In a previous article, I discussed the often blurry line between permissible pre-litigation communications and constitutionally unprotected extortionate demands. However, one important dimension of the civil extortion universe was left unaddressed there—that is, no claim for civil extortion can lie unless the victim actually pays the extorter. In much of the foundational precedent surrounding the […]
On April 29, 2021, Scripps Health (“Scripps”) suffered a ransomware attack in the unauthorized access of over 147,000 patients’ personal information. A few weeks later, Scripps announced the breach. As of writing this article, Scripps is still trying to determine the full extent of damage caused by the breach. I previously wrote about the CCPA and California’s plaintiff’s rights in the event of a data breach. […]
They say that war makes for strange bedfellows. As it turns out, the war on drugs is no exception. In a recent opinion from the United States Supreme Court, conservative stalwart Justice Clarence Thomas rebuked the federal government’s “half-in, half-out” stance on state-legal cannabis, and strongly implied that said approach was untenable from a federalist […]
In a previous article, I discussed the potential impacts of a then-forthcoming decision in the case of In re United Cannabis Corporation, which had the potential to widen access to federal bankruptcy relief to cannabis-adjacent hemp businesses. However, the In re United Cannabis case ended not with a bang, but with a whimper. On January […]
A recent land use decision of the California Court of Appeal has eased one of the many burdens experienced by developers seeking to challenge a public entity’s permit denial. In an opinion by Judge Tangeman, the Second Appellate District reinforced the strength of the “futility exception” to the legal prerequisites in mandamus actions. In Felkay […]
You just hired a young web designer as an independent contractor to revamp your website. After struggling through the creative process, you and your web designer ultimately come to a decision on the final product, and you launch your site. However, a few months later, you receive a letter from the Law Office of Koppi & Wright, PC accusing you of infringing on its client’s intellectual property—specifically pointing to a few graphics and […]
Vaccines are being administered, indoor and outdoor activities are beginning to resume throughout California and it would appear that life is starting to get back to normal. Well, not quite. Before you get ahead of yourself, a litany of COVID-related protections remain in place, namely in the landlord-tenant arena. The below is a quick refresher […]
You’re a seasoned litigator and an aggrieved, hardworking contractor comes into your office (or your Zoom room). His recent proposal to the City, which was prepared with painstaking detail and offered the lowest bearable price, was rejected—unfairly, the contractor says. Instead, the City awarded the contract to the contractor’s bitter rival, Dewey/Cheatham, who appears to […]
In legal practice, all lawyers stress about blowing deadlines. Perhaps the most popular deadline that keeps lawyers up at night is the statute of limitations. The statute of limitations is a legal principle that requires parties to file their legal claims within a specific time. An exception to the statute of limitations is the discovery […]
On December 4, 2020,1 the United States House of Representatives made history and voted to federally legalize cannabis for the first time by voting to pass the Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement Act (the “MORE Act”). Although the MORE Act still has to pass the historically cannabis-unfriendly United States Senate, the House’s quick action to pass a […]
Given the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting changing legislative landscape, the state of commercial and residential evictions in California has been in what feels like a constant state of flux. Since March of this year, mandates and ordinances have been implemented at the state and local levels, rules have been adopted and withdrawn from […]