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The article reports that a federal appeals court in San Francisco, California upheld a prior ruling that allowed a gender-discrimination suit against Wal-Mart Stores inc. to proceed on a class-action basis. Wal-Mart may appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court. Plaintiffs attorney Joseph Sellers says Wal-Mart could face a potential liability of over $1 billion.

The article reports that the California Supreme Court ruled that the state law banning marriages between same-sex couples was a violation of the state's constitution. It also ruled that the civil unions allowed under the law did not afford equal rights to same-sex couples. The ruling makes California the second U.S. state after Massachusetts to legalize gay marriage. A constitutional amendment outlawing gay marriage is on the California ballot in the November, 2008 election.

The article focuses on the dissolution of a proposed 2007 merger between the New York law firm of Dewey Ballantine LLP and the California law firm of Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP. A discussion of the factors which led to the dissolution including concerns over money, corporate power and prestige, is presented.

The article presents U.S. news briefs as of August 21, 2014 on topics including Texas Governor Rick Perry's decision to plead not guilty to abuse of power-related felony charges, the retrieval of three bodies from a glacier on Mount Rainier in Washington, and a wildfire in California.

The article reports on the decision of California state government to purchase thiopental manufactured in Great Britain by Archimedes Pharma in October 2010, which will be used in execution.

The article reports on the decision of U.S. Judge Jeremy Fogel to order a temporary suspension of the lethal-injection execution of death row inmate Albert Greenwood Brown Jr. in California scheduled on September 30, 2010 due in part of the impending expiration of the thiopental sodium drug supply of the state.

The article reports on the decision of the California Supreme Court wherein it allowed an age-discrimination lawsuit filed by former senior executive Brian Reid against Google Inc. to proceed to trial and considers its broad implications for other companies facing similar claims.

The article reports that the 400-attorney San Francisco, California-based firm Thelen LLP is threatened to close on December 1, 2008 amid the economic crisis in the U.S. It notes that Thelen will join another San Francisco law firm, Heller Ehrman LLP, that dissolved in September 2008. Several factors that led to the closing of the law firm are cited including its 2006 merge with New York firm Brown Raysman Millstein Felder & Steiner.

The article reports on the six month sentence imposed on David Bershad and Steven Schulman, former name partners of Milberg, Weiss Bershad & Schulman LLP, for paying kickbacks to clients. The two were indicted in 2006 in Los Angeles, California for their role in kickback schemes that induced clients to file securities suits. The firm escaped charges in exchange for paying a fine of $75 million while former partners Melvyn Weiss and William Lerach are also serving prison term for their roles.

The article reports that the 118-year old law firm Heller Ehrman LLP of San Francisco, California is in the throes of being dissolved. Chairman Matthew Larrabee said on Thursday, September 25, 2008 that they will vote on Friday, September 26, 2008 to decide on the fate of the company. Mr. Larrabee however continued that the voting will only be a formality and that the dissolution is inevitable. The author says that the closing of a big law firm is a rare eventuality since like companies are usually busy even during critical economic conditions.

The article reports on the lawsuit filed by the city attorney of San Francisco, California against the National Arbitration Forum Inc. (NAF), alleging that it favors debt collectors over consumers in arbitration actions. Law professor Jean Sternlight explains that since an NAF arbitrator can expect to see many disputes involving the same company it works for, there may be pressure on the arbitrator to rule in favor of the firm. NAF denied the accusations that its arbitrators would risk their reputations by issuing biased awards.

The article reports on the lawsuit filed by city attorney Dennis Herrera of San Francisco, California against the National Arbitration Forum Inc. (NAF), accusing it of disregarding the rights of consumers and of favoring lenders. NAF allegedly approved an inflated award, improperly imposed attorneys fees and did not respond to a consumer's request to appear at an arbitration. Delaware-based bank FIA Card Services NA was also named as defendants in the lawsuit.