Blogs

tree in grassy meadow

California Land Use & Development Law Report

California Land Use & Development Law Report offers insights into legal issues relating to development and use of land and federal, state and local permitting and approval processes.

Subscribe

Placeholder image

March 27, 2021

Conviction for Violation of Clean Water Act Required Knowing Discharge "Into Water"

The Ninth Circuit reversed a conviction for three counts of violations under the Clean Water Act because the district court failed to instruct the jury that the defendant needed to knowingly discharge material "into water" to convict. United States v.

Placeholder image

March 17, 2021

Agreement to Indemnify LAFCO Against Claims Arising from Annexation Decision Was Unenforceable as Lacking Consideration

The Court of Appeal held that an agreement obligating a developer and city to indemnify LAFCO against claims arising from its annexation decision lacked consideration because the agreement simply required LAFCO to do what it was already obligated to do by statute.

Placeholder image

March 17, 2021

Local Governments Lacked Authority to Impose Fees on Property Owners for Trash Receptacles at Public Transit Stops Adjacent to Their Properties

The state was required to reimburse municipalities for the cost of state-mandated trash receptacles at transit stops because local governments lacked authority under Proposition 218 to impose fees either on transit agencies or on owners of adjacent property to recover such costs.

judicial hearing empty stand with a microphone

March 16, 2021 Initiatives and Referenda

Another Court Rules That Special Taxes Proposed By A Citizen-Sponsored Initiative May Be Enacted With A Simple Majority Vote

Another court of appeal has held that local special taxes adopted by a citizen-sponsored initiative do not require two-thirds voter approval. Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association v.

Placeholder image

March 12, 2021

Case Properly Dismissed for Failure to Join Real Party in Interest Even Though Agency Did Not Provide Plaintiff with Corrected Notice of Determination

The court of appeal affirmed the trial court judgment dismissing the plaintiff's CEQA action on grounds that the plaintiff failed to join an indispensable real party in interest within thirty days after the city filed a revised notice of determination to correct an earlier notice of determination which misidentified the project applicant -- even though the plaintiff was not notified the noti

Placeholder image

March 12, 2021

Claim Regarding Validity of 1974 Subdivision Map Barred Under Laches Doctrine

The Court of Appeal held that a landowner's petition for "exclusion" under the Subdivision Map Act seeking orders declaring a parcel map void and restoring the historical lot lines was barred under the doctrine of laches. Decea v. City. of Ventura, 59 Cal. App. 5th 1097 (2021). Decea bought a house in the Lake Sherwood community of Ventura County in 2007.

Placeholder image

March 8, 2021

Court of Appeal Upholds Water Boards' Analysis of Economic Considerations Regarding Los Angeles County MS4 Permit

A regional water board is not required to estimate the compliance costs for individual permittees before issuing a permit. City of Duarte v. State Water Resources Control Board, 60 Cal. App.

Placeholder image

February 22, 2021

Lease of City Property Did Not Subject Nonprofit to Liability Under 42 U.S.C. section 1983

The Ninth Circuit held that a private nonprofit club that leased city property was not a state actor that could be held liable for constitutional claims under 42 U.S.C. § 1983.

Placeholder image

February 17, 2021

Failure to Exhaust Administrative Remedies by Appealing a CEQA Determination as Provided by Agency Regulations Precludes Later CEQA Suit

Plaintiffs failed to exhaust administrative remedies because they did not appeal the challenged CEQA decision by the Historic Preservation Commission to the Board of Supervisors. Schmid v. City and County of San Francisco, 60 Cal. App.

Placeholder image

February 8, 2021

31st Annual Land Use and Development Law Briefing -- Materials Available

On January 26, 2021, attorneys from Perkins Coie presented the 31st Annual Land Use and Development Law Briefing.

Placeholder image

February 4, 2021

2020 Land Use and Development Case Summaries

Below are summaries of the key California and Ninth Circuit land use and development cases decided in 2020.

Placeholder image

January 28, 2021

EIS and Biological Opinion Invalidated for Offshore Alaska Oil Project

The Ninth Circuit vacated U.S. Department of the Interior approvals for a proposed offshore oil drilling and production facility in Alaska after finding its EIS improperly failed to consider impacts associated with foreign oil consumption and the U.S.

Placeholder image

January 28, 2021

Regional Water Quality Control Board Unlawfully Delegated Authority to Modify Effluent Limits Under Discharge Permit

A California Court of Appeal invalidated a wastewater discharge permit issued by the Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board that the court found impermissibly delegated to the Board's executive officer the authority to modify effluent limits under the permit. Malaga County Water Dist. v.

Placeholder image

January 25, 2021

Ninth Circuit Upholds Environmental Assessment for Highway Project in State Park

Courts reviewing an agency's environmental assessment under NEPA may not speculate about potential significant environmental effects that are not supported by the record — they must defer to the agency's reasonable conclusions when they are supported by evidence in the record, especially on issues within the agency's area of expertise. Bair v.

Placeholder image

January 20, 2021

Brown Act Does Not Require a Finding of Prejudice to Survive a Demurrer

Plaintiffs do not have to allege prejudice caused by a violation of the Brown Act's statutory vote reporting requirement to survive a demurrer, and it is improper to render a case moot by taking judicial notice of only one party's records at the demurrer phase.