Ethics Laws and the Importance of Transparency for Public Officials
The City of Thousand Oaks violated the Ralph M. Brown Act by adopting a CEQA exemption without having listed the exemption as an item on its agenda for at least 72 hours before the meeting. G.I. Industries v. City of Thousand...more
Below are summaries of the key California and Ninth Circuit land use and development law cases decided in 2021. 1. Planning and Zoning - CHEVRON v. COUNTY OF MONTEREY 70 Cal. App. 5th 153 (2021) - A county ordinance...more
Below are summaries of the key California and Ninth Circuit land use and development cases decided in 2020. Each case name is linked to our more extensive discussion of the case on the Land Use & Development Law Report. 1....more
Plaintiffs do not have to allege prejudice caused by a violation of the Brown Act’s statutory vote reporting requirement to survive a demurrer, and it is improper to render a case moot by taking judicial notice of only one...more
The City of Lafayette violated the Brown Act by not including a litigation threat discussed in closed session in the agenda packet made publicly available before the meeting, but plaintiffs failed to show any prejudice...more
City’s Loss Illustrates Risks of Litigating Open Meeting Law Violation Claims - In 2012 the California Legislature amended the judicial remedies aspect of the Brown Act “Opening Meetings” Law. That amendment added...more
There are just some legal matters that should not be put off — and sorting out the legal authority local public officials have in responding to a terrorist attack is one such matter. Once the attack is already underway, it’s...more