CA Pub. Decisions

Charter city may not dilute the procedural protections accorded by state laws to those who forfeit the vehicles they allegedly used to facilitate prostitution or various drug transactions; forfeiture for those reasons is a matter of statewide concern as to which state law including requirements that requisite facts be proven beyond a reasonable doubt, that the illegal activities result in a criminal conviction, and that innocent owners of the vehicle be protected -- preempts conflicting local enactments.

Charter city may not dilute the procedural protections accorded by state laws to those who forfeit the vehicles they allegedly used to facilitate prostitution or various drug transactions; forfeiture for those reasons is a matter of statewide concern as to which state law including requirements that requisite facts be proven beyond a reasonable doubt, that the illegal activities result in a criminal conviction, and that innocent owners of the vehicle be protected -- preempts conflicting local enactments.

Appellant appeals from his conviction for stalking and making criminal threats against his estranged wife, Anne MacManus. (Pen. Code, SS 422 and 646.9, subd. (b).) The prosecution introduced evidence of prior incidents of domestic violence by MacManus to establish Anne was reasonably in fear for her safety. During trial, the defense learned for the first time a police officer involved in investigating one of those prior incidents may have made false statements in an application for an emergency protective order he obtained on Anne's behalf two years earlier. Although that officer was not called as a witness, MacManus sought a continuance of the trial to pursue Pitchess discovery of the personnel files of the officer in question and another officer who did testify about the prior incident. On appeal, MacManus contends the trial court erred by denying the continuance. We find no error and affirm the judgment.

Where trial judge stated at sentencing that defendant was required to pay restitution to family of victim but did not set amount, court retained continuing jurisdiction to set that amount, even after defendant had otherwise completed sentence.

Directors and officers liability policy does not cover a breach of contract claim where an officer entered into a contract without stating that he was acting on behalf of the corporation. Where payment of the underlying debt is not insured by the policy, failure to pay it is not a wrongful act to which coverage applies.

A modification decision.

Directors and officers liability policy does not cover a breach of contract claim where an officer entered into a contract without stating that he was acting on behalf of the corporation. Where payment of the underlying debt is not insured by the policy, failure to pay it is not a wrongful act to which coverage applies.

Where writers of pilot script for television series, under collective bargaining agreement with producer, acquired absolute rights to exploit the script for motion picture purposes, and writers' heirs later sold those rights back to producer, those rights were not ancillary or subsidiary under contract requiring producer to share net profits from exploitation of ancillary or subsidiary rights with co-creator of television series.

Rule that an insurer's failure to accept a reasonable settlement offer within policy limits can support tort liability for breach of the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing, applicable to third party settlement offers, does not apply to insured's demand that insurer offer a reasonable settlement of an uninsured/underinsured motorist claim. Vast difference between losses claimed by insured and actual losses as determined by arbitrator demonstrated, as a matter of law, that a genuine dispute existed as to the amount payable on underinsured motorist claim, barring insured's cause of action for bad faith delay in making payment.

Student's sexual harassment and tort claims against incorporated charter high school did not need to satisfy Government Tort Claims Act where school, as an alleged nonprofit public benefit corporation, is neither a 'public entity' nor a 'public agency' separately required to register with the Secretary of State and the county clerk for the Roster of Public Agencies.

Suit by shareholder of corporation providing medical services to HMO's members against attorney for the other shareholder over business letter sent by defendant to HMO's president urging that new corporation headed by attorney's client be named the exclusive provider given plaintiff's suspension from practice of medicine was not subject to anti-SLAPP motion. Letter was not a "public forum," and dispute over who would serve HMO's members was not a "public issue."

Juvenile court's error in appointing a guardian ad litem without inquiring about father's competence and explaining the purpose of the appointment was a structural error requiring reversal of the order terminating father's parental rights.

Juvenile court's error in appointing a guardian ad litem without inquiring about father's competence and explaining the purpose of the appointment was a structural error requiring reversal of the order terminating father's parental rights.

The term "occurrence," as used in a commercial general liability policy as applied to bodily injuries caused by exposure to asbestos, means injurious exposure to asbestos, not the manufacture and distribution of those products, so trial court erred in determining that all asbestos injuries from exposure to insured's products arose from a single annual occurrence as a matter of law.