Real Property Law Section

It’s hard to be a trial lawyer when you’re hung over all the time. Or wondering how soon you can get finished with that discovery/pleading/deposition/trial day so you can get something — or rather a whole lot of something — to drink. But that’s precisely the life I endured and finally escaped on my birthday: February 27, 2001. Not my belly-button birthday, of course. My sobriety birthday. The first day of a life filled with miracles since I learned how to stop drinking, one day at a time. Read more

In Volume 3/4 for Fall 2017 of the Real Property Journal, I wrote an article on the Doctrine of Implied Dedication to a Public Use for Roadways Recreational Use in California as enunciated in the California Supreme Court decision of Scher v. Burke, , 3 Cal. 5th 136 (2017) modified, reh’g denied. In Scher the California Supreme Court concluded that the higher standard established by Civil Code § 1009 adopted by the California legislature in 1972 for establishing an implied dedication by public use applied to dedications to roadways as well as recreational properties. Read more

Great topics like complex mixed use infill development projects. This panel will focus primarily on the Truckee Railyard Project, which is transforming an industrial railroad site into a blossoming downtown area with new businesses and affordable housing units. Another panel discussed Opportunity Zone investing, a community investment tool recently created under the Investing in Opportunity Act (as part of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act passed in late 2017) to stimulate long-term private investment, job creation and economic development in certain designated low-income communities. Read more

Jose Mendoza So you have been a member and now advisor of the real property law section executive committee for 10 years…tell me about some of the changes you have seen in the group?One of the fundamental goals of the RPLS is to draw from diverse constituencies including, but not limited to geographic location, racial and ethnic diversity, practice type, district representation, and gender and sexual orientation. The current composition of the ExCom now consists of more younger and racially… Read more

The Real Property Law Section would like to welcome new wonderful staffers! Read more

The CLA Real Property Law Section’s Annual Spring Conference (formerly the Real Property Law Section Retreat) is the leading educational conference for California real estate lawyers. Read more

From the statue of Frauds, to the Notice of Compensation, to the recording of activity at the property to sellers' signatures, when a real estate broker takes a listing of residential property many of the terms need to satisfy legal or regulatory requirements. C.A.R's senior legal adviser to its Standard Forms committee will go over those items in the listing contract that have legal implications. Read more

Verbal discussion between e-bulletin coordinator and co-chair- of RPLS highlighting important statutory and case law developments, upcoming RPLS sponsored events and featuring interviews with prominent Ex-Com members, CLA leaders and others. Read more

Real estate transactions in today’s world often involve the wiring or electronic funds transfer (EFT) of money to complete a deal. Previous consumer alerts have referenced or covered wire fraud in timeshare transactions and fraud against seniors. Read more

This piece was originally titled “Tips for Solo Survival”. But mere survival is not really a viable long-term option for most attorneys. You will tire of the struggle to make ends meet and the demands on your time without acceptable corresponding financial reward, and eventually move onto something different. The goal is to succeed professionally, financially, and personally. Here are some tips from a long-time solo trial attorney to help make that happen! Read more