Category: Recent Case Decisions

Must a mortgage holder prove their ownership of the mortgage debt to the owner of the encumbered property by producing the original promissory note and chain of mortgage assignments before a trustee’s foreclosure sale can take place?

by Lily Hart | Dec 1, 2025 | Features, Real Estate, Recent Case Decisions | 0

Gallusz v. LLP Mortgage, Inc

May structures built without permits along a long-standing fence considered the border line remain as a prescriptive easement?

by Lily Hart | Nov 6, 2025 | Features, Real Estate, Recent Case Decisions | 0

Wang v. Peletta

Does a signed waiver release the city from their duty to repair a dangerous road condition that injures a cyclist?

by Lily Hart | Nov 3, 2025 | Features, Real Estate, Recent Case Decisions | 0

Whitehead v. City of Oakland

May a homeowner in a Chapter 13 bankruptcy plan cram down the principal balance on a short-term second mortgage encumbering their primary residence and include rent from a rent-a-room tenant as income to support the new mortgage payments?

by Lily Hart | Oct 27, 2025 | Real Estate, Recent Case Decisions | 0

A United States court of appeals holds cramdowns on short term mortgages during Chapter 13 bankruptcy are enforceable.

Is percolating groundwater which seeps into an aquifer conveyed with the land when a mortgage holder forecloses on a parcel of real estate?

by Robin Jennings | Jun 30, 2025 | Buyers and Sellers, Mortgages, Real Estate, Recent Case Decisions | 0

Sandton Agriculture Investments III, LLC v. 4-S Ranch Partners, LLC

Does an owner of property adjacent to a highway owe a duty to protect the driving public by removing a tree which presents a dangerous condition?

by Robin Jennings | Jun 12, 2025 | Real Estate, Recent Case Decisions | 0

Union Pacific Railroad Company v. Superior Court (Abrams)

May a landlord accept rent payments from a holdover tenant after their lease agreement expires without creating a month-to-month tenancy?

by Robin Jennings | Jun 11, 2025 | Real Estate, Recent Case Decisions | 0

Baca v. Kuang

May a mortgage holder who records a notice of trustee’s sale (NOTS) while an application for mortgage modification is pending avoid violating the Homeowner’s Bill of Rights (HBOR) by filing a new NOTS more than a year after the application is denied?

by Robin Jennings | Jun 3, 2025 | Recent Case Decisions | 0

Reese v. Select Portfolio Servicing, Inc.

Is a landlord liable for injuries to a motorist on an adjacent roadway caused by a tenant’s livestock known to the landlord to be fenced in on the property?

by Robin Jennings | May 27, 2025 | Laws and Regulations, Property Management, Real Estate, Recent Case Decisions | 0

Estate of St. John v. Schaeffler

May a shopping mall landlord avoid a lease agreement provision reducing a tenant’s rent when the level of occupancy drops in the property?

by Lily Hart | May 20, 2025 | Real Estate, Recent Case Decisions | 0

The California Supreme Court holds rent provisions based on occupancy levels are enforceable.

May a property owner with access via an appurtenant easement located near a river be required to stabilize the riverbank?

by Robin Jennings | May 12, 2025 | Real Estate, Recent Case Decisions | 0

Schneider v. Lane

May a lis pendens recorded on a property purchased with trust assets be expunged when the appointment of the successor trustee and sole beneficiary is disputed?

by Lily Hart | Apr 22, 2025 | Laws and Regulations, Recent Case Decisions | 0

A California appeals court holds there is a real property claim when a property’s title is vested in the name of a disputed successor trustee.

Is a seller’s assignment of their claim against a broker for breach of fiduciary duty enforceable by the assignee when the broker fails to disclose the dual agency of their agents?

by Lily Hart | Apr 11, 2025 | Laws and Regulations, Recent Case Decisions | 0

A California appeals court holds a cause of action against a broker for breach of fiduciary duty is transferable.

May an owner separately convey parcels described on a map existing before the Subdivision Map Act when the parcels were never separately conveyed?

by Robin Jennings | Mar 26, 2025 | Real Estate, Recent Case Decisions | 0

Cox v. City of Oakland

Does a property manager owe a duty of care to resolve disputes between neighbors?

by Lily Hart | Mar 11, 2025 | Laws and Regulations, Recent Case Decisions | 0

A California appeals court holds a property manager’s duty of care does not encompass resolving disputes between neighbors.

Is an insurer liable when an owner is covered for loss of business income due to a virus and operations are suspended during the COVID-19 lockdown?

by Robin Jennings | Mar 7, 2025 | Real Estate, Recent Case Decisions | 0

John’s Grill v. Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc.

May a property owner use their easement on a neighbor’s property to transport their cannabis crop without the consent of their neighbor?

by Lily Hart | Feb 28, 2025 | Features, Laws and Regulations, Recent Case Decisions | 0

A California appeal court holds an easement for an illegal purpose is invalid.

Will the transfer of real estate from a corporation to a trust vesting trigger reassessment of the property when all the stockholders do not receive equal proportional beneficial interests in the trust vesting?

by Robin Jennings | Feb 26, 2025 | Recent Case Decisions | 0

Facts: A corporation transfers ownership of real estate to a trustee of a trust. The beneficiaries...

May a local agency require payment of an impact fee to obtain a building permit when the fee amount is unrelated to the individual impact of the construction?

by Lily Hart | Feb 25, 2025 | Laws and Regulations, Real Estate, Recent Case Decisions | 0

The U.S. Supreme Court holds impact fees which are a condition to receive building permits need a reasonable relationship between the fee amount and the individual impact.

May a landlord maintain an unlawful detainer (UD) action against a tenant when the landlord provides an ambiguous three-day notice to pay rent?