It was not unreasonable for a police officer to conduct a pat-down search of a detained suspect who was in handcuffs, Div. Six of this district’s Court of Appeal declared yesterday, rejecting the contention that the appellant could not have posed a danger to officers while restrained.

Chevron U.S.A. v. Plaquemines Parish may look at first glance like a “sleepy” case. The justices will simply decide whether a Louisiana community’s lawsuit against the energy giant should be heard in state or federal court. But this procedural question could affect other lawsuits targeting industries including energy, firearms, beef and more.

(Subscription required) Close-knit legal and behavioral health networks may be helping rural counties implement California's new mental health court more quickly than major metros.

(Subscription required) Plaintiffs' attorneys are increasingly sidestepping arbitration by filing so-called "headless" PAGA cases that omit individual claims -- a strategy that has produced a sharp split among California's appellate courts. Now the state Supreme Court has stepped in on its own motion to resolve whether workers may pursue non-individual PAGA claims without filing on their own behalf.