Keith Paul Bishop

Keith Paul Bishop

Keith Bishop works with privately-held and publicly-traded companies on federal and state corporate and securities transactions, compliance, and governance matters. He is highly-regarded for his in-depth knowledge of the distinctive corporate and regulatory requirements faced by corporations in the state of California. While many law firms have a great deal of expertise in federal or Delaware corporate law, Keith’s specific focus on California corporate and securities law is uncommon. A former California state regulator of securities and financial institutions, Keith has decades of experience navigating the regulatory-intensive state’s rules. For companies with substantial operations in California but incorporated elsewhere, Keith is an exceptional resource. He is frequently called in to help with issues arising under California’s “blue sky” and lender laws. An avid writer, Keith’s blog, www.calcorporatelaw.com, covers a diverse collection of California corporate and securities law issues and has served as a valued resource for other attorneys, business executives, judges, and media, nationwide.

Recent Posts

Unlicensed Lender Parries Unfair Competition Claim

Yesterday's post concerned discussed Lagrisola v. North American Financial Corp., 2023 WL 7273708 (Nov. 3, 2023), in which the Court of Appeal held that a borrower had failed to plead a cause of action against an unlicensed lender under Section...

Court Of Appeal Finds No Private Right Of Action Against Unlicensed Lender

Section 22100 of the California Financial Code prohibits persons from engaging in the business of a finance lender or broker without obtaining a license from the California Commissioner of Financial Protection & Innovation. Section 22751 provides...

Is Attaching Several Documents To A Single Email Procedurally Unconscionable?

In the high and far-off times, physical delivery was the only option of providing documents to the other side. Before copy machines, an agreement would be written and then rewritten on the same page. The two copies would be separated by cutting them...

Court Finds That The SEC Acted Arbitrarily and Capriciously In Adopting Share Repurchase Rule

When the Securities and Exchange Commission proposed to adopt a rule a rule requiring issuers to report day-to-day share repurchase data once a quarter and to disclose the reason why the issuer repurchased shares of its own stock, I submitted a ...

May A Joint Venturer Withdraw From A Joint Venture In Order To Pursue A Joint Venture Opportunity?

California's Uniform Partnership Act of 1994 provides that a partner has a duty to refrain from competing with the partnership in the conduct of the partnership business "before the dissolution of the partnership". Cal. Corp. Code § 16404(b)(3)....

May Directors Vote By Proxy?

Neither California's nor Delaware's General Corporation Law expressly prohibits directors from being represented by proxy at board meetings. However, it appears to have been well settled in Delaware since at least 1915 that directors may not vote by...

When Cumulative Voting Precludes Election Of Directors By Ballot

The California Nonprofit Mutual Benefit Corporation Law contemplates three different methods for members to take action: at a meeting, by ballot, and by unanimous written consent. Cal. Corp. Code §§ 7512(a), 7513 & 7516. Although the California...

Does An Exchange Of Emails Constitute A Board Meeting?

Under the California General Corporation Law, a board of directors can take action in two different ways - at a meeting or by unanimous written consent.  See Cal. Corp. Code § 307.  Over a decade ago, I posed the question of whether a director could...

California Court Applies English Common Law Even Though California Was Never An English Colony

More than a decade ago, I remarked on the ahistoricity of California's adoption of English common law despite the fact that it had never been a colony of England.* Yesterday, the California Court of Appeal applied English common law to decide a...