Misery (Taxes) Acquaints A Court With Strange Bedfellows (Sections 83 and 16(b))

Yesterday, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals issued an opinion in a federal tax refund suit that spends a surprising amount of time discussing whether the plaintiff could be subject to suit under Section 16(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.

Then He Made Proofreaders

William Bedsworth is an Associate Justice of the California Court of Appeal, a former NHL goal judge, and a long-time columnist for the Orange County Lawyer. If you've never read his nationally syndicated, award winning, legal humor column, "A...

Diverse Director "DataSource" Announced, Dogged by Questions

Yesterday, CalPERS and CalSTRS issued this joint press release announcing that they have commissioned The Corporate Library, a private business that is part of GovernanceMetrics International, to develop the Diverse Director Database. The Corporate...

Non-Competition Contract Doesn't Vitiate Agents' Duty Of Loyalty

California has codified various legal and equitable maxims in its Civil Code. However, a quick read of some of these maxims leaves one wondering whether the legislature has simply codified the sayings of Yoda.

California Comments On Crescent City Corporate Conference

Last week, I attended the 23rd Annual Corporate Law Institute sponsored by Tulane University Law School. Here are some notes.

Foreign Corporations Are Subject To California's Statutes Requiring Disclosure of Voting Results

In 2009, the Securities and Exchange Commission amended Form 8-K to require reporting companies to report shareholder voting results within four business days.  How do shareholders in private companies get access to this information?

Court Of Appeal Rejects Omnicare In Favor Of Jewel Companies

Yesterday, the California Court of Appeal issued a brief, yet interesting, opinion that addressed several questions of California corporate law, Monty v. Leis, Cal. Ct. of Appeal (Div. 6) 2d Civil No. B225646 (March 30, 2011).

True Or False? Golden Parachutes Benefit Shareholders

Golden parachute arrangements are often included in discussions of anti-takeover devices.  For example, the late Harold Marsh, Jr. in his magnum opus, Marsh's California Corporation Law, discusses golden parachutes in a section entitled "Defenses of...

The "Usury Permit" - Fact Or Fiction?

The California Constitution covers many things - everything from the right of privacy (Art. I, Sec. 1) to the rate of interest that may be imposed on a loan or forbearance (Art. XV).