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Sophia Lau Quoted in Daily Journal Article about the Passing of William F. Rylaarsdam
Category: News, Press | Thursday, August 6th, 2020 | Comments Off on Sophia Lau Quoted in Daily Journal Article about the Passing of William F. Rylaarsdam
Sophia Lau was recently quoted in Malcolm Maclachlan’s Daily Journal article “William F. Rylaarsdam, 1937-2020.” The article celebrates the life of the retired justice of the 4th District Court of Appeal, Division Three, who passed away on Monday, August 3rd, 2020. In the piece, colleagues spoke fondly of Rylaarsdam and his impact on their lives.
Sophia spoke about the mentorship she received from Rylaarsdam 20 years ago when she interned with him.
“Sophia S. Lau, now a partner with Early Sullivan Wright Gizer & McRae LLP, interned with Rylaarsdam on the appeals court 20 years ago. He took the time to have deep discussions about the law with his interns, she said.
‘I had a choice between him and the [presiding] justice,’ Lau said. ‘I chose him because I heard he would spend more time with the interns and be more of a mentor.’”
To read the full article, click here. (Subscription required)
Early Sullivan Attorneys File Notice of Application for Mandatory Mask Rules
Category: News, Press | Wednesday, July 29th, 2020 | Comments Off on Early Sullivan Attorneys File Notice of Application for Mandatory Mask Rules
Kailin Che and Lawrence Wong recently filed a notice of application on behalf of Dr. Wei Li, a family doctor in Burnaby, British Columbia. The application, filed in B.C. Supreme Court, calls for Health Minister Adrian Dix to halt Phase 3 of B.C.’s Restart Plan until masks are required in indoor public environments. The notice of application lists restaurants, bars, hospitals, public transit, retail stores, educational institutions and theaters as indoor public environments.
The notice of application states “Reopening communities while failing to require citizens to wear masks in public during a global pandemic is akin to allowing everyone to drive in a windowless car at 300 km/h in a hurricane without the need to wear a seatbelt.” The notice also notes that B.C. has one of the lowest testing rates in the country and that there have been a steady increase in new COVID-19 cases in recent weeks. The Health Minister has yet to respond to the legal action, but said he wears a mask in stores and while on transit.
Bethany Lindsay’s CBC article summarizes the application and includes a link to the application in full.
Kailin Che also spoke about the topic in a radio segment with Canada’s Global News which can be found here.
Early Sullivan Prevails on Demurrer on Behalf of Stewart Title of California
Category: News, Results | Tuesday, July 28th, 2020 | Comments Off on Early Sullivan Prevails on Demurrer on Behalf of Stewart Title of California
Early Sullivan partners Billy Wright and Christopher Ritter recently prevailed on demurrer on behalf of client Stewart Title of California, Inc. (STCA). The demurrer to the complaint, largely based on Markowitz v. Fidelity Nat. Title Co., 142 Cal.App.4th 528 (2006), was sustained without leave to amend on the first attempt. The case involved a negligence claim in which the plaintiff was seeking $1.2 million in alleged damages, arguing that STCA’s alleged failure to record a reconveyance of a deed of trust in a refinance cost the property owner the opportunity to sell the property to a buyer for $4.17 million. The court found that STCA owed no duty to the plaintiff and entered judgment in favor of STCA.
Eric Early Named to Los Angeles Business Journal’s “Leaders of Influence: Litigators & Trial Lawyers” List
Category: Awards | Monday, July 13th, 2020 | Comments Off on Eric Early Named to Los Angeles Business Journal’s “Leaders of Influence: Litigators & Trial Lawyers” List
Early Sullivan Wright Gizer & McRae LLP is proud to announce that our firm’s Managing Partner Eric Early has been named to the Los Angeles Business Journal’s list of “Leaders of Influence: Litigators & Trial Lawyers” for 2020. Eric was recognized for his leadership of one of the fastest growing and most successful boutique firms in California, and regular representation of Fortune 500 companies, small businesses, entrepreneurs and homeowners. His recent political endeavors were also noted, highlighting his candidacy in the upcoming California 28th Congressional District election.
To view the full list, click here.
Early Sullivan Prevails in Breach of Contract/Bad Faith Case for Client Stewart Title Guaranty Company
Category: News, Results | Monday, June 29th, 2020 | Comments Off on Early Sullivan Prevails in Breach of Contract/Bad Faith Case for Client Stewart Title Guaranty Company
Sophia Lau recently prevailed on appeal in Ifeoma Ukoha v. Provident Title Company, et al., a breach of contract/bad faith case, on behalf of client Stewart Title Guaranty Company (“STGC”). Plaintiff Ifeoma Ukoha purchased an apartment building that was later lost to foreclosure due to the seller’s misappropriation of Ukoha’s mortgage payments. In her first amended complaint, Ukoha asserted breach of contract, breach of the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing, concealment, promissory fraud, and violation of California Business and Professions Code section 17200/unfair competition.
Ukoha alleged that STGC was effectively a long-time business partner of the seller, whose other properties were embroiled in civil and criminal litigation, and STGC should have informed Ukoha of the risk of purchasing the subject property because of the seller’s bad business practices. Ukoha sued both the underwritten title company, Provident Title Company, Inc. (“Provident”), and the title insurer, STGC, alleging collusion with the seller. The trial court sustained both STGC’s and Provident’s demurrers without leave to amend on the grounds that the post-policy foreclosure was not a title defect, and the title companies owed no duty of disclosure to Ukoha.
The California Court of Appeal agreed with the trial court and stated that a title insurance company does not owe the insured any duty of disclosure outside the policy. In affirming the judgment, the appellate court held that “[b]ecause Ukoha alleged no facts indicating she had any viable cause of action, defendants’ demurrers were properly sustained. Because she offers no alternate, cognizable theory on appeal, nor any indication that she could successfully amend, and none appearing from the record, leave to amend was properly denied.”
Bryan Sullivan Writes on Sherlock Holmes Intellectual Property Lawsuit for Forbes
Category: News, Publications | Wednesday, June 24th, 2020 | Comments Off on Bryan Sullivan Writes on Sherlock Holmes Intellectual Property Lawsuit for Forbes
Bryan Sullivan’s article “‘Enola Holmes’ Netflix Movie At The Center Of New Copyright, Trademark Infringement Lawsuit By Sir Arthur Conan Doyle Estate” was published on Forbes on June 24, 2020. In the article, Bryan discusses some of the history surrounding the Sherlock Holmes properties in question, and the decisions that laid the groundwork for this case.
Click to read the full article:
Bryan Sullivan Writes on Morals Clauses and the First Amendment for Forbes
Category: News, Publications | Monday, June 22nd, 2020 | Comments Off on Bryan Sullivan Writes on Morals Clauses and the First Amendment for Forbes
Bryan Sullivan’s article “Morals Clauses And The First Amendment In The Social Media Age: Freedom Of Speech Does Not Mean Freedom From Consequences” was published on Forbes on June 22, 2020. In the article, Bryan discusses the importance of morals clauses and the question of First Amendment protections of free speech afforded by the Constitution.
Click to read the full article:
Peter Scott Named 2020 Southern California “Rising Stars” by Super Lawyers
Category: Awards | Tuesday, June 9th, 2020 | Comments Off on Peter Scott Named 2020 Southern California “Rising Stars” by Super Lawyers
The firm is pleased to announce that Peter Scott has been selected by Thomson Reuters as a 2020 Southern California “Super Lawyers” Rising Star. The “Rising Stars” distinction honors attorneys under the age of 40 in the Southern California region who earned the highest point totals in the “Rising Stars” nomination, research and blue ribbon review process.
Early Sullivan’s Representation of Lionsgate Covered in Variety
Category: News, Press | Friday, May 8th, 2020 | Comments Off on Early Sullivan’s Representation of Lionsgate Covered in Variety
The firm currently represents Lionsgate in its newly filed lawsuit against Starline Tours over a branded tour of the locations in “La La Land,” the 2016 musical starring Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone. According to the suit, the Hollywood tour company never paid Lionsgate, which produced the film, $250,000 under the terms of the deal.
For more information, read the Variety article here.
Scott Gizer Quoted in Daily Journal Article about Loan Deferments During COVID-19
Category: News | Wednesday, May 6th, 2020 | Comments Off on Scott Gizer Quoted in Daily Journal Article about Loan Deferments During COVID-19
Scott Gizer was recently quoted in Carter Stoddard’s Los Angeles and San Francisco Daily Journal article “Bankruptcy attorneys concerned about whether loan deferments will help landlord clients.” The article discusses landlords and the decisions they must make regarding mortgage payments. Scott commented about the effects of COVID-19 on the real estate industry.
“There’s no control over what the banks can and can’t do. California can’t tell the banks what actions to take. However, they have attained cooperation from the banks thus far, a 90-day relief from mortgage payments if you can show you were impacted by Covid,” said Scott Gizer of Early Sullivan Wright Gizer & McRae LLP.
Gizer and many of his colleagues were concerned over how deferred payments would be handled after the 90-day grace period.
“Will we see a balloon payment at the end of the period?” Gizer wondered. “Other lenders are allowing the three [delayed] payments to be tacked onto the end of the loan. That seems like a good solution.
“If banks do not extend some comparable long-term relief, another real estate and mortgage crash is a near certainty, Gizer said. “The blowback will be enough that they will need to take some action to defer that payment over a period of time. If they don’t there are going to be a slew of defaults and an overflow of REO [real estate owned] properties.”