Photo by R. Classen via ShutterstockWith the beginning of a two-year legislative session underway, and many new legislators who have joined the ranks, there’s a fresh opportunity to bring fairness and balance to our civil justice system.
An illustration of the California Consumer Privacy Agency in a digital universe. (Photo: iD_studio, via Shutterstock)OPINION: California’s new online privacy agency is openly defying the voter-approved proposition that created it. The agency’s board has thus far sidestepped its obligation to keep staff from bungling a historic opportunity to ensure the first comprehensive privacy regulations in the nation are just, equitable and fair.
The Assembly chamber in the state Capitol in Sacramento. (Photo: trekandshoot, via Shutterstock)Once a bill has been passed by both houses of the California Legislature, the bill is sent to the governor’s desk. In order for the governor to act on a bill, it must be “presented” to the governor for final consideration. This means the governor must have the actual bill before him or her in order to either sign or veto the measure.
Traffic approaching the toll plaza for the San Francisco - Oakland Bay Bridge. (Photo: Ann Baldwin, via Shutterstock)Skipping out on paying a highway or bridge toll has long been a surefire way to get hit with a big fine. But if a raft of pending lawsuits seeking to overturn how toll operators share information about scofflaws is successful, California toll operators say taxpayers may end up taking the biggest hit.
A worker removes asbestos-laden material from a building roof. (Photo: Bjoern Wylezich)OPINION: First, the lawyer sues the solvent company and receives a full recovery after trial or settlement. Then, the lawyer files a claim before the bankruptcy trust for the same exact harm. Of course, it’s entirely possible the plaintiff was exposed to multiple different brands of asbestos. If that’s the case, then the trust should know about exposure to other asbestos from solvent companies.
Illustration: Quentin Lueninghoener, FairWarningFairWarning: The formula has turned the firm, now named Exponent, Inc., into a publicly traded giant in litigation defense and regulatory science. It’s a go-to destination for major industries with liability problems – even as it is derided by critics as a hired gun whose findings are for sale.
The execution chamber at San Quentin prison. (Photo: CDCR)Will November mark the death of the death penalty? This fall, Californians will be asked yet again whether they would like to abolish capital punishment. Voters last faced the issue in 2012, a presidential election year, and rejected the idea.
On the outskirts of San Bernardino. (Photo: Steve Heap)A San Bernardino plan to exit bankruptcy follows the path of the Vallejo and Stockton exit plans, cutting bond debt and retiree health care but not pensions. Then it veers off in a new direction: contracting for fire, waste management and other services. The contract services are expected to reduce city pension costs. Other pension savings come from a sharp increase in employee payments toward pensions and from a payment of only 1 percent on a $50 million bond issued in 2005 to cover pensions costs.