Fourth District grants writ relief, holding that Government Code section 27706(g) gives a public defender discretion to decline appointment to represent a habeas petitioner — including a Racial Justice Act claimant — without showing unavailability.
Fourth District affirms denial of writ relief in a Housing-Element Law challenge, holding that subsequent draft revisions made to obtain HCD certification need not be re-noticed for public hearing or readopted by the City Council.
The California Supreme Court holds that requesters under the California Public Records Act can sometimes obtain declaratory relief even after the agency has produced everything responsive, but the statute does not impose a three-year duty to preserve records the agency has withheld as exempt.
First District reverses dismissal of a Brown Act suit, holding that plaintiffs adequately alleged the Berkeley City Council violated Government Code section 54957.9 by recessing disrupted meetings and reconvening them in a smaller room instead of clearing the original room and continuing in session
Eastern District of California affirms a disability denial where the administrative law judge erred by stating that the claimant never reported her need to lie down — the records did show such reports — but the error was harmless because the ALJ provided independent, valid reasons to discount the te
Eastern District of California recommends remanding a partial denial of Social Security disability benefits because the vocational expert’s testimony failed to adequately resolve an apparent conflict between the claimant’s limitation to simple, repetitive tasks and the Dictionary of Occu
Magistrate Judge Karen E. Scott affirmed a Social Security denial, holding the ALJ reasonably interpreted Dr. Abrahimi’s ‘simple work’ opinion as compatible with Level Two reasoning jobs given the plaintiff’s daily activities and part-time work as a hair stylist (a Level Four
Magistrate Judge Karen E. Scott reversed a Social Security denial because the vocational expert failed to explain how the claimant — who could not walk or stand for six hours — could perform the ‘light work’ alternative jobs identified, where the DOT’s definition of light work pote
In a U.S. citizen’s APA action seeking to compel adjudication of his Iraqi mother’s visa application that has been in administrative processing in Amman, Jordan since September 2023, the court denied dismissal of the APA unreasonable-delay claim — declining to apply the TRAC factors at t
First District reverses a trial-court ruling that the Mendocino Railway (operator of the Skunk Train) was not a public utility, holding that the railroad’s federal common-carrier status and demonstrated freight and passenger service make it a public utility entitled to exercise eminent domain.
Eastern District of California reverses an SSDI denial for a veteran with bipolar disorder, PTSD, and central sleep apnea, holding that the ALJ failed to support a mental residual functional capacity finding with substantial evidence and mischaracterized the claimant’s daily activities.
A magistrate judge in the Eastern District of California recommends reversing a Social Security disability denial because the administrative law judge gave no reasons for partly discrediting the claimant’s symptom testimony and never explained what ‘conservative treatment’ meant in
Eastern District of California vacates a Supplemental Security Income denial and remands, holding that the administrative law judge misread the claimant’s testimony about caring for teenage children, two-to-three-hour-per-week volunteering, sweeping with breaks, and driving as inconsistent wit
Eastern District of California denies a pro se commercial truck driver’s request for a temporary restraining order blocking the California DMV from cancelling his commercial driver’s license over his failure to produce proof of citizenship or lawful permanent resident status.
Magistrate Judge Maria Audero reversed an SSI denial for a claimant with schizoaffective disorder and depression, holding the ALJ failed to provide specific, clear, and convincing reasons to discount his subjective symptom testimony — and warned that ALJs cannot rely on isolated periods of improveme
Fourth District reverses a preliminary injunction that had blocked San Bernardino County from awarding its exclusive EMS contract to a fire-services bidder over incumbent AMR, holding the County retained discretion to weigh proposals and was not required to advance only the highest-scoring bid.
Eastern District of California vacates a Supplemental Security Income denial and remands for further administrative proceedings, holding that the Social Security Administration’s administrative law judge failed to adequately evaluate the supportability of a treating physician’s opinions
Magistrate Judge Autumn Spaeth reversed a Social Security disability denial because the ALJ summarized medical evidence without identifying which testimony she found not credible or explaining what evidence contradicted that testimony, failing the clear-and-convincing standard required by Brown-Hunt
After remand led to an award of $247,681 in past-due Social Security benefits over eight years, the magistrate judge approved $37,920 in attorney’s fees representing 15.3% of the past-due benefits, finding the resulting $1,700-per-hour effective rate reasonable in light of counsel’s risk