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

California's Hostility To Non-Compete Agreements Does Not Vitiate Forum Selection Clause

In numerous posts, I've discussed California's policy against covenants not to compete as mandated by Business & Professions Code Section 16600. From a different, more positive perspective, California could be characterized as having a strong policy...

California's Greenhouse Gas Allowance Auction To Be Held Tomorrow

The California Air Resources Board has given notice of the first greenhouse gas allowance auction to be held tomorrow (November 14).   Last April, I wrote about the market in "Trading In California’s Greenhouse Gas Allowances – Fraud’s New Frontier?"

A Look At Recent DOC Enforcement Activity

The California Department of Corporations administers and enforces numerous state laws, including the Commodity Law, Corporate Securities Law of 1968, Deferred Deposit Law, Escrow Law, Franchise Law, Finance Lenders Law, and Residential Mortgage...

Should The Articles Of Incorporation Define "Officers"?

Today's post is devoted to what may seem an unlikely question: should the articles of incorporation define "officers"? This is an unlikely question because it is the bylaws that typically identify the titles of officers and their duties. Cal. Corp....

CalPERS Agrees That It Will Not Enforce Conflict Of Interest Policy

As discussed in this post, I had petitioned the Office of Administrative Law for a determination that the Statement of Investment Policy for External Investment Resource Conflict of Interest adopted by the California Public Employees' Retirement...

How To Interpret An Indemnity Agreement

When interpreting an indemnity provision, whether in the articles of incorporation, bylaws or a separate agreement, the first question might be what does "indemnity" mean?  Etymologically, "indemnity" is derived from the Latin words in (not) and ...

Should Your Articles Of Incorporation Include A Choice of Law Provision?

In yesterday's post, I considered the fundamental question of why indemnification provisions are included in articles of incorporation. State general corporation laws typically contain express provisions empowering or authorizing corporations to...

Some Observations On Indemnification Provisions In Articles Of Incorporation

Over the years, I've read many articles of incorporation that include provisions relating to indemnification of officers, directors and others. Today's post will cover a few questions and observations that have occurred to me over the years. I'll...

Federal Court Finds There Can Be No Control Person Liability Without Primary Violator Privity

Yesterday, I covered Judge Lewis A. Kaplan's holding in In re Lehman Bros. Securities & Erisa Litigation, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 148177 (Oct. 15, 2012) that there is no liability under Corporations Code Section 25400 when the plaintiff and defendant...