By Carl Mueller and Sam Fogas, The Maloney Firm, APC   It might seem obvious, but it bears repeating: diligence cannot be assumed or overlooked when it comes to a client’s case. Law firms should have checks in place to ensure they are preparing and prosecuting their client’s case diligently and not cutting corners. In […]

By Carl Mueller, The Maloney Firm, APC   In our legal fee dispute practice, we have seen an uptick in cases involving contingent fee agreements. The vast majority of these disputes arise from written contingent fee agreements in litigation matters that suffer technical defects or contain ambiguous language concerning the manner of calculating the contingent […]

By Patrick Maloney and Sam Fogas, The Maloney Firm, APC   In October 2019, the California Court of Appeal provided guidance concerning the scrutiny that the trial courts are to apply when reviewing requests for attorneys’ fees. In Morris v. Hyundai Motor America, Mary Morris (“Morris”) appealed the trial court’s decision to reduce the award […]

Employment Law Alert   Lactation Law SB 142     Breaks and Location   Obligations to provide break time and lactation accommodations are significantly expanded by SB 142. Starting January 1, 2020, California employers must now provide:   1. Break time to allow employees to express breast milk “each time such employee has need to […]

The California legislature continues to enact increasingly employee-favorable legislation (with a few exceptions.) Issues related to employee and independent contractor classifications and the Dynamex decision are at center stage of the discussion and likely to have the most impact for California businesses. Also, the legislature is reintroducing numerous employment bills addressing paid family leave, harassment, […]

California Supreme Court Clarifies Standards For Seeking Costs In Arbitration Pursuant To CCP Section 998 By Carl Mueller, The Maloney Firm, APC   In Heimlich v. Shivji, published May 30, 2019, the California Supreme Court overturned an appellate court’s holding that “required” a trial court to hear a timely request for fees pursuant to a […]