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Federal Judiciary

California Appellate Report

Commentary on recent Ninth Circuit.
By Shaun Martin

Post Frequency: 4.3/day

Last Entry: November 04, 2020 at 16:52:00

U.S. v. Contreras (9th Cir. - Sept. 17, 2009)

Posted on September 17, 2009
This is how you properly ignore contrary circuit precedent. Because even if a dozen panels keep applying the same test, if the statute changed in the meantime, and the panels (and/or parties) didn't notice or discuss that change, then they aren't binding...

U.S. v. Montalvo (9th Cir. - Sept. 16, 2009)

Posted on September 16, 2009
You know what I like to see in my coke dealers? A little effort. A little class.No baggy-shorts-where-you-can-see-their-underwear here. Michael Montalvo's ran his crew "much like a legitimate enterprise, requiring his employees to dress in business attire, to work 8:00 a...

Falling Off Face of the Earth (Cal. Ct. App. - Sept. 10-16, 2009)

Posted on September 16, 2009
I'm sure there's a rational explanation for it. Huge conference. Administrative backlog. Budget woes. Something else. All of the above? Swine flu?But what's going on with the California Court of Appeal? Usually it cranks out around six to twelve published opinions a day...

Kahn v. Holder (9th Cir. - Sept. 9, 2009)

Posted on September 15, 2009
It's relatively rare for Judge Nelson to write separately. Much less to an opinion by Judge Willy Fletcher. But it happens.When it does, there are usually somewhat weighty reasons for it. As I think there are here, albeit regarding an issue upon which reasonable minds could surely disagree...

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U.S. v. Chaney (9th Cir. - Sept. 15, 2009)

Posted on September 15, 2009
Don't get overly excited at the caption, you ultra-lefties out there. This is United States v. Chaney. Not the guy with the E. Who's had problems of his own, of course. But who isn't facing any actual time.Plus, it's Linda, not even Lynne. This is crack cocaine Chaney...

Dumont v. Ford Motor Co. (9th Cir. - Sept. 15, 2009)

Posted on September 15, 2009
I'm swamped. Absolutely swamped. And yet I love this case. Absolutely love it. So I couldn't help but share it with you. If only because the fact that it's a bankruptcy case didn't in the slightest diminish my interest.Judge O'Scannlain writes the majority opinion, and Judge Graber respectfully dissents...

Verdugo-Gonzalez v. Holder (9th Cir. - Sept. 14, 2009)

Posted on September 14, 2009
Given the plethora of semi-comptent (at best) immigration law practitioners out there, anyone should thank their lucky stars when Latham agrees to take your case (presumably, pro bono) and brief and argue the Ninth Circuit appeal.So be happy. With, nonetheless, the full realization that you could still lose...

Kazarian v. US Citizenship & Imm. Bureau (9th Cir. - Sept. 4, 2009)

Posted on September 11, 2009
I find myself agreeing with Judge Nelson rather than Judge Pregerson.Poghos Kazarian may be smart and good. But he's not that smart and good. And when it comes to immigrating to the United States, that distinction makes all the difference.

Schad v. Ryan (9th Cir. - Sept. 11, 2009)

Posted on September 11, 2009
One thing about death penalty cases that go on for decades is that you often learn things during the lengthy appellate process that might matter -- to most people, anyway -- about the justice of the sentence and yet that doctrinally are totally irrelevant to proper outcome...

Bearman v. California Medical Board (Cal. Ct. App. - Aug. 26, 2009)

Posted on September 10, 2009
I like a little sly humor now and then. Check this out by Justice Yegan:"Here, a law enforcement officer encountered a "medical marijuana patient" who possessed marijuana and paraphernalia. He reasonably believed there might be abuse of the CUA because the doctor's letter, approving/recommending marijuana use, mentioned attention deficit disorder...

U.S. v. Juvenile Male (9th Cir. - Sept. 10, 2009)

Posted on September 10, 2009
Read this one while you still can. Because it's a powerful opinion. And one that, for better or worse, I'm not sure will be around all that long.It's a classic Judge Reinhardt opinion. Well-written. Touching. Keenly aware of both doctrine as well as practice...

U.S. v. Johnson (9th Cir. - Sept. 10, 2009)

Posted on September 10, 2009
Nice police work!Some police officers are serving federal warrants in Anchorage (technically, an Alaska State Trooper and a deputy with the U.S Marshals Service). While stopped at a traffic light, they saw three suspicious-looking guys standing next to a Buick in a bank parking...

Disability Law Center v. Anchorage School Dist. (9th Cir. - Sept. 9, 2009)

Posted on September 09, 2009
We always talk about the "American Rule" -- that everyone pays their own lawyer (with limited exceptions) -- as opposed to the "English Rule", which provides that the loser of a civil suit pays the other side's fees. After today, however, I think I'm going to start talking about the American Rule as opposed to the "Alaska Rule"...

Levinson v. Owens (Cal. Ct. App. - Aug. 26, 2009)

Posted on September 09, 2009
I'm sure (or at least hope) that the plaintiff was just going after homeowner's insurance money. This is nonetheless an example of why some people hate lawyers so much.Bert Owens, a landowner involved in a lot-line lawsuits, invites Ellyn Levinson, an attorney with the Department of Conservation, to his ranch to celebrate a recent victory that they both had obtained in a pending lawsuit...

Williams v. Hilb, Rogal & Hobbs Ins. Co. (Cal. Ct. App. - Sept. 9, 2009)

Posted on September 09, 2009
Boyhood friends John Williams and Steven Simon open up a business and ask an insurance broker to get them all the insurance they need. The broker does so, and they get an insurance policy, which they quickly review. Everything seems fine until there's a fire at the business and one of their employees is severely injured...

U.S. v. Lam (9th Cir. - Sept. 8, 2008)

Posted on September 08, 2009
Come on, Willie! You're smart. I know you must have thought about it, right? Why not pull the trigger?The question is whether a fugitive from state court proceedings who's filed a claim in a civil forfeiture action can have his claim struck under the fugitive disentitlement doctrine/statute...

Birotte v. Superior Court (Cal. Ct. App. - Sept. 8, 2009)

Posted on September 08, 2009
Want to know how cold-hit DNA testing and analysis transpires in California? Here you go.Kinda cool, actually.

Nurre v. Whitehead (9th Cir. - Sept. 8, 2009)

Posted on September 08, 2009
We know you can't (usually) have a prayer at your high school graduation ceremony. What about singing Ave Maria? Do you have a First Amendment right to do so? Or can a school legitimately prohibit such a religious performance at graduation based upon a desire for inclusiveness and previous complaints?You've got a pretty favorable pro-plaintiff panel drawn for this one, at least relatively: Judges Beezer, Tallman and Milan Smith...

Al-Kidd v. Ashcroft (9th Cir. - Sept. 4, 2009)

Posted on September 07, 2009
Labor Day. A nice day to sit back and reflect upon one's relationship with work.For those spending the day at home, it's a good day to reflect upon the importance of friends, family and fun. For those spending the day at work -- as I am -- it's perhaps a good day to reflect upon the values and choices that bring you there...

In Re Craig (9th Cir. - Aug. 26, 2009)

Posted on September 04, 2009
Feel bad about the size of your student loans and potential inability to repay them?Trust me. It could be worse. You could be Cheryl Craig.Ms. Craig racked up $80,000+ in student loans (including interest) attending Pima Community College and the University of Arizona to get an AA in paralegal studies in 1992, and a BA in sociology in 1996...

Carrera v. Maurice J. Sopp & Son (Cal. Ct. App. - Sept. 3, 2009)

Posted on September 03, 2009
Here's a great case decided by the California Cout of Appeal earlier today that encapsulates both a variety of policy/doctrinal choices as well as exemplifies how not-so-easy being a judge is even you're in fact a "pure referee" who's merely "calling balls and strikes...

Yolo County Dep't of Child Support Svcs v. Lowery (Cal. Ct. App. - Aug. 23, 2009)

Posted on September 03, 2009
Guess what happens when your 12-year old son molests your daughter (his stepsister) and gets involuntarily removed by the State from your home (and put in foster care) as a result?Answer: You have to pay the State for the foster care.

U.S. v. Inzunza (9th Cir. - Sept. 1, 2009)

Posted on September 02, 2009
We had a high-profile corruption case down here in San Diego a while back involvoing three members of the City Council. It had salacious facts and involved alleged bribery to change the laws that regulate strip clubs, so the media took to calling it "Strippergate"...

People v. Hach (Cal. Ct. App. - Aug. 25, 2009)

Posted on September 02, 2009
Before I read this case, I'd have told you: "Those stupid 'chat line' commercials you see on late-night television are absurd. There's no way you can meet an actual woman on those things."But now I have to revise my assessment. As follows: "Maybe you can meet a woman, but watch out...

Wences v. City of Los Angeles (Cal. Ct. App. - Sept. 2, 2009)

Posted on September 02, 2009
There are lots of police misconduct/shooting cases in which the officer has acted pretty egregiously. But I gotta say that what Officer Cesar Wences did here seems relatively reasonable to me.I'm glad that his discipline was slight, and that the official reprimand he received didn't stop him from getting a promotion...

Stevens v. Tri Counties Bank (Cal. Ct. App. - Sept. 1, 2009)

Posted on September 01, 2009
I've got plenty of joint accounts, not surprisingly. I've never really thought about them, which is also neither surprising or unusual, I imagine. I always thought the rule was -- as indeed it is -- that anyone who's listed on the joint account can withdraw whatever amounts they want...

People v. Thrasher (Cal. Ct. App. - Aug. 21, 2009)

Posted on September 01, 2009
Carlos Thrasher skips out on $17,000+ of unpaid rent for an office he rents from his landlord, Ziad Alhassen. After Thrasher repeatedly tries to get Alhassen to forgive this amount, and after Alhassen threatens to sue, Thrasher finally agrees to pay the unpaid rent -- and signs a promissory note for it...

Hilton v. Hallmark Cards (9th Cir. - Aug. 31, 2009)

Posted on August 31, 2009
It's tough to figure out who to root for when Paris Hilton sues Hallmark Cards.Does Paris Hilton get money for Hallmark putting her face and catchphrase ("It's hot") on a birthday card mimicking "The Simple Life"? Does Hallmark get to file an anti-SLAPP motion, and is it entitled to prevail?Justice O'Scannlain gets the result right, and affirms the district court's denial of Hallmark's anti-SLAPP motion (and dismisses Hilton's interlocutory appeal of the denial of its 12(b)(6) motion)...

Yokoyama v. Midland National Bank (9th Cir. - Aug. 28, 2009)

Posted on August 28, 2009
I like a fight as much as the next person. Really I do. But I'm not sure there's much there here.This is a case where the district court denied class certification in a "deceptive marketing" case (here, involving annuities to seniors). Once I read that, I thought: This thing's gonna get affirmed...

U.S. v. Gallenardo (9th Cir. - Aug. 28, 2009)

Posted on August 28, 2009
You think your husband may be cheating on you. You're thinking about looking through his briefcase to see if you can find any signs of infidelity.Do you really want to know? What if what you find instead are pictures of a naked sixteen year old boy in the basement of your home?

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