Score One for California’s Elder Abuse Statute
CALIFORNIA’S ELDER ABUSE STATUTE: RECENT VICTORY AND ENFORCEMENT INSIGHTS MBK CHAPMAN ATTORNEY VICTORIOUS IN PROTECTING A SENIOR CITIZEN'S RIGHTS UNDER CALIFORNIA'S ELDER ABUSE STATUTE On September 5, 2023, a Long Beach jury ordered Ken Allen Lamphear, a seasoned real...
Everything You Wanted to Know About Reserve Studies
CALIFORNIA HOA RESERVE STUDIES: WHAT HOMEOWNERS NEED TO KNOW OVERVIEW HOAs in California are largely governed by the Davis-Stirling Act, a series of statutes located in the Civil Code. In other words, all HOAs in California must abide by the Davis-Stirling Act, as...
Section 230: Free Speech, the Internet, and Terrorism
SECTION 230, FREE SPEECH, AND ONLINE LIABILITY OVERVIEW This week, the United States Supreme Court is set to hear two separate cases challenging the legal immunity that Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act of 1996 (“CDA”) has provided to online platforms and...
The CCPA and CPRA: Will Consumers in California Enjoy Increased Privacy Protections?
CCPA AND CPRA: CALIFORNIA’S EVOLVING CONSUMER PRIVACY LAWS OVERVIEW In 2018, the State of California passed a sweeping consumer privacy protection law called the California Consumer Privacy Act of 2018 (“CCPA”). Then, in November of 2020, voters in California passed...
Why is my HOA Testing for Asbestos?
WHY YOUR CALIFORNIA HOA MAY BE TESTING FOR ASBESTOS OVERVIEW Most people have heard of asbestos, and most people have even seen the commercials for law firms looking for class action parties whose “loved ones suffer from mesothelioma.” At the same time, many people...
Top 5 Concerns that Homeowners Have About Their HOAs
TOP 5 CONCERNS CALIFORNIA HOMEOWNERS HAVE ABOUT THEIR HOAS OVERVIEW We recently ran a statistical analysis of over 5,000 separate fact patterns to determine the nature of the most common disputes involving HOA members and their HOAs. The following represents the top...
Your Roof is Damaged and You Live in an HOA. Now What?
WHAT TO DO IF YOUR ROOF IS DAMAGED AND YOU LIVE IN A CALIFORNIA HOA OVERVIEW As a homeowner, protecting your property is always a top priority. The roof is among the most important parts of your home—not only because of its size, but also because of the relative costs...
Misappropriation of HOA Funds
MISAPPROPRIATION OF FUNDS BY CALIFORNIA HOAS OVERVIEW Managing an HOA’s finances is among the most important duties that HOA members (i.e., homeowners) entrust to their board of directors. Such management responsibilities include everything from collecting and...
Weaponizing the Concept of Phantom Income
WEAPONIZING PHANTOM INCOME IN CALIFORNIA OVERVIEW Given how important the issue of phantom income is to anyone who owns shares in a corporation (or a membership interest in an LLC), one would expect most business owners to at least be familiar with the concept....
Can California Homeowners Disband Their HOAs?
CAN CALIFORNIA HOMEOWNERS DISBAND THEIR HOAS? OVERVIEW Every so often we hear from homeowners who want to know whether it's possible to disband their homeowners association ("HOA").* Often such an inquiry arises because the homeowners are unhappy with how their HOA is...
Requirements for California Home Improvement Contracts
CALIFORNIA HOME IMPROVEMENT CONTRACT REQUIREMENTS OVERVIEW The larger the residential construction project, the more anxiety homeowners feel—and not just because they have to live with the inherent noise and mess that go hand-in-hand with home improvement or...
The Basics About Buying a Franchise in California
BUYING A FRANCHISE IN CALIFORNIA: THE BASICS OVERVIEW While a lot of people are familiar with the words “franchise,” “franchisor,” and “franchisee,” more often than not, if you asked them to explain the difference between those three terms, they’d have trouble doing...
Disputes Between Homeowners and Contractors
CALIFORNIA HOMEOWNER AND CONTRACTOR DISPUTES OVERVIEW A dispute with a contractor can turn into a nightmare for a homeowner. In fact, most homeowners are familiar with the horror stories surrounding shoddy workmanship, project abandonment, and outright fraud...
Definitions of Common Words and Phrases Used in Civil Litigation in California
COMMON CIVIL LITIGATION TERMS AND PHRASES USED IN CALIFORNIA Throughout the litigation process, you’re bound to run into a variety of terms and phrases that you’ve never heard before, or that you may have heard, but don’t really understand. This article seeks to...
The ABC’s of Civil Litigation in California
THE ABC’S OF CIVIL LITIGATION IN CALIFORNIA OVERVIEW Often, when people hear the word “litigation,” they tend to picture a courtroom—with a judge, jury, lawyers, and witnesses all playing their parts. And there’s nothing wrong with that picture. Trials are, after all,...
Owner’s Guide to California HOA Laws
CALIFORNIA HOA LAWS: A GUIDE FOR PROPERTY OWNERS GOOD HOA v. BAD HOA A good HOA plays an important role in maintaining your property values and ensuring your quiet enjoyment of your property. A bad HOA can decrease the value of your home, force you to needlessly waste...
Accessing an Employee’s Private Social Media Accounts
ACCESSING AN EMPLOYEE’S PRIVATE SOCIAL MEDIA ACCOUNTS IN CALIFORNIA OVERVIEW A lot of my corporate clients ask me whether they can monitor employees' private emails and social media accounts while the employee is using the employer's network, computer equipment, etc....
Disputes Involving Your Neighbor’s Trees in California
CALIFORNIA NEIGHBOR TREE DISPUTES: YOUR LEGAL RIGHTS OVERVIEW It might surprise you to know that trees are among the most frequent causes of disputes between neighbors. Tree-related neighbor disputes take many forms, including, most commonly, disputes related to:...
Can an HOA Prevent Members Who Have Not Received the COVID-19 Vaccine From Using the Association’s Amenities?
CAN CALIFORNIA HOAS BAR UNVACCINATED MEMBERS FROM AMENITIES? Here's a question a client of ours posed last week. Since I think it's bound to come up a lot more once the weather warms up and COVID-19 restrictions are eased, I thought it might be worth while to post my...
Should You Operate Your Business as a Corporation, LLC, or Sole Proprietorship?
CORPORATION VS. LLC VS. SOLE PROPRIETORSHIP IN CALIFORNIA OVERVIEW One of the most important decisions an entrepreneur will make is deciding how to structure the business. Should the company be operated as a sole-proprietorship or partnership? Or should the owner form...
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