Recent Articles

Claim Mailed to Public Entity's Risk Management Department Substantially Complies with Claims Requirement

May 31, 2011 17:33

In an opinion published May 26, 2011 the California Court of Appeal, Sixth Appellate District, held that a tort claim mailed to a public entity's risk management department satisfies the claims presentation requirement under Government Code Section 915. The plaintiff...In an opinion published May...

City Approval Of Preliminary Terms for New Football Stadium Was Not A Project Approval And Did Not Violate CEQA

May 26, 2011 20:27

Cedar Fair, L.P. v. City of Santa Clara In the latest case interpreting Save Tara, the Sixth District Court of Appeal found that the City of Santa Clara did not violate CEQA when it approved preliminary terms for a new...Cedar Fair, L.P. v. City of Santa Clara In the latest case interpreting Save...

Deadline for Cities to Challenge 2010 Census Approaching

May 26, 2011 14:07

Census figures matter, and the window of time for cities to challenge these figures is rapidly closing on June 21. Census data is used to distribute funds for over 170 federal programs for housing, crime prevention, transportation, and job training....Census figures matter, and the window of time...

Spay/Neuter Ordinance Is A Valid Exercise of City’s Police Power

May 23, 2011 19:56

Local governments considering spay/neuter regulations as a method for controlling pet overpopulation may use the Los Angeles city ordinance (section 53.15.2) as a model. On April 29, the Court of Appeal endorsed the City of Los Angeles’ spay/neuter ordinance, holding...Local governments...

Public Records Act Requires Disclosure of County Retiree Pension Information

May 19, 2011 19:56

On May 11, the Court of Appeal held in Sacramento County Employees’ Retirement System (SCERS) v. Superior Court that SCERS must disclose, in response to a Public Records Act request, the names and corresponding pension benefit amounts received by its...On May 11, the Court of Appeal held in...

Mobile Home Rent Control Ordinances Still a Viable Option in California

May 18, 2011 20:08

On May 17, 2011, the U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear a developer’s challenge to the City of Goleta’s mobile home rent control ordinance, ending a long court battle over the future of the high value real estate and the...On May 17, 2011, the U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear a developer’s...

Court of Appeal Approves Public Employee Termination for Posting Craigslist Sex Ad While Off-Duty

May 09, 2011 22:08

In San Diego Unified School District v. Commission on Professional Competence (Lampedusa), --- Cal. Rptr. 3d ---, 2011 WL 1234686 (ordered published May 3, 2011), the California Court of Appeal upheld a school district's dismissal of a schoolteacher who was...In San Diego Unified School District v....

Ordinance Restricting Storage and Parking of Recreational Vehicles on Private Property Held Constitutional

May 04, 2011 18:08

On May 2, 2011, in Disney v. City of Concord, the California Court of Appeal, First Appellate District held that an ordinance regulating the storage and parking of recreational vehicles, including boats and other recreational equipment, on residential property was...On May 2, 2011, in Disney v....

Bill Introduced to Regulate Protests at Funerals

May 03, 2011 01:07

In the wake of the charged March 2nd U.S. Supreme Court decision, Snyder v. Phelps, the California Senate has proposed SB 888, which outlaws protests on public property within 1,000 feet of a burial site, mortuary, or place of worship,...In the wake of the charged March 2nd U.S. Supreme Court...

Court Recognizes Immunity of Fire Departments Operating Vehicles at the Scene of a Fire

April 29, 2011 18:05

In a decision published April 20, 2011, the California Court of Appeal, Fourth Appellate District, confirmed that fire departments are immune from liability where a firefighter causes death or injury through the negligent operation of a motor vehicle at the...In a decision published April 20, 2011,...