Legal Digest

Opponents of a school consolidation plan in a Santa Cruz County school district did not provide evidence showing that the consolidation was not exempt from California Environmental Quality Act review, the Sixth District Court of Appeal has ruled. >>read more

An extraordinarily complicated takings case stemming from the City of Capitola's mobile home rent control ordinance has received new life, even though the city has won numerous rounds in federal and state court. >>read more

WASHINGTON _ The Supreme Court's splintered decision on wetlands protection is likely to result in more litigation for federal agencies and new attention to California water boards' expansive jurisdiction over the state's waters. >>read more

A state appellate court has upheld an exemption from environmental review for a 14-story residential building proposed in San Diego. >>read more

A state District Court of Appeal has rejected a property owner's contention that design review permits for two houses in San Mateo County were "deemed approved" because the county failed to act on his applications within 60 days. >>read more

An important case involving the delivery of water to farmers and fish appears to have sputtered to an end with the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals' short-order rejection of the farmers' claims. >>read more

A use permit condition limiting groundwater extraction to 12,000 acre-feet of water per year did not constitute a taking of property, the Fourth District Court of Appeal has ruled. >>read more

A divided appellate court panel has upheld a 2004 regulation that gives the director of the state Department of Conservation the final say over whether reclamation of a surface mine has fulfilled the mine's reclamation plan. >>read more

A billboard company has won the latest round in a drawn-out conflict with the City of Riverside. The Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled that Valley Outdoor Inc. may challenge the city's handling of a permit application but may not contest the city's sign ordinance. >>read more

A city is not required to provide credit against park and recreation fees when it requires a developer to dedicate private open space, the Sixth District Court of Appeal has ruled. >>read more

A San Luis Obispo County businessman who did not attend a California Coastal Commission hearing regarding his proposed project has lost a lawsuit contending that he was not provided adequate notice of the hearing. >>read more

A $1.4-million damages award that a jury granted to the owner of a San Bernardino adult cabaret has been upheld by the Fourth District Court of Appeal. The damages were based on expenses and lost income from a 53-month period when the City of San Bernardino's zoning ordinance - which was eventually ruled unconstitutional - prevented Flesh Night Club from operating. >>read more

A Rohnert Park mobile home park owner's demand that a court grant a rent increase because an unconstitutional city law held down rents has been rejected. >>read more

Tulare County owes the Dinuba Redevelopment Agency property tax-increment dollars that the county erroneously distributed to itself and nine other local government agencies, the Fifth District Court of Appeal has ruled. >>read more