Actor Nicolas Cage Ordered to Pay Attorney’s Fees in Real Estate Lawsuit After Losing Attempt to Compel Arbitration On March 20, 2012, we posted about Lindemann v. Hume, et al., Case Nos. Nos. B226106, B233273 (2nd Dist. Div. 7 filed February 21, 2012) (Perluss, P.J.), a case in which the Court of Appeal affirmed […]
“Mission Impossible” Becomes Impossible for Mediator Kofi Annan Rick Gladstone reported on August 2, 2012, in the New York Times, that former UN secretary general Kofi Annan, appointed to act as a special representative for the UN and the Arab League to negotiate a peace plan in Syria, has resigned, saying that President Bashar […]
San Bernardino: Do Not Pass Mediation, Go Straight to Bankruptcy The Associated Press reported on July 18, 2012, that the San Bernardino City Council voted 5-2 to declare a fiscal emergency, thereby allowing it to skip the mediation step now required by California law, and head straight to bankruptcy. How quaint and optimistic […]
More Mediation for Stockton, and Possibly Mediation for San Bernardino No sooner did Stockton end mediation and file for bankruptcy, than Judge Christopher Klein, the bankruptcy judge overseeing Stockton’s bankruptcy ordered the city and its creditors to mediate with bankruptcy Judge Elizabeth L. Perris next month. So reported Steven Church at bloomberg.net on July […]
When Mediation Involves The Public’s Interest, How Confidential Is The Mediation Under Federal Law? On July 6, 2012, Steven Church reported in Bloomerg, “[t]he judge overseeing Stockton, California’s bankruptcy limited the amount of information the city and its creditors can make public about a months-long mediation process that failed.” Mediation is required under California […]
Stockton Goes Bankrupt On June 28, 2012, Stockton declared bankruptcy. The news story was widely reported. But all is not gloom and doom. As quoted in the New York Times, bankruptcy attorney Karol K. Denniston, who helped draft AB506, the California legislation requiring municipalities to mediate before filing a bankruptcy petition, optimistically observed: […]
Are Arbitrators Stingier Than Trial Court Judges? Payback in FINRA Arbitration Bill Singer comments about a FINRA (Financial Industry Regulatory Authority) arbitration in the June 20, 2012 on-line edition of Forbes, under the heading, “Former Morgan Stanley Smith Barney Brokers Win $5 Million Employment Dispute Arbitration Award.” We surmise some of the conduct may […]
Stockton Positions Itself to Be Able to End Mediation and File for Chapter 9 Protection From Its Creditors We blogged on May 30, April 8, and March 11, 2012, about the efforts of California cities in financial distress to comply with AB 506 by mediating as a precondition to filing for bankruptcy. […]
AB 1692 Would Expand AB 506 CBS News reports that the state Assembly has rejected legislation (AB 1692) seeking to expand the mediation process for California cities about to declare bankruptcy. At the end of last year, AB 506, drafted by Assemblyman Bob Wieckowski (D – Fremont), created a mediation requirement for municipalities […]
Public Spectacle? Dark Comedy? Courtroom Drama? White Noise? Stay Tuned. Above: Aged TV Writer Sits and Ponders the Meaning of It All. Creator: American Red Cross. Albania. 1923. Library of Congress. In the May 14, 2012 online edition of The National Law Journal, Zoe Tillman writes about the fight over lawyer’s fees following […]