“Business Judgment Rule” Applies to HOAs
California’s common law “business judgment rule,” as described by the courts, protects from court intervention “those management decisions which are made by directors in good faith…
Court Addresses “Presumptively Legal” Parcels Under Subdivision Map Act
California’s Subdivision Map Act (“SMA”) governs the legal subdivision of property in California. The SMA’s approval process is familiar to most developers. The statute’s purpose is…
Covid-19 Pandemic And Related Closures Do Not Excuse Commercial Tenant’s Failure To Pay Rent
This post was primarily authored by Zachary B. Young, a “Rising Star” for four years running who was recently elevated to Partner at Patton Sullivan Brodehl…
Court Intervenes to Halt HOA Election Abuse
Under California law, a homeowners association (HOA) is considered a “quasi-government entity” similar to a municipal government. And, as courts have noted, “with power, of course,…
Sometimes, an HOA Can Sue on Behalf of its Members
This post was primarily authored by Zachary B. Young, a “Rising Star” for four years running who was recently elevated to Partner at Patton Sullivan Brodehl…
Local Government Agencies Can Be “Alter Egos” Too
The “alter ego” doctrine has been a frequent topic of posts on the Money and Dirt and LLC Jungle blogs. (See here, here, here, here, and…
Quasi-Judicial Immunity for Court-Appointed Partition Brokers
In California, several classes of persons are entitled to some form of immunity protecting them from liability for activities performed in connection with judicial proceedings. For…
Default Interest Based on Single Late Payment Declared Unenforceable
This post was primarily authored by Zachary B. Young, a “Rising Star” for four years running who was recently elevated to Partner at Patton Sullivan Brodehl…
Easements and the “Merger” Doctrine
Under California’s easement “merger” (merger of title) doctrine set forth in Civil Code sections 811 and 805, an easement (or servitude) is “extinguished” by “the vesting…
Enforcing a Tenant Option to Purchase Under “Changed Circumstances”
Commercial leases sometimes contain an option allowing the tenant to purchase the property. If the option is properly exercised, an enforceable purchase and sale obligation is…