The Corporation for National and Community Service recently honored California Western School of Law with the highest federal recognition an institute of higher education can receive for its commitment to civic engagement, naming the law school to the 2013 President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll. This is the fourth consecutive year in which California Western’s community work was recognized with this national award.

Spending time in depositions may not be a favorite pastime of attorneys or clients, but it certainly can be more pleasant than expected.

The sun has been winning the battle with the clouds thus far in May, with the first few days filled with hot rays of sunshine. Clouds may roll in this week, but they won't stop these upcoming events.

The San Diego law firm Paul, Plevin, Sullivan & Connaughton LLP has named Lisa Frank as its newest partner.

As the San Diego City Council last week moved to draft new rules governing medical marijuana, the hearing room was packed with cancer patients praising the health benefits of cannabis; parents fretting that their children might get hooked on the drug; dispensary operators touting the tax dollars they could bring the city; and clergymen worrying about how the drug might boost crime rates and loosen morals. The proponents were buoyed by recent polls showing that 77 percent of Americans support decriminalizing medical marijuana, including 52 percent who say the drug should be totally legalized.

The mass shootings that occurred in a movie theater in Aurora, Colo., and at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn., in 2012 polarized the country on the definition of the Second Amendment, and new gun-control legislation has been hotly debated for most of this year. On the national level, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid pulled a bill that proposed to require background checks for gun buyers at gun shows and through Internet sales on April 18, however several states are still drafting various gun-control bills.

While the process of adopting children is long-drawn for most couples in California, LGBT couples deal with additional issues. When one of them is a biological parent and the other a step-parent, whether they are registered as domestic partners, and in the case of independent adoptions, the issue of discrimination driven by bias.

As lawmakers on Capitol Hill address comprehensive immigration reform, local employers have a lot at stake.

Both federal and state law provides employees leave for the birth or placement of a child and for bonding with a child after birth or placement. Under certain circumstances, employers may limit their employees’ leave. One such circumstance arises when expectant parents work for the same employer. The issue is whether employers are required to give each parent-employee the same amount of leave to which they would be entitled if they worked for different employers.

Linda Moore of Stutz Artiano Shinoff & Holtz was installed Monday as president of the San Diego Legal Secretaries Association (SDLSA) along with the other newly elected 2013-2014 board of directors.

The city of Chula Vista has agreed to pay up to $8 million in refunds to settle a class-action dispute over a telephone tax it applies to wireless phone users in the city.

ID Studios has been selected to provide interior design services for the law firm Perkins Coie LLP office in Carmel Valley.

It does not look like the Plaza de Panama project will be completed by Balboa Park’s centennial in 2015, but there is a small chance the project will move forward.

The likelihood of a homeowner being approved for a short sale and foreclosed on a day or two later has diminished as a result of California laws that took effect Jan. 1.

Four laws pertaining to construction mechanics' liens have had little effect since coming online last year.

Cases and claims dealing with workers' compensation got some major overhauls with Senate Bill 863, which took effect Jan. 1.

The ongoing South Bay school corruption cases involve 13 active or former area school officials, a construction bond underwriter and the president of a construction firm. All 15 defendants have pleaded not guilty to various charges, ranging from extortion and conspiracy for some to bribery and the intentional filing of false documentation for others. Most of them are charged with multiple counts of each of their alleged crimes. The acts detailed in the indictments deal in large part with the interactions of the school officials, who would carry out votes on who would handle construction and banking activities for projects approved by their districts, with bond underwriter Gary Cabello and Seville Construction Services President Jeffrey Flores. The indictments cover many years’ worth of accusations, highlighting acts such as a dinner reported to have been bought by Cabello for representatives of the Southwestern Community College District at Fleming’s Steakhouse around Oct. 30, 2008 – a dinner reported to have cost him more than $1,100. In all, the indictments laid out more than 200 charges against the 15 defendants.

Since 1982, Clayton M. Anderson & Associates (formerly known as Anderson & Kriger) has been developing a highly seasoned professional staff of construction industry experts who utilize their past experience in construction and technical fields, as well as the latest technology to present their clients’ claims in the best way possible.

According to Steven P. Dinkin, president of the National Conflict Resolution Center since 2003 and founder of West Coast Resolution Group in 2010, “We launched West Coast Resolution Group with one purpose: to provide exceptional mediation and dispute resolution services to the legal community.” To achieve that goal, Dinkin assembled a core group of highly respected neutrals with vast experience litigating and resolving civil cases.

New changes to California construction indemnity agreements now favor subcontractors when it comes to legal fees.