Last week, the California Court of Appeal reaffirmed the rule that the theft of money is not "loss of use" of that property for purposes of the property damage coverage grant of a Commercial General Liability policy. Advanced Network, Inc…
The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in Cumbie v. Woody Woo, Inc., 596 F.3d 577 (9th Cir 2010) recently affirmed a lower court decision that allows restaurants to require waiters and waitresses to participate in a tip pooling arrangement. Tip…
In a retreat from its 1998 decision in Foster-Gardner, Inc. v. National Union Fire Ins. Co., 18 Cal.4th 857, the California Supreme Court has held that an administrative adjudicative proceeding before a federal Administrative Law Judge is a "suit" for…
In Sprague v. Safeco, an intermediate Washington appellate court recently determined that coverage under all-risk homeowners' policies applied to a "state of collapse" in the insureds' residence based on an ensuing loss exception to exclusions for construction defects and rot,…
Pacific Maritime Magazine Anyone who has a television knows how easy it is to buy the right car insurance. You can find a perky woman in a white apron named Flo or have a chat with a Cockney-speaking reptile. Finding…
In 2008, an intermediate Washington appellate court held that the term "actual cash value," defined under a renter's policy as "fair market value," included no coverage for hypothetical sales tax. The Washington Supreme Court recently reversed that ruling in a…
If I create something, then I own it, correct? Usually this is the case, however there are assorted circumstances where the rules of ownership produce unanticipated results. Employment Generally speaking, absent a written agreement to the contrary, when a work…
For years it has been a hard and fast rule of copyright law that the Copyright Office must first issue a copyright registration, or issue a refusal to register, before a plaintiff may file an infringement suit. No registration; no…
Pacific Maritime Magazine It is often said there should be uniformity in the law governing maritime cases no matter where they are tried. Article III, section 2 of the United States Constitution gives judicial power to the federal courts to…