OPINION CORRIGAN , J. — In professional negligence actions against health care providers, recovery of noneconomic damages is capped at $250,000. (Civ. Code, 3333.2, enacted as part of the Medical Injury Compensation Reform Act of 1975; MICRA.) 1 In any action, liability for noneconomic damages is several only, so that defendants pay in proportion to their share of fault. ( 1431.2, part of the Fair Responsibility Act of 1986, enacted by passage of Prop. 51.) 2 Here we consider...
OPINION CORRIGAN , J. — Here we hold that when hearing an administrative appeal from discipline imposed on a correctional officer, an arbitrator may rule upon a discovery motion for officer personnel records, commonly referred to as a Pitchess motion. ( Pitchess v. Superior Court (1974) 11 Cal.3d 531 [ 113 Cal.Rptr. 897 , 522 P.2d 305 ] ( Pitchess ); Evid. Code, 1043, 1045.) Evidence Code section 1043 expressly provides that Pitchess motions may be filed with an appropriate "...
OPINION BAXTER, J. — Franchising, especially in the fast-food industry, has become a ubiquitous, lucrative, and thriving business model. This contractual arrangement benefits both parties. The franchisor, which sells the right to use its trademark and comprehensive business plan, can expand its enterprise while avoiding the risk and cost of running its own stores. The other party, the franchisee, independently owns, runs, and staffs the retail outlet that sells goods under the franchisor's...
OPINION CORRIGAN, J. — On August 28, 1988, Andre Armstrong, James Brown, Loretha Anderson, and Chemise English were shot and killed. Armstrong and Brown had run afoul of the Bryant Family gang and were shot at the entrance to a drug house. Ms. Anderson and her daughter Chemise, aged 28 months, were shot in a car parked at the curb. Anderson's son Carlos, aged 18 months, was also in the car. He was not shot and survived. A jury convicted defendants Stanley Bryant, Donald Franklin Smith, and...
OPINION BAXTER, J. — On a clear evening in February 2007, defendant Richard Tom broadsided at high speed a vehicle driven by Loraine Wong, who was making a left turn from Santa Clara Avenue onto Woodside Road in Redwood City. Wong's younger daughter, Sydney Ng, eight, was killed; her older daughter, Kendall Ng, 10, sustained serious injuries. The evidence at trial showed that defendant did not brake prior to the crash. He had been speeding, although his precise speed was disputed. He had...
OPINION LIU, J. — Defendant Kelvyn Rondell Banks was convicted by a jury in 1998 of two counts of first degree murder (Pen. Code, 187; all further statutory references are to the Penal Code unless otherwise indicated), one count of attempted murder ( 187, subd. (a), 664), one count of forcible rape ( 261, subd. (a)(2)), one count of forcible oral copulation ( 288a, subd. (c)), one count of first degree residential robbery ( 211), one count of first degree residential burglary ( 459),...
OPINION CORRIGAN, J. — When a city council receives a voter initiative petition meeting Elections Code requirements, it must do one of three things: (1) adopt the initiative without alteration; (2) submit it to a special election; or (3) order an abbreviated report on the initiative. Upon receipt of the report, it must then either adopt the initiative or hold a special election. (Elec. Code, 9214.) 1 Several cases have held that provisions of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA)...
OPINION CORRIGAN, J. — A jury convicted defendant Paul Loyde Hensley of the first degree murder and robbery of Larry Shockley, the burglary of his home, and the theft of his car; the first degree murder and robbery of Gregory Renouf and the burglary of his home; the attempted murder and robbery of Stacy Copeland; the robbery of Scott Rooker; and escape from county jail. 1 As to both murders, the jury found true special circumstance allegations of robbery murder and multiple murder. 2 The...
OPINION CHIN, J. — The narrow question presented is whether an action under the unfair competition law (Bus. & Prof. Code, 17200 et seq. (UCL)) that is based on a trucking company's alleged violation of state labor and insurance laws is "related to a price, route, or service" (49 U.S.C. 14501 (c)(1)) of the company and, therefore, preempted by the Federal Aviation Administration Authorization Act of 1994 (Pub.L. No. 103-305 (Aug. 23, 1994) 108 Stat. 1569) (FAAAA). The FAAAA provides that...
OPINION CORRIGAN, J. — Kevin Dewayn Boyce (defendant) and Andre Willis burglarized two businesses, robbing several people inside. During the first crime, off-duty peace officer Shayne York was killed. A jury convicted defendant of first degree murder with the special circumstances of killing a peace officer in retaliation for the performance of his duties and of murder during the commission of robbery and burglary. 1 Because the jury found the peace officer special circumstance true, it...
OPINION CORRIGAN, J. — Susan Peabody worked for Time Warner Cable, Inc. (Time Warner), as a commissioned salesperson. She received biweekly paychecks, which included hourly wages in every pay period and commission wages approximately every other pay period. After Peabody stopped working for Time Warner, she sued, alleging various wage and hour violations. Time Warner removed the matter to federal court and successfully moved for summary judgment. Peabody appealed. At the request of the...
OPINION WERDEGAR, J. — Though federal court jurisdiction is constrained by article III of the United States Constitution principally to claims presenting a federal case or controversy or disputes between diverse parties, federal courts may assume supplemental jurisdiction over related state claims that "form part of the same case or controversy." (28 U.S.C. 1367(a); see Mine Workers v. Gibbs (1966) 383 U.S. 715 , 725 [16 L.Ed.2d 218, 86 S.Ct. 1130] [federal jurisdiction extends to state...
OPINION WERDEGAR, J. — Under Code of Civil Procedure section 685.040, 1 a judgment creditor is entitled to the reasonable and necessary costs of enforcing the judgment, including statutory attorney fees "otherwise provided by law." A motion to claim enforcement costs must, however, be made "before the judgment is satisfied in full." ( 685.080, subd. (a).) In the present case, plaintiff Fessha Taye, conservator of the estate of Ida McQueen, prevailed at trial in an action for financial...
OPINION LIU, J. — A homeowners association on behalf of its members sued a condominium developer and various other parties over construction design defects that allegedly make the homes unsafe and uninhabitable for significant portions of the year. Two defendants were architectural firms, which allegedly designed the homes in a negligent manner but did not make the final decisions regarding how the homes would be built. Applying our decision in Bily v. Arthur Young & Co. (1992) 3 Cal.4th...
OPINION BAXTER, J. — In this case, an employee refused his employer's repeated orders to sign a written disciplinary notice, because he disputed the notice's factual allegations and thought he was entitled to consult with his union representative first. There is no dispute over whether the employer was within its rights to fire the employee for his insubordination. The only question is whether that single act of disobedience constituted misconduct within the meaning of California's...
OPINION WERDEGAR, J. — Antelope Valley Newspapers, Inc. (Antelope Valley), is the publisher of the Antelope Valley Press, a daily newspaper. To deliver the paper to its subscribers, Antelope Valley contracts with individual carriers. Four carriers, Maria Ayala, Josefina Brise o, Rosa Duran, and Osman Nu ez, contend Antelope Valley illegally treats them as independent contractors, rather than employees, and thereby deprives them of a host of wage and hour protections to which they are...
LIU, J. In this case, we again address whether the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA) preempts a state law rule that restricts enforcement of terms in arbitration agreements. Here, an employee seeks to bring a class action lawsuit on behalf of himself and similarly situated employees for his employer's alleged failure to compensate its employees for, among other things, overtime and meal and rest periods. The employee had entered into an arbitration agreement that waived the right to class...
OPINION KENNARD, J. — Plaintiff sued his former employer under the California Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA; Gov. Code, 12900 et seq.), alleging that defendant employer failed to reasonably accommodate his physical disability and refused to rehire him in retaliation for plaintiff's having filed a workers' compensation claim. Thereafter, defendant learned of information suggesting that plaintiff, to gain employment with defendant, had used another man's Social Security number. The...
OPINION CANTIL-SAKAUYE, C. J. — At the request of a three-judge panel of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, we agreed to address a question of state law that is potentially determinative of an appeal now pending before that federal appellate court. (Cal. Rules of Court, rule 8.548.) The question, as reformulated and narrowed to conform to the facts of the pending appeal, is whether, under California law, the common law duty of reasonable care that defendant Target...
OPINION LIU, J. — In this case, we again address whether the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA; 9 U.S.C. 1 et seq.) preempts a state law rule that restricts enforcement of terms in arbitration agreements. Here, an employee seeks to bring a class action lawsuit on behalf of himself and similarly situated employees for his employer's alleged failure to compensate its employees for, among other things, overtime and meal and rest periods. The employee had entered into an arbitration agreement that...
