Business Law

May 5, 2020

Court Closure Update

Due to the outbreak of the Coronavirus, the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of California is issuing emergency orders upon request from each county’s presiding judge. These orders allow the courts to manage a reduction in judicial services. Each court is authorized to limit its operations as necessary to help curb the spread of the COVID-19 disease. We will be monitoring court rescheduling and closures on this page.

Here are the updates as of May 5, 2020:

The Orange County Superior Court announced that the court will be closed at all locations from March 23, 2020 through May 22, 2020. The effect will be that for most types of cases, the closure will be considered a court holiday for purposes of scheduling. For more information on how the closures will affect the calendar of various types of cases, you can read the court’s latest releases here.

July 22, 2013

Buying a Business: Common Dangers and Pitfalls

by Adina T. Stern, Esq.

Anyone who wants to buy a business needs to be cautious before signing an offer. It is critical to consult with a lawyer who is experienced in California business sales to guide you through the process. Very often the business purchase agreements presented by brokers to potential buyers are designed to protect the broker and not the parties to the agreement. By contrast, the California Association of Business Brokers has an excellent standard form that is a good starting point for negotiations.

Structuring the Transaction. First you need to decide the structure of the agreement. Structuring the transaction is not an issue that should be determined by a business broker. You should consult with your tax advisor and attorney to determine how you are going to hold the company. Will you operate the business as an S-Corporation, a C-Corporation, a limited liability company or some other form? Are you buying an existing company or only the assets of the business? Each transaction is different and must be separately evaluated.
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January 2, 2013

A New Year Brings New Laws to California In 2013

by Adina T. Stern, Esq.

Practicing law in January is always challenging because with the New Year there are always changes in California law. This year is no exception. Governor Jerry Brown signed over 800 new laws that took effect in California on January 1, 2013. Some of the new laws that will be of interest to our clients in the areas of litigation, real property law, business and contract law, and privacy are listed below.

Privacy. California has joined many other states in banning employers and colleges from demanding the passwords for an employee, prospective employee or college applicant’s social media account. Employers and colleges can no longer demand or even ask for social media login information. This does not mean you can freely post whatever you want on Facebook, that information can still be the subject of discovery.

Changes in Litigation Laws. AB 1875 limits depositions to seven hours of testimony. There are a number of important exceptions to this rule but it will make it more difficult to harass witnesses and litigants by keeping them at their depositions unreasonably. AB 1631 allows out-of-state attorneys to represent a party in an arbitration proceeding in California if certain conditions are met.
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October 12, 2012

Boilerplate: What Does the Fine Print Mean? Part 2 – Attorney Fee Provisions

by Adina T. Stern, Esq.

One of the sad truths a business litigation lawyer must explain to their client is that sometimes the cost of going to court exceeds the amount of damages that can be recovered. This is true because in California, unless there is a special statute that allows the recovery of attorneys’ fees, those fees are not recoverable unless they are required by a written contract. This is one of the problems with an oral agreement; if a party breaches the agreement, the aggrieved party is not entitled to recover attorneys’ fees. Because of this rule, arguably the most important clause in a contract can be the attorney fee provision. This is the second installment of a multi-part blog that explains some of the more common provisions found in California agreements.

Unilateral Attorney Fee Clauses. In some states unilateral attorney fees provisions are permitted. An example of a unilateral attorney fee clause would be a clause that says if Company A has to sue Company B and prevails, Company B must pay Company A’s attorney fees. This leaves Company B with no attorney fees if it wins. In California unilateral attorney fee provisions are automatically construed to be reciprocal under Civil Code section 1717. Therefore, in the example above, Company A would still be allowed attorney fees even though the contract seemed to provide for attorneys’ fees only if company B won. Part 1 of this blog dealt with Choice of Law, Jurisdiction and Venue provisions. This is an excellent example of why choice of law provisions are critical. In California, unilateral attorney fee clauses are not allowed, in other states they are.
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August 2, 2012

Boilerplate: What Does the Fine Print Mean? Part 1 Choice of Law, Jurisdiction and Venue

by Adina T. Stern, Esq.

The standard legal provisions that appear at the end of a contract are often called “boilerplate provisions.” Although most people are not interested in the fine print of a contract, these provisions are important and because of the nuances in California law, it is important to understand why those provisions appear in your agreement. In fact, one of the biggest problem with online legal forms is that many of them have flawed or no standard legal provisions appropriate for California. The failure to include a critical provision can cost you tens of thousands of dollars in damages and legal fees if something goes wrong.

This is the first installment of a multi part blog that explains some of the more common provisions found in California agreements such as Choice of Law, Jurisdiction, and Venue. Before you sign any business contract, service contract, real estate agreement or other agreement whatsoever, it is important to have that agreement reviewed by an experienced business attorney who can make sure you understand and can live with all the provisions of the agreement. Indeed, as noted in a recent case, Ruiz v. Affinity Logistics Corp., even if the contract does include a choice of law provision, it does not necessarily mean that the provision is actually enforceable. There are many rules that go into determining if the clause, as drafted, will be upheld by a court.
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