News from April 2016
Man alleges denial of disability benefits caused emotional distress
SAN FRANCISCO – A former Intel employee is suing over claims of emotional distress after his claim for long-term disability benefits was purportedly denied.
Flowers Baking Co. facing suit from distributor
SACRAMENTO – A distributor for a bakery alleges he was treated like an employee instead of an independent contractor.
Trust funds accuse Hardman Glazing Systems Inc. of breach of bargaining agreement
SAN FRANCISCO – Several union trust funds have filed suit against an employer over allegations of unpaid contributions.
Woman alleges Wal-Mart, bank repeatedly called her in an attempt to reach another person
SACRAMENTO – A Bakersfield woman has filed a class-action lawsuit against a retailer and a financial institution over allegations of telephone harassment.
Gender bias bill is a 'gotcha' law for retail industry, opponent says
SACRAMENTO - The California State Assembly’s reputation for passing a lot of laws that often do not match their advertised efficiency once implemented is part of a debate behind Senate Bill 899 – a proposal that purports to end gender bias with equal pricing in the retail sector.
Appellate court endorses common formula for calculating damages in construction law
SAN JOSE – Though it’s been used in California trial courts and arbitration proceedings, a formula public works contractors rely on to calculate home office overhead damages in construction delay claims remained untested in state appellate court until recently.
Ouch! University of California tuition has gone up 15,000% since 1980
SAN RAFAEL – Tuition at University of California’s nine public schools -- including its law schools -- increased roughly 15,000 percent during the last 35 years, and a retired board regent is speaking out about it.
Suit filed against Apple over Siri
TYLER, Texas – Siri may be hearing the inside of a courtroom in the near future after Dot 23 filed a patent-violation suit against Apple Inc., based in Cupertino, over the voice-recognition and voice-dialing technology.
Landmark 2014 ruling on teacher tenure in California overturned
SAN FRANCISCO – A three-judge panel from the California Court of Appeal overturned a lower court ruling in Vergara v. California last week in a decision that further fans the flames around the national discourse over teacher tenure.
San Diego County resolves to let appeals court decide electronic search issue
SAN DIEGO – After California’s privacy law took effect in January, questions arose over whether the additional protections extend to people on probation who already are subject to searches without a warrant as a condition of their sentence.
Governor releases 2015 data showing diversity of judges in California
SACRAMENTO – Five of Gov. Edmund Brown’s 74 judicial appointments in 2015 identify as gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender. Twenty-eight are women – 25 are minorities.
Recording police topic of several federal court decisions
SAN BERNARDINO – Soon after a federal judge in Pennsylvania ruled that the First Amendment doesn’t cover recording police on video, an officer in California cited the case in a warning to a citizen capturing his actions on a cellphone camera.
Suit filed against Wells Fargo over overtime claims
SAN FRANCISCO – A Santa Clara County woman alleges her former employer did not pay proper wages and has filed a class-action suit.
Vigo Importing Co. accused of using squid in octopus products
SAN JOSE – A Salinas man alleges a seafood company misrepresents its octopus products and has filed a class-action lawsuit.
Suit filed over use of Just Windows mark
SAN FRANCISCO – A San Jose company has filed a suit against another San Jose business over allegations of trademark infringement.
Couple alleges cars came equipped with defeat devices
SAN FRANCISCO – A Ramona couple alleges that an auto manufacturer knowingly violated U.S. environmental law by putting a "defeat device" in its cars that would temporarily reduce emissions in order to pass inspection.
Federal agency alleges Bitmicro Networks violated labor laws
SAN FRANCISCO – The U.S. Secretary of Labor for the Department of Labor has filed a suit against a Fremont company over allegations it did not pay its employees overtime.
Trust funds file suit against P&J Utility Co. over alleged violation of bargaining agreement
SAN FRANCISCO – Several union trust funds have filed suit against a utility company over allegations of unpaid contributions.
Former employee files suit against Pharmacyclics Inc. for documents
SAN JOSE – A Santa Clara County woman alleges her former employer has not provided documents that she has requested.
mLab, MongoDB seek resolution in trademark dispute
SAN FRANCISCO – Two San Francisco tech companies seek the court's help in settling a trademark dispute.