2006 California State Bar Meeting LACBA 2006-07Directory PULLOUT SECTION October 2006 / $4 EARN MCLE CREDIT Hidden Implications of Arbitration Clauses page 35 MEET andCONFER Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Michael L. Stern offers insight on the new local trial preparation rules page 26 PLUS Local Regulation of Alcohol Sales page 14 Fugitive Disentitlement page 44 Lawyers Who Use Macs page 53 THIS IS MY POST OFFICE. Download My Desktop Post OfficeTM at usps.com/smartbusiness Introducing the online shortcut that lets you pick and choose the services you use most at usps.com and access them instantly. Request pickups, ship, track packages and more. ©2006 United States Postal Service. Eagle symbol and logotype are registered trademarks of the United States Postal Service. *Over 50% of malpractice suits start with client communication, calendaring and deadline issues. Do you remember what you were doing three weeks ago at this time? Your client does. A MEMBER BENEFIT OF Time Matters® Manage your: Communications • Calendars • Deadlines • E-mail • To Dos • Conflict Checks • Matters • Billing For a demo disk at no cost† or more information call 800.328.2898 or go to lexisnexis.com/TMinfo *Law Practice Today, November 2005 †Some restrictions may apply. Offer ends 12/29/06. LexisNexis and the Knowledge Burst logo are registered trademarks of Reed Elsevier Properties Inc., used under license. Time Matters is a registered trademark of LexisNexis, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. AL9202 © 2006 LexisNexis, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. October 2006 Vol. 29, No. 7 26 Meet and Confer BY JUDGE MICHAEL L. STERN New Los Angeles Superior Court trial preparation rules require greater coordination and cooperation between opposing counsel 35 Clause and Effect BY MICHAEL A. GEIBELSON AND BERNICE CONN Standard arbitration clauses frequently transfer the power to decide arbitrability from the courts to the arbitrator Plus: Earn MCLE credit. MCLE Test No. 152 appears on page 39. 44 Flight or Fight BY HENRY TASHMAN, JENNIFER BROCKETT, AND ROCHELLE WILCOX Under the fugitive disentitlement doctrine, those who flee the jurisdiction of the court will lose their right to appeal The magazine of The Los Angeles County LosAngelesLawyerBar Association DEPARTMENTS 10 President’s Page 53 Computer Counselor Your republic…if you can keep it Should attorneys use Macs? BY CHARLES E. MICHAELS BY CAROLE LEVITT AND MARK ROSCH 12 Barristers Tips 60 Closing Argument When a general counsel is your client Step away from the laptop, please BY LAURA D. EACH BY DANA H. SHERIDAN 14 Practice Tips 57 Classifieds Local regulation of alcohol licensees BY STEVEN MEYERS AND STEPHANIE J. STUART 58 Index to Advertisers 52 By the Book 59 CLE Preview The Cybersleuth’s Guide to the Internet Cover photograph: Tom Keller REVIEWED BY JIM ROBINSON As an Expert Witness in Real Estate Litigation, Attorney LAWRENCE H. JACOBSON LosAngelesLawyer VISIT US ON THE INTERNET AT www.lacba.org/lalawyer has consistently been on the Winning Team E-MAIL CAN BE SENT TO [email protected] EDITORIAL BOARD • Real estate and • Lawyer malpractice • Interpretation Chair mortgage brokers’ in business and real of real estate JACQUELINE M. REAL-SALAS standard of care estate transactions documents Articles Coordinator CHAD COOMBS Practicing real estate law in California since 1968. Member, Board of Governors, Beverly Hills Bar Association. Former Vice President-Legal Affairs, California Association of Realtors. California Real Estate Broker since 1978. JERROLD ABELES DANIEL L. ALEXANDER LAWRENCE H. JACOBSON AB, UCLA 1964, JD UCLA SCHOOL OF LAW 1967 HONEY KESSLER AMADO ETHEL W. BENNETT Tel 310.271.0747 Fax 310.271.0757 email [email protected] www.lawrencejacobson.com R. J. COMER LAW OFFICES: 9401 WILSHIRE BLVD. SUITE 1250, BEVERLY HILLS, CA 90212 ANGELA J. DAVIS KERRY A. DOLAN GORDON ENG DANIEL A. FIORE STUART R. FRAENKEL MICHAEL A. GEIBELSON TED HANDEL JEFFREY A. HARTWICK STEVEN HECHT LAWRENCE J. IMEL SCOTT KLOPERT JOHN P. LECRONE PAUL MARKS SEAN MORRIS ELIZABETH MUNISOGLU RICHARD H. NAKAMURA JR. DENNIS PEREZ GARY RASKIN DAMON RUBIN KURT L. SCHMALZ DAVID SCHNIDER HEATHER STERN GRETCHEN D. STOCKDALE TIMOTHY M. STUART KENNETH W. SWENSON CARMELA TAN BRUCE TEPPER PATRIC VERRONE MICHAEL WISE STAFF Publisher and Editor SAMUEL LIPSMAN Senior Editor LAUREN MILICOV Senior Editor ERIC HOWARD Art Director LES SECHLER Director of Design and Production PATRICE HUGHES Advertising Director LINDA LONERO Account Executive MARK NOCKELS Account Executive PATTY MEDINA Marketing and Sales Coordinator TAL EDELSTEIN Advertising Coordinator WILMA TRACY NADEAU Administrative Coordinator MATTY JALLOW BABY LOS ANGELES LAWYER (ISSN 0162-2900) is published monthly, except for a combined issue in July/August and a special issue in the fall, by the Los Angeles County Bar Association, 261 S. Figueroa St., Suite 300, Los Angeles, CA 90012, (213) 896-6503. Periodicals postage paid at Los Angeles, CA and additional mailing offices. Annual subscription price of $14 included in the Association membership dues. Nonmember subscriptions: $28 annually; single copy price: $4 plus handling. Address changes must be submitted six weeks in advance of next issue date. POSTMASTER: ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTED. Send address changes to Los Angeles Lawyer, P. O. Box 55020, Los Angeles CA 90055. Copyright ©2006 by the Los Angeles County Bar Association. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited. Printed by Banta Publications Group, Liberty, MO. Member Business Publications Audit of Circulation (BPA). The opinions and positions stated in signed material are those of the authors and not by the fact of publication necessarily those of the Association or its mem- bers. All manuscripts are carefully considered by the Editorial Board. Letters to the editor are subject to editing. 4 Los Angeles Lawyer October 2006 California Aon Attorneys’ Advantage Insurance Program Building the Foundation for Lawyers’ Protection ONE BLOCK AT A TIME The Sponsored Program is Back... And Better Than Ever • A.M. 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Simply visit the Aon Insurance Solutions website today. www.aonsolutions.com/lacba2 To speak with an Aon representative, call toll free 800-634-9134 Some insurance products in this program may be underwritten by carriers not licensed in California. CA Insurance License #: 0795465 4B1BB006 LOS ANGELES LAWYER IS THE OFFICIAL PUBLICATION OF THE LOS ANGELES COUNTY BAR ASSOCIATION 261 S. Figueroa St., Suite 300, Los Angeles, CA 90012-1881 Telephone 213.627.2727 / www.lacba.org ASSOCIATION OFFICERS: President CHARLES E. MICHAELS President-Elect GRETCHEN M. NELSON Senior Vice President DANETTE E. MEYERS Vice President DON MIKE ANTHONY Treasurer JULIE K. XANDERS Assistant Vice President ALAN K. STEINBRECHER Assistant Vice President LINDA D. BARKER Assistant Vice President JOHN D. VANDEVELDE Immediate Past President EDITH R. MATTHAI Executive Director STUART A. FORSYTH Associate Executive Director/Chief Financial Officer BRUCE BERRA Associate Executive Director/General Counsel W. CLARK BROWN BOARD OF TRUSTEES P. PATRICK ASHOURI NICOLE C. BERSHON GEORGE F. BIRD JR. DANIEL S. BISHOP JOHN M. BYRNE JOHN CARSON ANTHONY PAUL DIAZ STACY L. DOUGLAS ALEXANDER S. GAREEB ANTONIO J. GONZALEZ BRIAN S. KABATECK KARL H. KNICKMEYER JR. ROBERT N. KWAN PHILIP H. LAM DAVID A. LASH LAWRENCE E. LEONE RICHARD A. LEWIS CINDY J. MACHO ELAINE W. MANDEL DAVID F. MICHAIL Local Retired Judge Offers JEFFREY P. PALMER ELLEN A. PANSKY THOMAS F. QUILLING SUSAN ERBURU REARDON $5000 Reward. ROGER D. REYNOLDS KELLY RYAN DEBORAH CRANDALL SAXE MARGARET P. STEVENS KIM TUNG Judge Peter S. Smith (Ret.) recently completed The Magistrates: GAVIN HACHIYA WASSERMAN ERIC A. WEBBER Murder at the Rose Bowl, the eagerly awaited sequel to his AFFILIATED BAR ASSOCIATIONS award-winning novel, The Magistrates. BEVERLY HILLS BAR ASSOCIATION BLACK WOMEN LAWYERS ASSOCIATION OF LOS ANGELES, INC. 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