California Supreme Court

The California Supreme Court ruled that courts must permit electronic recordings of hearings when a certified professional reporter cannot be available. The decision challenges legal restrictions and court reporter unions who advocated for limiting recording. The ruling aims to ensure indigent litigants have access to an official verbatim record, addressing the problem created by a massive shortage of court reporters.

The California Supreme Court ruled that cities cannot require taxpayers to complete extra local procedures before seeking a tax refund in court. This decision provided Marathon Petroleum with a procedural victory in its tax dispute with the City of Carson over additional taxes owed under an oil-industry business license tax.

Eli Lilly is allowing patients to apply for early access to retatrutide, an unapproved obesity drug, following a special access request for a 79-year-old patient. The California Supreme Court ruled in favor of Gilead Sciences in a case where patients claimed the company was negligent in delaying a safer HIV medication, overturning a prior appeals court decision.

The California Supreme Court ruled that Gilead Sciences is not liable for negligence claims in a class action accusing the company of delaying the development of a safer HIV drug (TAF) to prolong profits from its existing drug (TDF). The court concluded manufacturers do not owe a duty of care for nondefective drugs when deciding to commercialize alternative treatments.

The California Supreme Court ruled in favor of Gilead Sciences in a case where patients alleged the company was negligent for delaying the development of a safer HIV drug. The court overturned a prior decision holding Gilead liable, alleviating concerns in the pharmaceutical industry about legal risks influencing drug development.

A recent California Supreme Court ruling could make it more difficult to keep some repeat nonviolent offenders in custody before trial, according to the San Francisco District Attorney.

A California Supreme Court ruling addresses how public employees can count accrued vacation time toward their pensions, limiting the amount they can cash out. The decision, involving a retired attorney's one-week salary discrepancy, may significantly impact government agencies and taxpayers.

The California Supreme Court ruled that public employees can only count vacation hours cashed out within a single calendar year toward their pension formulas, limiting retirees' ability to spread accrued time over multiple years. The decision centered on a case involving retired Ventura County Counsel Leroy Smith, who cashed out 240 hours of vacation time in a 12-month period but was denied pension credit for 40 hours exceeding his contract's annual limit.

A California Supreme Court ruling upheld limits on how many vacation hours public workers can cash out for pension calculations under Jerry Brown's 2013 pension reform law. The decision centered on Leroy Smith, a retired Ventura County attorney who attempted to count 240 vacation hours toward his pension, exceeding his contract's 200-hour annual limit.

Every person sentenced to death in California over the last five years has been Black or Latino, highlighting racial bias in the state's death penalty system. A lawsuit filed by the Office of the State Public Defender and civil rights groups, supported by empirical studies, claims the death penalty violates equal protection guarantees, and the California Supreme Court has allowed the case to proceed.

California Supreme Court ordered attorney Thomas John Spielbauer to pay over $500,000 in restitution to a non-client for real estate misconduct, rejecting the state bar review department's earlier conclusion that he was not liable. The court clarified that restitution can be mandated in attorney discipline cases even when the injured party is not a client, while Spielbauer's attorney criticized the ruling as harmful to the legal profession.

The California Supreme Court is set to decide whether controversial Perkins operations—where law enforcement poses as incarcerated individuals to obtain incriminating statements—are legally and ethically acceptable. Critics argue these tactics are coercive, risk false confessions, and disproportionately target Black and Latino people, while prosecutors defend them as effective investigative tools.

CalMatters investigated Perkins operations, a controversial law enforcement tactic in California jails where undercover agents pose as inmates to extract incriminating statements from suspects. David Allen, who invoked his right to silence, was convicted based on statements from such an operation and is challenging his conviction in the California Supreme Court.

A man accused of racially motivated attacks in Santa Monica, including an attempted murder, will face trial after the California Supreme Court declined to review a ruling that overturned a judge's decision to grant him mental health diversion. The court's decision upholds a prior ruling against mental health diversion for the suspect.

A suspect in an alleged hate crime against an L.A. rabbi was released following a California Supreme Court ruling that prohibited cash bail in most cases and limited bail amounts. The ruling mandated sweeping changes to the state's bail policies.

A suspect in an alleged hate crime against an L.A. rabbi was freed following a California Supreme Court ruling that mandated changes to the state's bail policies, prohibiting cash bail in most cases and limiting bail amounts in others.

Governor Gavin Newsom signed State Senate Bill 73 to protect California’s elections by making it illegal to seize ballots or interfere with voting processes. The bill, introduced by Senators Tom Umberg and Sabrina Cervantes, targets potential voter intimidation linked to the Trump administration and prohibits unauthorized law enforcement presence at polling stations.

Xavier Becerra's office pushed to inflate a Black man's IQ to execute him as California AG. The effort failed and the Supreme Court of California overturned the death sentence in 2018. Becerra is now leading in the crowded race to replace term-limited Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom.

Scott Peterson's defense team lost a bid to introduce witness testimony suggesting his wife, Laci Peterson, was alive after her 2002 disappearance. A California judge ruled the evidence inadmissible, upholding Peterson's 2004 conviction for murdering his pregnant wife and their unborn son. Peterson, serving a life sentence, continues to appeal his conviction through the Innocence Project and a pending petition over alleged juror misconduct.

The California Supreme Court has disbarred John Eastman, a former Trump attorney, for his role in promoting false claims about the 2020 election. Eastman, who advised Trump on contesting the election, was found guilty of 10 out of 11 charges related to unethical conduct. His disbarment followed a State Bar Court review affirming his misconduct.

The California Supreme Court disbarred John Eastman, a former Trump attorney, for his role in promoting false claims about the 2020 election. Eastman, who advised Trump on efforts to overturn the election, authored a memo suggesting Vice President Mike Pence reject electoral votes for Joe Biden. His disbarment followed findings of 10 out of 11 ethical violations, with Eastman's legal team planning to challenge the decision in the U.S. Supreme Court.

John Eastman, a former Trump lawyer involved in efforts to overturn the 2020 election, was disbarred by the California Supreme Court. The court upheld a 2024 lower court ruling citing his 'gross negligence' for spreading false election claims without verification. Eastman plans to appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court.

The California Supreme Court upheld the disbarment of constitutional scholar John Eastman for his role in representing President Trump during the 2020 election disputes. The article criticizes the court's decision as a 'legal disgrace' and defends Eastman's legal strategy under the Electoral Count Act of 1887, comparing it to historical election disputes in 1876 and 1960.

The California Supreme Court disbarred John Eastman, a former Trump lawyer and law school dean, for his role in aiding the Trump administration's attempt to overturn the 2020 election.

The California Supreme Court ordered Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco to halt his investigation into ballots from a November special election. Bianco, a Republican gubernatorial candidate, had seized over 650,000 ballots from the local election office amid fraud allegations.

The California Supreme Court ordered Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco to pause his investigation into election fraud allegations and preserve seized ballots after a legal challenge by California Attorney General Rob Bonta.

The California Supreme Court has declined to stop Governor Newsom's redistricting plan, allowing Democrats to move forward with redrawing congressional districts. This decision was made on Thursday. The plan's implementation is now cleared to proceed.