New CA Torts Case

I help California lawyers get excellent results in four ways:

• I serve as a mediator, arbitrator and referee with ADR Services, Inc. conducting hearings (Zoom and in-person) throughout California. I relentlessly pursue closure as a mediator. As an arbitrator and referee, I preside over relaxed and friendly hearings, carefully review all admitted evidence, and issue fair and impartial decisions. I handle business, employment, insurance (bad faith, coverage, UIM), probate, real property, and tort (elder abuse, legal malpractice, medical malpractice, personal injury, product liability, and wrongful death) cases.  
• I provide Master Lawyer Mentoring™ to train lawyers to become excellent trial lawyers, and train associates to quickly become excellent lawyers. 
• I publish California Case Summaries™, preparing one-paragraph summaries, organized by legal topic, of every new civil case published in California each month, quarter and year giving subscribers a competitive advantage to get excellent results. 
• In my Trial Alchemy™ podcast I interview outstanding plaintiff and defense civil trial lawyers, who are members of the American Board of Trial Lawyers, about what works, and what doesn't work in civil jury trials. This is a great way for less experienced lawyers to learn from the masters to become excellent trial lawyers. 

New CA Corporations Case

Can a corporation, that is solely owned by an alleged sexual molester of minors,
be liable for the acts of its owner?  

Last month, the Second District Court of Appeal addressed this issue. Below is my one-paragraph summary of this new decision:

Safechuck v. MJJ Productions, Inc. (2023) _ Cal.App.5th _ , 2023 WL 5317832: The Court of Appeal reversed the trial court’s order sustaining defendants’ demurrer, without leave to amend, in a case alleging sexual molestation of a minor by Michael Jackson and reversed the trial court’s order granting defendants’ motion for summary judgment in another similar sexual molestation case involving Jackson. The trial court concluded that the two corporations, wholly owned by the Jackson, did not have a duty to protect plaintiffs from sexual abuse Jackson is alleged to have inflicted on them for many years while they were children because the corporations had no ability to control Jackson—their sole owner—or his interactions with plaintiffs. The Court of Appeal disagreed and, following the guidance in Brown v. USA Taekwondo (2021) 11 Cal.5th 204, concluded that a corporation that facilitates the sexual abuse of children by one of its employees is not excused from an affirmative duty to protect those children merely because it is solely owned by the perpetrator of the abuse. Concluding that it would be perverse to find no duty based on the corporate defendant having only one shareholder, the Court of Appeal reversed the judgments entered for the corporations. (C.A. 2nd, August 18, 2023.)

Mediation, Arbitration and Referee Services

I help attorneys and their clients throughout California as a mediator, arbitrator and referee at ADR Services, Inc. I handle business, commercial, employment, insurance (bad faith, coverage, UIM), probate, real property, and tort (elder abuse, legal malpractice, medical malpractice, personal injury, product liability and wrongful death) cases. I've been a California civil trial lawyer since 1980 and a member of ABOTA since 1995. I've represented both plaintiffs and defendants in a wide variety of civil cases including the areas listed above. To schedule a new matter, please contact one of my case manager at ADR services, Ins., Haward Cho, [email protected], (213) 683-1600, or Rachael Boughan, [email protected], (619) 233-1323,  

California Case Summaries™

Best regards,
Monty A. McIntyre, Esq.
Mediator, Arbitrator & Referee
Master Lawyer Mentoring™
Podcaster: Trial Alchemy™
Publisher: California Case Summaries™
ABOTA Member Since 1995
Past President: San Diego County Bar Assn.
Past President: SD ABOTA Chapter
Phone: (619) 990-4312. Email: [email protected]