On Monday morning, the Supreme Court will file its opinions in Family Violence Appellate Project v. Superior Courts and Tesoro Refining & Marketing Company v. City of Carson. (Briefs here; oral argument videos here and here.)
As summarized by court staff, the issue in the FVAP case is: “Does the prohibition on electronic recording of certain proceedings in Government Code section 69957, subdivision (a) violate the California Constitution when an official court reporter is unavailable and a litigant cannot afford to pay a private court reporter?” The court issued an order to show cause in February 2025. More about the case here and here. Sixth District Court of Appeal Justice Cynthia Lie is the pro tem.
The issue in Tesoro, also as summarized by court staff, is: “Must a claimant for a local government tax refund comply with a local administrative review procedure prior to pursuing its remedies under the Government Claims Act (Gov. Code, § 810 et seq.), or does the Act preempt such a requirement under the doctrine of field preemption?” The court granted review in May 2025. More about the case here. Sixth District Justice Adrienne Grover is the pro tem.
Even though there are still four undecided late-May calendar cases, the court is issuing opinion for FVAP and Tesoro, which were argued in June. They will be the first opinions for that six-case argument session. The four other June cases should be decided by August 31.
The FVAP and Tesoro opinions can be viewed Monday starting at 10:00 a.m.
