Boutin Jones’ Michael Chase has been certified as a Specialist in Appellate Law by the State Bar of California, Board of Legal Specialization. According to the state bar’s website, the California State Bar’s Legal Specialization program provides a method for “increasing public protection and encouraging attorney competence.” The designation indicates the lawyer has “gone beyond the standard licensing requirements,” and includes “favorable evaluations by other attorneys and judges familiar with the attorney’s work in the specialty area of law.” Mike Chase is a longtime shareholder at Boutin Jo ..read more

Rachel Busch has joined the Boutin Jones Employment Law Group where she will provide counsel and advice to employers and defend them in employment litigation. She is a graduate of Harvard Law School and was a member of the Harvard Law School Board of Student Advisers where she mentored junior law students and tutored them in legal research and writing. Rachel received her B.A. from the University of California, Berkeley. Before joining Boutin Jones, she was a Deputy Counsel in the California Community Colleges Chancellor’s Office as well as an employment litigator for an international law fir ..read more

In the rush to get a complaint on file, attorneys sometimes believe they can amend the complaint at a later date to address any deficiencies. After all, the legal standard governing leave to amend is generally very liberal. However, the recent case of Jason Engel v. Richard Pech is a cautionary tale. In Engel, the Court of Appeal affirmed a trial court order sustaining a demurrer without leave to amend when the plaintiff attempted to add a different plaintiff after the statute of limitations had passed. The court held that the new plaintiff’s claim did not relate back to the original complain ..read more

On January 4, 2024, the Fourth Appellate District issued an opinion reversing a trial court order excluding a plaintiff’s expert witnesses. The opinion clarifies the limits on the trial court’s role as gatekeeper in the admissibility of expert testimony. Background Plaintiff brought the lawsuit under the Federal Employer’s Liability Act (“FELA”), alleging that his father’s death resulted from exposure to toxic chemicals during his forty years of employment for a railway. FELA provides for a cause of action against common carriers for their employees’ injury or death, if caused by the carrier ..read more

The shareholders of Boutin Jones Inc. recently elevated litigators Michael Cross and Eric Miller to shareholders in the law firm. Michael Cross practices business litigation and counseling, with an emphasis on real estate disputes, trade secrets, and restrictive covenants in employment agreements. Michael also has extensive experience handling matters on appeal. He’s been a longtime attorney with Boutin Jones, and is a graduate of Harvard Law School. He also received his M.A. from University of California, Riverside, and his B.A. from Hope College. He is on the Sierra-Delta Chapter Board of Di ..read more

“He’s making a list, checking it twice, gonna find out who’s naughty or nice…” Uncivil behavior will not only land an attorney on a judge’s naughty list – it can also cost the attorney hundreds of thousands of dollars. A recent case, Snoeck v. ExakTime Innovations, Inc., confirmed the trial court has discretion to reduce an attorneys’ fee award by applying a negative multiplier to account for an attorney’s incivility. In Snoeck, plaintiff sued his former employer for violations of FEHA, California’s Fair Employment and Housing Act. The jury awarded plaintiff approximately $130,000 in damages ..read more

John Gutierrez has joined Boutin Jones where he will practice litigation, assisting clients in a wide variety of disputes including business and contract disputes, real property disputes, and probate matters. Prior to joining the Boutin Jones litigation practice, he spent two summers as a Law Clerk within the firm, completed a Legal Externship with the California Public Employment Relations Board and completed a Legal Affairs Externship with Governor Edmund G. Brown’s Office of Legal Affairs. He is active in the alumni associations of both the Chicano Latino Youth Leadership Project and the H ..read more

As the new reporting regime for Beneficial Ownership Information (BOI) pursuant to the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) draws ever closer, with reporting obligations beginning on January 1, 2024, this Tax Notebook Blog continues to report on the latest developments. As explained in more detail below, on November 29, 2023, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) of the Treasury Department published final regulations extending the filing deadline for companies formed in calendar year 2024 from 30 days to 90 days. This Tax Notebook Blog has covered the new BOI reporting requirements in ..read more

Attorney Sofia Schersei has joined the Boutin Jones employment law team where she will advise clients on employment law and represent them in litigation. A former Director of Operations who was responsible for Human Resources, Sofia brings the perspective of someone not only informed of employment laws but of someone who has been responsible for working directly with employees to enact policy in the workplace—something that sets her apart and allows her to support organizations on a practical level. Her experience as an employment lawyer also includes having worked as an Attorney Investigator ..read more

The California Supreme Court recently expanded the money damages available to civil plaintiffs in business fraud actions. In Siry Investment, L.P. v. Farkhondehpour, the Court declared that California Penal Code section 496(c) permits plaintiffs in business fraud actions to recover attorneys’ fees and treble damages from defendants who fraudulently divert limited partnership cash distributions. This ruling gives plaintiffs a powerful tool at trial and strong leverage in settlement negotiations by expanding their money judgment potential. The Facts: Siry involved a messy shell corporation faça ..read more