Calif. Gov. Brown makes final judicial appointments

Gov. Brown of California announces final judicial appointments during his last few weeks in office. Photo credit: https://www.gov.ca.gov

Gov. Brown of California announces final judicial appointments during his last few weeks in office. Photo credit: https://www.gov.ca.gov

Less than a week before leaving office, California Gov. Jerry Brown made his final judicial appointments, filling 12 open trial court seats.

“Like many of the approximately 600 judicial appointments Brown has made over the last eight years, the latest batch of soon-to-be bench officers is ethnically diverse and includes many women (nine) and Democrats (10),” The Recorder at law.com reports.

The appointees include Clifford Blakely Jr. and Karin Schwartz in Alameda County; John Devine in Contra Costa County; Vedica Puri to the San Francisco Superior Court; Nicole Isger in Santa Clara County; Terrye Davis in Solano County; Heather Mardel Jones in Fresno County; and Maria Cavalluzzi, Gail Killefer, Pamela M. Villanueva, David Yaroslavsky and Jennifer H. Cops in  Los Angeles County.

Brown’s full announcement is posted online.

California shields public sector unions from Supreme Court ruling

California has found itself in a legal standoff against the federal government and Trump administration over a variety of issues, but one could affect union workers who want to decline union membership.

“California Gov. Jerry Brown has signed a law that aims to give public employee unions legal cover from potentially expensive lawsuits demanding that they repay certain fees to workers that the Supreme Court in June determined were unconstitutional,” reports The Fresno Bee.

“The law, which takes effect immediately, says unions and public agencies cannot be held liable for fees that unions collected before the Supreme Court ruling in Janus vs. AFSCME on June 27 of this year.”

The Supreme Court’s 5-4 decision ended a 41-year precedent that allowed public sector unions to collect “fair share” fees from workers who declined to join a labor organization but were still represented, according to the newspaper.

California shields public sector unions from Supreme Court ruling

Photo credit: Jacquelyn Martin Associated Press file photo, 2016, as reported by the Fresno Bee.

Photo credit: Jacquelyn Martin Associated Press file photo, 2016, as reported by the Fresno Bee.

California has found itself in a legal standoff against the federal government and Trump administration over a variety of issues, but one could affect union workers who want to decline union membership.

“California Gov. Jerry Brown has signed a law that aims to give public employee unions legal cover from potentially expensive lawsuits demanding that they repay certain fees to workers that the Supreme Court in June determined were unconstitutional,” reports The Fresno Bee.

“The law, which takes effect immediately, says unions and public agencies cannot be held liable for fees that unions collected before the Supreme Court ruling in Janus vs. AFSCME on June 27 of this year.”

The Supreme Court’s 5-4 decision ended a 41-year precedent that allowed public sector unions to collect “fair share” fees from workers who declined to join a labor organization but were still represented, according to the newspaper.