4th District Court of Appeal, Business Transactions, Litigation

Higginson v. Kia Motors America — Trial Court Should Have Imposed Terminating Sanctions for Kia’s False Discovery Responses About Engine-Defect Records

automatic / February 3, 2026

Fourth District reverses a defense judgment in a Song-Beverly action against Kia, holding the trial court abused its discretion by accepting Kia's false verified discovery responses about engine-defect records and failing to impose terminating sanctions when the falsity was revealed.

California Supreme Court, Labor & Employment Law, Litigation

Fuentes v. Empire Nissan — Tiny, Unreadable Contract Print Goes to Procedural, Not Substantive, Unconscionability — but Courts Must Scrutinize Illegible Terms Closely

automatic / February 2, 2026

The California Supreme Court clarifies that an unreadably small or blurry contract goes to procedural unconscionability, not substantive unconscionability — but illegibility triggers heightened scrutiny of the underlying terms for unfairness.

1st District Court of Appeal, Environmental Law, Litigation, Real Estate Law

The Committee for Tiburon LLC v. Town of Tiburon — Program-Level CEQA EIR for General Plan Need Not Analyze Site-Specific Impacts of Listed Housing Sites

automatic / February 2, 2026

First District holds a program-level Environmental Impact Report for a local government's general plan update need not include site-specific environmental analysis of housing-element inventory sites where no actual housing project has been proposed.

1st District Court of Appeal, Business Transactions, Litigation

Navellier v. Putnam — Bankruptcy Stay Did Not Block Appeal Brought by Debtor; Defendants’ Trial Verdict and Fee Award Affirmed

automatic / February 2, 2026

First District holds the automatic bankruptcy stay does not bar appellate proceedings the debtor itself brought, and affirms a defense verdict and attorney-fee award in a $1.5 million loan-related contract and fraud dispute.

2nd District Court of Appeal, Constitutional Law, Criminal Law

People v. Heaps — UCLA Gynecologist’s Convictions Reversed Where Trial Court’s Ex Parte Communications With Jury Deprived Defendant of Counsel

automatic / February 2, 2026

Second District reverses convictions of former UCLA gynecologic oncologist James Heaps, holding the trial court's ex parte communications with the jury through a judicial assistant — without notifying counsel — deprived defendant of counsel at a critical stage and the prosecution failed to prove the error was harmless.

2nd District Court of Appeal, Litigation, Tax (non-estate)

Disney Platform Distribution v. City of Santa Barbara — Streaming Services Are Subject to Santa Barbara’s Video Users’ Tax

automatic / January 30, 2026

Second District (on rehearing) holds Santa Barbara's modernized video users' tax applies to internet video streaming services like Hulu, Disney+, and ESPN+, and rejects challenges under the federal Internet Tax Freedom Act, the First Amendment, and California Constitution Article XIII C.

3rd District Court of Appeal, Litigation, Personal Injury & Tort

Tavares v. Zipcar — Remote Rental-Car Company Owes No Duty to Inquire Whether App-Based Renter Is Impaired at Time of Rental

automatic / January 30, 2026

Third District affirms summary judgment for Zipcar in a serious personal-injury case, holding that a remote, app-based rental car company has no duty to inquire whether a member appears impaired at the time of rental.

3rd District Court of Appeal, Administrative Law, Constitutional Law

Brown v. DMV — Driver Has No Due-Process Right to Identity of Anonymous Reporter Who Triggers Driver Reexamination

automatic / January 30, 2026

Third District affirms denial of writ relief, holding that the DMV is not required to disclose the identity of an anonymous third-party reporter whose request triggered a driver reexamination that ultimately led to license suspension.

6th District Court of Appeal, Administrative Law, Litigation

Santa Clara Valley Water District v. Eisenberg — Preliminary Injunction Compelling Director to Return Confidential Investigation Reports Affirmed

automatic / January 30, 2026

Sixth District affirms a mandatory preliminary injunction compelling a sitting Santa Clara Valley Water District board member to return two confidential investigation reports she removed from district facilities, holding the claim-and-delivery law did not bar parallel injunctive relief.

1st District Court of Appeal, Estate Planning, Probate and Tax Law, Litigation, Probate

Halperin v. Halperin — Civil Tort of Intentional Interference With Expected Inheritance Unavailable Where Plaintiff Had Adequate Probate Remedy

automatic / January 29, 2026

First District affirms dismissal of an intentional-interference-with-expected-inheritance claim against the plaintiff's brothers, holding the IIEI tort is not available where the plaintiff had an adequate remedy in probate (which she had earlier voluntarily dismissed).

California Supreme Court, Constitutional Law, Criminal Law

Sellers v. Superior Court — Loose Marijuana Crumbs on a Car Floor Are Not an Open Container and Cannot Justify a Vehicle Search

automatic / January 29, 2026

The California Supreme Court holds that a small amount of loose marijuana scattered on a car floor is not an open container under state law and does not give police probable cause to search the vehicle.

2nd District Court of Appeal, Estate Planning, Probate and Tax Law, Litigation, Probate

Conservatorship of B.K. — Trial Court Adequately Honored LPS Conservatee’s Jury-Trial Rights Where She Personally Withdrew the Demand After Counsel Consultation

automatic / January 28, 2026

Second District affirms a one-year LPS conservatorship renewal, holding the trial court adequately honored the conservatee's jury-trial rights where she demanded a jury trial, was given time to consult counsel, and then personally withdrew her demand and confirmed her choice on the record.

3rd District Court of Appeal, Administrative Law, Environmental Law, Litigation

Department of Water Resources v. Metropolitan Water District — DWR’s Bond Authority for Delta Conveyance Project Fails Validation Because the ‘Delta Program’ Is Too Vaguely Defined

automatic / January 28, 2026

Third District affirms denial of validation for Department of Water Resources bond resolutions tied to the long-running Delta Conveyance Project, holding the 'Delta Program' is so loosely defined that it cannot qualify as a permitted modification of the Feather River Project unit of the State Water Project.

3rd District Court of Appeal, Civil Procedure, Litigation

Viani v. Fair Oaks Estates, Inc. — Third Appeal Dismissed; Costs Judgment After Voluntary Dismissal Is Not an Appealable Final Judgment

automatic / January 28, 2026

Third District dismisses plaintiffs' third appeal in an assisted-living negligence case, holding a postjudgment costs order entered after a voluntary dismissal without prejudice does not provide a back-door route to appellate review of an underlying summary-adjudication ruling.

2nd District Court of Appeal, Civil Procedure, Litigation, Personal Injury & Tort

Matthews v. Ryan — Section 998 Settlement Offer Conditioned on Insurer Consent Was Valid; Trial Court Must Reconsider Prejudgment Interest

automatic / January 28, 2026

Second District holds a personal-injury plaintiff's pretrial settlement offer conditioned on the defendant's insurer's consent was a valid Code of Civil Procedure section 998 offer, because insurer consent is a necessary condition of any insured-defendant settlement whether stated or not.

1st District Court of Appeal, Administrative Law, Litigation, Personal Injury & Tort

Vallejo City Unified School District v. Superior Court — School District Statutorily Immune for Off-Campus Student Suicide, but Not for On-Campus Pre-Death Harm

automatic / January 27, 2026

First District grants writ relief in part, holding the school district is immune under Education Code section 44808 for the death damages tied to a student's off-campus suicide during winter break, but allowing the parents' survival claim for on-campus harm to proceed.

Appellate Division (Superior Court), Labor & Employment Law, Litigation, Real Estate Law

De Paolo v. Rosales — Tenant Protection Act’s Just-Cause Provisions Do Not Apply When Resident Manager’s Tenancy Ends With Termination of Employment

automatic / January 27, 2026

Los Angeles Appellate Division affirms an unlawful-detainer judgment against a resident manager whose tenancy was tied to her employment, holding the Tenant Protection Act's 60-day notice and just-cause requirements do not apply where housing was provided as employment compensation under a written agreement.

4th District Court of Appeal, Criminal Law, Litigation

Siam v. Superior Court — Trial Court Erred in Denying Mental-Health Diversion by Overriding Sole Expert and Relying on Unsupported Findings

automatic / January 26, 2026

Fourth District grants writ relief, holding that an Orange County trial court applied the wrong legal standard and relied on findings unsupported by substantial evidence when denying mental-health pretrial diversion to a defendant diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia.

2nd District Court of Appeal, Administrative Law, Labor & Employment Law

Trustees of CSU v. Public Employment Relations Board — CSU Must Bargain Over Effects of Student Vaccination Policy on Faculty, but Not Yet Found in Violation

automatic / January 26, 2026

Second District holds the California State University has a duty under HEERA to bargain over reasonably foreseeable effects of its 2023 student-vaccine policy on faculty health, but vacates PERB's violation finding because there was no substantial evidence CSU had implemented the policy or definitively refused to bargain when the unfair-practice charge was filed.

5th District Court of Appeal, Criminal Law

People v. Dixon — Grand Jury Transcripts and Police Reports Are Not Admissible at Section 1172.6 Evidentiary Hearings

automatic / January 26, 2026

Fifth District holds that grand jury transcripts and police reports are not within section 1172.6(d)(3)'s hearsay exception and were inadmissible at the petitioner's section 1172.6 evidentiary hearing, vacating the denial and remanding for a new hearing.

1st District Court of Appeal, Civil Procedure, Family Law

Marriage of Starr — Date-of-Separation Allegation in Amended Petition Was Not a Binding Judicial Admission

automatic / January 22, 2026

First District reverses a trial-court order that bound a wife to the date of separation alleged in her amended dissolution petition, holding that allegation was not a judicial admission where the parties had treated a different date as in dispute throughout the litigation.

2nd District Court of Appeal, Criminal Law

People v. Grandberry — Senate Bill 81’s Section 1385 Amendments Do Not Apply to Three-Strikes Prior-Strike Convictions

automatic / January 22, 2026

Second District affirms a 25-years-to-life sentence after a section 1172.75 resentencing, holding that Senate Bill 81's amendments to Penal Code section 1385(c) do not apply to dismissal of prior strike convictions under the Three Strikes Law.

4th District Court of Appeal, Administrative Law, Litigation

Mustaqeem v. City of San Diego — State Sidewalk-Vendor Law Preempts Some San Diego Vending Ordinances; Preliminary Injunction Reversed

automatic / January 22, 2026

Fourth District reverses denial of a preliminary injunction by a licensed sidewalk vendor against the City of San Diego, holding that at least two of the City's vending ordinances — covering impoundment of merchandise and operating-hour restrictions — directly conflict with state sidewalk-vendor protections.

2nd District Court of Appeal, Civil Procedure, Litigation, Real Estate Law

Yeh v. Barrington Pacific — ICRAA’s $10,000 Statutory Damages Provide Standing Without Actual Injury, but UCL Standing Still Requires Concrete Loss

automatic / January 21, 2026

Second District holds that California's Investigative Consumer Reporting Agencies Act gives applicants standing to sue for $10,000 in statutory damages without proving actual harm, but Unfair Competition Law claims still require a concrete economic injury.

4th District Court of Appeal, Administrative Law, Criminal Law

Harmon v. Superior Court — Public Defender Has Discretion to Decline Appointment to Habeas Petitioner Under Government Code Section 27706(g)

automatic / January 20, 2026

Fourth District grants writ relief, holding that Government Code section 27706(g) gives a public defender discretion to decline appointment to represent a habeas petitioner — including a Racial Justice Act claimant — without showing unavailability.

4th District Court of Appeal, Civil Procedure, Litigation

N.D. v. Superior Court — $25,000 Sanctions for Lawyer Who Filed Frivolous Writ Petition Accusing Trial Judge of Misconduct Without Evidence

automatic / January 20, 2026

Fourth District imposes $25,000 in sanctions on attorney T. Matthew Phillips for filing a frivolous writ petition that accused the trial judge of retaliation, discrimination, and acting in concert with opposing counsel — none of which was supported by evidence in the record.

2nd District Court of Appeal, Family Law, Litigation

R.R. v. C.R. — Trial Court Erred by Applying Wrong Abuse Standard in Denying Domestic Violence Restraining Order Against Stalking Ex-Spouse

automatic / January 20, 2026

Second District reverses denial of a domestic violence restraining order, holding the trial court applied the wrong legal standard in evaluating whether the petitioner's ex-wife's conduct — repeated stalking, threats, and unwanted entries — constituted abuse under the Domestic Violence Prevention Act.

2nd District Court of Appeal, Business Transactions, Litigation

Barrios v. Chraghchian — Defeating an Early Bond Motion in a Derivative Suit Does Not Insulate the Plaintiff From Costs After Loss on the Merits

automatic / January 20, 2026

Second District holds that a plaintiff who defeats an early bond motion under Corporations Code section 17709.02 is still subject to the ordinary cost-shifting rules if he ultimately loses the derivative suit on the merits.

2nd District Court of Appeal, Family Law, Litigation

In re Bella L. — DCFS’s Inquiry of Parents and Seven Paternal Relatives Was Substantively Adequate Under ICWA Even Without Asking the Paternal Grandfather

automatic / January 20, 2026

Second District applies In re Dezi C.'s substantial-evidence review and holds that DCFS's failure to interview the paternal grandfather did not undermine an ICWA inquiry that included both parents and seven other paternal relatives.

4th District Court of Appeal, Administrative Law, Real Estate Law

Californians for Homeownership v. City of La Habra — City Manager May Adopt Housing-Element Revisions Without Additional Public Hearing

automatic / January 16, 2026

Fourth District affirms denial of writ relief in a Housing-Element Law challenge, holding that subsequent draft revisions made to obtain HCD certification need not be re-noticed for public hearing or readopted by the City Council.