(1) Existing law authorizes a party to a civil action to petition the court for preference in the setting of a trial date. Under existing law, the court must grant preference to a party in a civil action who is over 70 years of age and in poor health, as specified. Existing law also permits a court to grant a motion for preference if a party suffers from an illness or condition that could cause the party to die within 6 months and the court finds that justice will be served by granting the preference. This bill would require a court to grant a plaintiff the trial preference in an asbestos tort action, as defined, if the plaintiff submits a certification that he or she has provided certain documents to the defendant that disclose any other legal claims the plaintiff has or might have against an asbestos trust, as specified. The bill would provide that, for a period of 4 years after entry of a judgment in an asbestos action, the court would retain jurisdiction over the action, and would require the plaintiff to provide to all defendants copies of any additional claims filed against asbestos trusts. (2) Existing law generally provides that if multiple parties are potentially liable for the same tort, a claimant's agreement to discharge one of those parties from liability does not discharge the others from liability, as specified, but does reduce the claims against those parties by the amount stipulated to in, or paid under, the agreement, whichever is greater. This bill would extend application of this provision to moneys received, or to be received, by or on behalf of a claimant from an asbestos trust, as specified.
Sponsored bills
This measure would proclaim April 2018 as Distracted Driving Awareness Month in California and call for awareness of the distracted driving problem and support for programs and policies to reduce the incidence of distracted driving.
This measure would proclaim the month of April 2018 as Donate Life/DMV Partnership Month in California and would encourage all Californians to register with the Donate Life California Organ and Tissue Donor Registry.
This measure would recognize the week of March 18, 2018, to March 24, 2018, inclusive, as Dual Enrollment Week in California and would encourage colleges and universities to visit high schools and take action to help pupils register in dual enrollment courses.
This measure would declare the last week of March every year as Latino Education and Advocacy Week, a statewide week of advocacy for Latino education.
This measure would designate April 1, 2018, to April 7, 2018, inclusive, as California Diversity in STEM and Tech Week and would encourage all citizens and community organizations to support the observance of California Diversity in STEM and Tech Week by encouraging and celebrating diversity in the STEM fields and in California's technology and innovation economy.
Existing law requires the Attorney General to prepare a circulating title and summary of the chief purposes and points of a proposed initiative or referendum petition, except if the Attorney General is a proponent of the measure, in which case the Legislative Counsel is required to prepare the circulating title and summary. This bill would additionally require the Legislative Counsel to prepare the circulating title and summary if the proposed measure affects the Attorney General's exercise of authority.
Under existing law, it is a crime to assault, batter, or interfere with, as specified, a police dog or police horse. Under existing law, a violation of these provisions is punishable as a misdemeanor, or, if a serious physical injury is inflicted upon the animal, as a misdemeanor or a felony. Additionally, under existing law, if a person, with the intent to inflict injury or death, causes the death or serious physical injury of the animal, that person is, upon conviction of a felony, punishable by an additional one-year term of imprisonment. Under existing law, for each felony case, a court is required to hold, and a prosecutor is required to attend, a preliminary hearing. This bill would instead make the intentional killing or infliction of serious physical injury to a police dog or police horse a felony punishable by imprisonment for 2, 3, or 4 years. By changing the penalty of an existing crime, and by imposing additional duties on local prosecutors by increasing the number of preliminary hearings, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.