In a dissent from a Ninth Circuit denial of en banc review in Lopez-Rodriguez v. Holder, case no. 06-70868 (9th Cir. Aug. 7, 2008, r’hng en banc denied March 27, 2009), a case concerning the application of the exclusionary rule to civil deportation proceedings, Judge Bea authors an opinion that puts his view of the panel decision — specifically,the reasoning by which the panel reached its decision — rather bluntly. In [INS v. Lopez-]Mendoza [, 468 U.S. 1032 (1984)], the Supreme Court clearly held the exclusionary rule does not apply to bar illegally procured evidence from admission in a deportation hearing. Mendoza, 468 U.S. at 1050 (holding that the “balance between costs and benefits comes out against…
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Another Supreme Court Justice Meet-Up at Pepperdine
After hosting Justice Alito and Justice Scalia, Pepperdine recently hosted an event with Justice O’Connor. Read appellate attorney Ben Shatz’s account of the Justice O’Connor event at the Los Angeles County Bar Association blog, en banc, where you can also find his previous posts on the Justice Alito and Justice Scalia events.
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Manufacturing appellate jurisdiction over a discovery ruling
When I read Brescia v. Angelin, case no. B204003 (2d Dist. Mar. 17, 2009), I was reminded about how Saturday Night Live once ran one a commercial parody for a product with the advertising slogan “It’s a dessert topping! It’s a floor wax! It’s two products in one!” How do I make that connection? Because when I was done reading the case, I thought, “It’s a dismissal after sustaining a demurrer! It’s a discovery ruling! It’s two rulings in one!” And so did the court of appeal, though it didn’t say it in so many words. Brescia cross-complained against respondents for trade secret misappropriation. Code of Civil Procedure section 2019.210 requires a…
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In re B.S.
I know the title of this post implies that you’re about to read some complaint about an illogical decision. After all, I doubt there’s a litigator alive who hasn’t received an adverse ruling or verdict and thought, “What a load of B.S.!” (By the way, if you ever do feel that way, it’s time to call me.) And that’s the way I was going to write this post, until I looked at the substance of the decision and got hooked, as I usually do, by a jurisdictional question. In re B.S., case no. E045748 (4th Dist. Mar. 17, 2009) is a case of alleged jurisdictional conflict between two divisions of a superior…
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Looks Like I was Wrong about Tweeting Jurors.
I didn’t think we’d see them anytime soon. I was very, very wrong. UPDATE: So I got to thinking . . . I’ve got 20 or 30 years left in my legal career. Will I see a juror’s mental telepathy about a case raised as a ground for appeal? I don’t know, but if mental telepathy is possible, it will sure change oral argument, especially how an advocate handles questions from the court.
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Scalia and Starr at Pepperdine
Too late, you’ve missed it. But if you want to read all about the “conversation” between Dean Kenneth Starr and Justice Antonin Scalia held at Pepperdine yesterday, check out the very detailed write-up of the event by appellate attorney Ben Shatz at En Banc. Consider Ben the Pepperdine bureau chief, as he also had a good write-up last August on Justice Samuel Alito’s appearance there.
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Trial by Tweet
More accurately, I guess, trial coverage by tweet. A reporter as been given permission by a federal judge in Kansas to pubish updates from the courtroom via Twitter. A few of his dispatches by tweet: — “Judge Marten is talking to reluctant witness in chambers with a court reporter transcribing the conversation.” — “The witness who was yelling in the hallway earlier has not returned to the courthouse.” — “Defendants are chatting and laughing among themselves.” — “Exhibits are shown electronically. Every juror has a monitor in the box. There is a monitor at each lawyer’s table and one for the gallery.” It won’t be long before journalism schools offer…
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Your RSS feed reader is not malfunctioning
That’s right, this really is a new post. I didn’t plan to go for more than a month without posting — the longest time I’ve ever had between posts without first announcing a hiatus — but events got the best of me. Which is OK. Between clients and the blog, it’s not a close call. I do plan to get a substantive post up this week and get back on a regular posting schedule soon. Just wanted you all to know the blog has not been abandoned. As a welcome back treat, allow me to share a couple of blawg items I found interestting. First, I just ran across a…