A lawyer can be frustrated and embarrassed by losing in court, but a recent California Court of Appeal decision underscores one thing a lawyer must not do when rulings go badly: accuse the trial judge of bias without evidence.
Winning a lawsuit does not always mean collecting the judgment will be easy, particularly when the business activities behind the dispute involve multiple individuals and related entities.
California law gives creditors powerful tools to collect unpaid judgments. But a recent appellate decision is a reminder that those tools still have limits – especially when they reach into the bank accounts of someone who is not actually the judgment debtor’s spouse.
For many entrepreneurs, the sale of a business is the single largest financial event of their lives. But many successful business owners don’t realize that the ultimate purchase price is often determined long before a buyer appears.
Flat fee agreements have become increasingly common in legal practice. A new formal ethics opinion from the State Bar of California provides guidance on the ethical issues that arise when a flat fee representation ends early, the scope of work changes, or the attorney underestimated the amount of work involved.
Because arbitration is often seen as a faster, less costly, and more private alternative to litigation, arbitration clauses are now commonplace in everything from employment agreements and website “terms and conditions” to documents we must sign before a doctor will treat us. But just how far do such clauses extend when several different businesses are involved in rendering the specified services?
