California Case Summaries

4th District Court of Appeal, Civil Procedure, Family Law

In re Marriage of Nishida & Kamoda — Civil Lawsuit Alleging Fraud in Marital Stipulation Was Timely and Should Not Have Been Dismissed After Transfer to Family Law Court

automatic / April 30, 2026

Fourth District reverses dismissal of civil fraud lawsuit alleging misrepresentation in connection with marital settlement stipulation, holding that the lawsuit was timely filed and should not have been dismissed under Family Code section 2122 after transfer to family law court.

Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, Constitutional Law, Litigation

Hogan v. Bean — Ninth Circuit denies en banc rehearing in death-penalty habeas case, leaving in place panel’s broad reading of Martinez v. Ryan despite forceful nine-judge dissent

automatic / April 30, 2026

The Ninth Circuit denies en banc rehearing in a Nevada death-penalty habeas case, leaving in place a panel decision allowing the petitioner to invoke Martinez v. Ryan to revive long-defaulted trial-ineffective-assistance claims, over a forceful dissent from nine judges.

Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, Constitutional Law, Immigration

Sanchez Gonzalez v. U.S. Department of State — Ninth Circuit affirms visa denial of California spouse, holding that even after Muñoz a U.S. citizen’s First Amendment right to hear a noncitizen still triggers limited Mandel review

automatic / April 30, 2026

The Ninth Circuit affirms the denial of a Mexican spouse's visa application, holding that after Department of State v. Muñoz a U.S. citizen spouse can still invoke the Mandel exception based on her First Amendment right to receive information, but that the consular officer's reason-to-believe determination provides a facially legitimate and bona fide basis for denial.

1st District Court of Appeal, Criminal Law, Litigation

People v. Hsiung — Animal Rights Activist’s Trespass Convictions Partially Reversed for Erroneous Limitation on Mistake of Law Defense

automatic / April 30, 2026

First District partially reverses animal rights activist's trespass convictions arising from open-rescue activities at Sonoma County poultry farms, holding the trial court erred by limiting evidence of the defendant's good-faith mistake of law about the legality of his conduct under the necessity doctrine, while affirming the misdemeanor trespass conviction and rejecting First Amendment challenges.

1st District Court of Appeal, Environmental Law, Litigation

Raptors Are the Solution v. CropLife America — Pesticide Trade Associations That Intervened to Defend Agency Decisions Are Jointly and Severally Liable for Private Attorney General Fees

automatic / April 29, 2026

First District affirms joint and several liability of pesticide trade associations for private attorney general fees following successful CEQA challenge to rodenticide registrations, holding that intervenors who asserted pecuniary interests cannot disclaim those interests to avoid fee liability.

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

Garner v. California Victim Compensation Board — Vacatur Under Section 1172.6 Resentencing Statute Does Not Establish “Erroneous Conviction” Required for Compensation Under Section 4900

automatic / April 29, 2026

Second District holds that vacatur of a murder conviction under Penal Code section 1172.6 does not establish an "erroneous conviction" entitling the former defendant to compensation under section 4900, because Senate Bill 1437's narrowing of murder liability was a legislative act of lenity, not a determination that prior convictions were wrong.

Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, Constitutional Law, Litigation

Scott v. Broomfield — Ninth Circuit reverses habeas relief in California death-penalty case, holding the state court reasonably rejected the ineffective-assistance-of-counsel claims under AEDPA’s deferential standard

automatic / April 29, 2026

The Ninth Circuit reverses a federal habeas grant in a California death-penalty case, holding that under AEDPA's doubly deferential standard the California Supreme Court reasonably rejected the petitioner's ineffective-assistance-of-counsel claims, including those based on cumulative prejudice.

2nd District Court of Appeal, Environmental Law, Litigation

The Chemical Toxin Working Group v. Kroger — Proposition 65 Pre-Suit Notice Substantially Complies When Outside Counsel Contact Is Provided

automatic / April 29, 2026

Second District reverses judgment on the pleadings in Proposition 65 enforcement action against Kroger and other grocery companies, holding that providing outside counsel contact information in the 60-day notice substantially complies with California Code of Regulations title 27, section 25903.

Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, Constitutional Law, Litigation

Roe v. Johnston — Ninth Circuit stays Arizona injunction that had struck the word ‘operation’ from state birth-certificate-amendment law for transgender residents

automatic / April 28, 2026

The Ninth Circuit grants a stay pending appeal of an Arizona district court injunction that had struck the word 'operation' from the state's birth-certificate-amendment statute, leaving Arizona's surgical-verification requirement in place while the merits appeal proceeds.

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

Chang v. Southern California Permanente Medical Group — Going and Coming Rule Bars Vicarious Liability for Employee’s Commute Even Where Employee Sometimes Worked from Home

automatic / April 28, 2026

Second District affirms summary judgment for medical group under the going and coming rule in case where employee struck a bicyclist while turning into a parking lot during her morning commute, holding that the employee's permission to work from home on certain days did not convert her home into a second worksite for purposes of the day in question.

2nd District Court of Appeal, Civil Procedure, Litigation

Detrick v. Shimada — Declaration in English From Witness Who Cannot Read English Is Not Competent Evidence Without Interpreter Attestation

automatic / April 28, 2026

Second District reverses summary judgment for malicious prosecution defendant, holding that an English-language declaration purportedly reflecting the words of a witness who could not read or speak English is not competent evidence without attestation from a qualified interpreter or translator.

4th District Court of Appeal, Criminal Law, Litigation

People v. The North River Insurance Co. — Defendant’s Counsel Appearance Under Section 977 Triggers Bail Bond Exoneration; Court Retains Jurisdiction to Award Extradition Costs

automatic / April 28, 2026

Fourth District holds that a defendant's appearance through counsel under Penal Code section 977 satisfies the appearance requirement for bail bond exoneration and that the trial court retained jurisdiction to award extradition costs after conditional exoneration.

Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, Constitutional Law, Litigation

Public Interest Legal Foundation v. Nago — Ninth Circuit holds the NVRA’s public inspection provision does not require states to disclose statewide voter lists, only records of voter list maintenance activities

automatic / April 28, 2026

The Ninth Circuit holds that the NVRA's public inspection provision requires states to disclose records about their voter list maintenance activities but not the underlying statewide voter rolls themselves, affirming dismissal of an election-integrity nonprofit's NVRA suit against Hawaii.

Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, Constitutional Law, Intellectual Property

Doe 1 v. Meta Platforms — Ninth Circuit holds Section 230 bars Rohingya plaintiffs’ claims that Facebook incited Myanmar violence, with two judges urging the court to reconsider the breadth of platform immunity

automatic / April 28, 2026

The Ninth Circuit affirms dismissal of Rohingya plaintiffs' claims that Facebook's design enabled the spread of anti-Rohingya content in Myanmar, holding that Section 230 immunity bars the suit, with three judges concurring to urge en banc reconsideration of the court's Section 230 doctrine.

4th District Court of Appeal, Construction Law, Litigation

AVL Test Systems v. Hensel Phelps Construction — Whether Equipment Becomes “Fixed Part of the Structure” for Contractor Licensing Exemption Is a Question of Fact

automatic / April 28, 2026

Fourth District reverses summary judgment for general contractor in $73 million emissions testing equipment dispute, holding that whether the equipment becomes a fixed part of the structure for purposes of the contractor licensing finished products exemption is a question of fact when supported by conflicting expert testimony.

3rd District Court of Appeal, Environmental Law, Litigation

People ex rel. Yolo-Solano Air Quality Management District v. Defty — Cross-Complaint Challenging Validity of Underlying Agency Policy Does Not Arise From Protected Activity for Anti-SLAPP Purposes

automatic / April 27, 2026

Third District affirms denial of anti-SLAPP motion to strike a cross-complaint challenging the validity of an air quality management district's underlying interpretive policy, holding that the cross-complaint did not arise from the district's protected enforcement activities.

Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, Constitutional Law, Litigation

Dickinson v. Trump — Ninth Circuit stays Portland injunction restricting federal crowd-control tactics, faulting overbroad class relief and uniform-redesign order in protest-retaliation case

automatic / April 27, 2026

The Ninth Circuit stays a sweeping district court injunction that had restricted federal officers' use of non-lethal crowd-control munitions and ordered ICE agent uniforms redesigned, holding the underlying First Amendment retaliation theory unlikely to succeed and the relief overbroad and improperly class-wide.

California Supreme Court, Family Law

In re Z.G. — Juvenile Court Cannot Terminate Parental Rights Based Solely on Adoptability, and Mother’s Lawyer Was Ineffective for Failing to Demand Required Reunification Services

automatic / April 27, 2026

The California Supreme Court holds that juvenile courts cannot terminate a parent's rights based solely on a finding that the children are likely to be adopted, and that the mother's trial counsel here was constitutionally ineffective for failing to assert her statutory right to reunification services.

Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, Constitutional Law, Immigration

Hanan v. USCIS — Ninth Circuit holds the marriage fraud bar applies even when the noncitizen never applied for benefits based on the sham marriage, and that USCIS need not produce the ex-spouse for cross-examination

automatic / April 27, 2026

The Ninth Circuit affirms denial of an I-130 spousal petition under the marriage fraud bar, holding that the bar applies to attempts to enter sham marriages even without follow-on benefits applications and that USCIS need not produce the ex-spouse for cross-examination.

Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, Constitutional Law, Litigation

Reach Community Development v. USDHS — Ninth Circuit stays Portland injunction barring tear gas at ICE protests, holding bystanders likely have no substantive-due-process right against incidental chemical exposure

automatic / April 27, 2026

The Ninth Circuit stays a Portland district court injunction barring federal officers from using tear gas to disperse demonstrators outside an ICE facility, holding that nearby apartment residents likely have no substantive-due-process right to be free from incidental chemical exposure.

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

Citizens Against Marketplace Apartment/Condo Development v. City of San Ramon — Approval of Mixed-Use Infill Housing Project Was Consistent With City General Plan and Zoning

automatic / April 24, 2026

First District affirms approval of 44-unit mixed-use infill housing project on former shopping center site in San Ramon, holding that the project was consistent with the City's general plan and zoning ordinance and that aspirational planning language did not impose mandatory master plan requirements.

1st District Court of Appeal, Criminal Law, Litigation

People v. Emrick — Probation Condition Allowing Probation Department to Jail Defendant Without Hearing Improperly Delegates Judicial Authority

automatic / April 24, 2026

First District holds that a probation condition allowing the probation department to incarcerate a defendant for up to 120 days without a court hearing improperly delegates judicial authority and that denying custody credit for residential treatment requires a knowing waiver under Penal Code section 2900.5.

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

Stoker v. Blue Origin — Blue Origin Arbitration Agreement Substantively and Procedurally Unconscionable; Severance Not Appropriate

automatic / April 24, 2026

Second District affirms denial of Blue Origin's motion to compel arbitration of former employee's FEHA sexual harassment and other claims, holding that the arbitration agreement is both substantively and procedurally unconscionable due to lack of mutuality and one-sided carve-outs, and that severance is not appropriate.

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