Legal Digest

Neighbors have challenged in the project, located along a high-rise corridor, in two different lawsuits -- one challenging the city's application of an eldercare zoning deviation and the other challenging the city's use of a Sustainable Communities Environmental Assessment. So

The city bought the theater to avoid sale to an evangelical church. That set up an explosion of litigation -- which the city is winning and the church is losing.

<p>A nearby office-building owner challenged the infill exemption on a condo project, claiming rare species were in the vicinity. In a case of dueling biologists, the Court of Appeal ruled that the species weren't rare enough to qualify.</p>

In case challenging Flower Growers high-rise proposal, court finds that city properly adopted Appendix G as its CEQA checklist.

Even though part of the medical center's Parnassus Heights expansion was for business purposes, the university is still covered because it is pursuing its educational mission.

Appellate court strikes down Anti-SLAPP motion, opening the door for an inverse condemnation lawsuit. Meanwhile, litigation over builder's remedy application continues.

In allowing People's Park housing project to go forward, high court defers to the Legislature's action to override a lower court ruling that drunken noisy students can be a significant impact under CEQA.

Limited-growth group's lawsuit against Expo Line Plan tossed out for being filed too early. But appellate court also said Expo Line Plan doesn't violate the Los Angeles General Plan's policy encouraging adequate infrastructure.

<p>Advocacy group is time-barred in challenging high-profile TOC case in the context of a specific project approval. But city must re-do seismic analysis on Santa Monica Boulevard project.</p>

Appellate court criticizes state and Sacramento judge for allowing a revised EIR to go through without assurance that it fixed the defects the court previously identified.

Judge rejects several arguments and tells the city to adopt a housing element by September.

In an unpublished ruling, the court found the futility rule did not apply to the notorious case of a Coronado bungalow, thus killing a jury's award of $800,000.