emerging technologies. Read more

Summary: A district court in California has held that a state statute invalidating contractual penalty provisions was inapplicable to a default interest rate clause contained in loan documents. [East West Bank vs. Altadena Lincoln Crossing, LLC, 2019 Westlaw 1057044 (C.D. Cal.).] Read more

Recent Family Law Cases (current through 7/25/19)[Opinions available at:  http://www.courts.ca.gov/opinions-slip.htm]By:  Stephen D. Hamilton, CFLS Dependency Procedure In Re Harley C.7/15/19, CA 2/7:  B293323https://www.courts.ca.gov/opinions/documents/B293323.PDF TCT did not allow M to testify or call witnesses as her counsel failed to file a joint trial statement required by local rule adopted after trial date had been set. TCT then awarded sole custody to F and terminated its jurisdiction. Reversed. CtA found local rule in question was invalid as it was adopted in violation… Read more

Summary: A California appellate court has held that a judgment creditor conducting an examination of a judgment debtor may obtain a subpoena duces tecum directing the debtor's bank to produce evidence, even though no examination of the bank itself had been ordered. [Shrewsbury Management, Inc. vs. Superior Court, 2019 Westlaw 1109754 (Cal. App.).] Read more

Summary: A California appellate court has held that a purchaser of conditional sales contracts was liable for the debts of two defaulting vehicle dealerships because the senior inventory lender retained the vehicles’ title certificates. [Ron Miller Enterprises, Inc., vs. Lobel Financial Corp., Inc., 2019 Westlaw 1199523 (Cal.App.).] Read more

While the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) has an effective date of January 1, 2020, there are several bills to amend the law currently pending in the California Legislature that could be signed into law by October. In July, the California Senate Judiciary Committee voted on several bills that would amend the CCPA, and below is a table summarizing the status of the key amendments. The bills that passed will be on the Senate floor for a vote when the Senate reconvenes on August 12. The Senate will have until September 13 to pass the bills. Read more

On July 11, 2019, Makan Delrahim announced a major reversal in the Antitrust Division's treatment of Corporate antitrust compliance programs. In a speech titled “Wind of Change: A New Model for Incentivizing Antitrust Compliance Programs,” Delrahim stated: “effective immediately, the Antitrust Division will: (1) change its approach to crediting compliance at the charging stage; (2) clarify its approach to evaluating the effectiveness of compliance programs at the sentencing stage; and (3) for the first time, make public a guidance document for the evaluation of compliance programs in criminal antitrust investigations.” Read more