Legal Digest

An attempt to certify the validity of parcels in Ventura County created during the 1940s has been rejected by the Second District Court of Appeal. The court found that the land in question was subdivided illegally during the 1940s, and the county has no obligation to recognize the subdivision now. >>read more

A water district may enter into a reimbursement agreement with a developer for the construction of oversized infrastructure to support anticipated growth, the state Attorney General's Office has concluded. >>read more

In an unusual case from the wilds of Plumas County, the Third District Court of Appeal has rejected the claims of a property owner who argued that a county ordinance allowing a neighbor's livestock to graze on his land amounted to an unconstitutional taking. >>read more

In a decision similar to other recent rulings, an appellate court has rejected an environmental impact report for a proposed business park in Santa Clarita because the project EIR's discussion of water sources was inadequate. >>read more

El Dorado County continues to be the center of litigation over laws involving mining. In the latest case, the Third District Court of Appeal ruled that a mine operator may not sue the State Mining and Geology Board, its members and two employees for allegedly violating the miner's civil rights. >>read more

The City of Stockton has successfully defended against a lawsuit filed by a developer whom the city cut out of two downtown redevelopment projects. The Second District Court of Appeal ruled that the developer, Civic Partners Stockton, LLC, could not pursue its lawsuit alleging breach of contract because the developer did not present the city with a claim for damages before filing suit. >>read more

A legal battle between wealthy property owners on the shores of Lake Tahoe appears to have been won by a group wanting to build a new boat dock. The Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals rejected all arguments against the proposed dock presented by the Glenbrook Homeowners Association and allied parties, and the court upheld the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency's approval of the project. >>read more

A settlement agreement between the City of Malibu and a developer has been thrown out by the Second District Court of Appeal because the agreement limited the city's police powers and was improperly adopted in closed session. >>read more

A developer that has fought a variety of government fees levied by numerous jurisdictions had its day in front of the state Supreme Court in October. But during an hour of oral argument, California's high court justices offered few hints of how they might rule. >>read more

A property owner's lawsuit against a San Francisco housing activist has been swatted down by the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. The court found, essentially, that the First Amendment protected the activist's complaint about the property owners' plans. >>read more

The California Supreme Court has accepted a case in which a deal between the State Lands Commission and the City of Long Beach was halted by an appellate court. At issue is a complicated land swap. >>read more

A controversial decision that cast doubt on many mobile home rent control ordinances in California has been thrown out. >>read more

The Ninth Circuit has declined to decide a takings case brought by developers whose property the Los Angeles Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) has acquired through eminent domain for economic development. >>read more

The Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has upheld a plan that gives the San Joaquin Valley until 2010 to achieve permissible amounts of soot and dust in the air. Environmentalists and public health advocates had argued for a 2006 deadline. >>read more