Stories by Taryn Phaneuf on Northern California Record

SAN FRANCISCO — For retail workers and bank tellers looking for a chance to get off their feet during their shift, the California Supreme Court released an opinion hinting that employers in the state may be obligated to provide a chair.

SAN FRANCISCO – A California woman has filed a second class-action lawsuit against Mercedes-Benz, alleging the car company knew its “clean diesel” BlueTEC vehicles emitted illegal and dangerous levels of nitrogen oxide in real-world driving conditions and used a device to defeat emissions tests.

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.

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.

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.

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.

SAN RAFAEL – After his son died of an overdose at a California drug treatment facility, a Louisiana attorney is suing over claims the facility didn’t follow regulations when staff allowed his son to stay at the residence after they knew he was intoxicated.

SAN FRANCISCO – While lawsuits over unpaid overtime are frequently filed, the complaints mostly come from lower-wage workers. But a recent suit in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California involved financial services professionals – workers who don't raise this issue "nearly as much," Allan Bloom, an attorney at Proskauer Rose, told the Northern California Record.

ALBANY, N.Y. – The New York Court of Appeals determined that an arbitration panel should decide the enforceability of side agreements made between an insurance company and California workers’ compensation policyholders, citing a federal law protecting arbitration agreements.

SACRAMENTO – After a Sacramento Superior Court judge ruled in favor of the California High Speed Rail Authority and denied attempts by Central Valley residents to shut down construction of the rail line, plans and construction are pressing on.