Articles

Late last week, the California Fourth District Court of Appeal issued an unpublished decision in San Diego Unified Port District v. California Coastal Commission. Reversing the trial court, the court of appeal held that the Commission correctly denied the San Diego Port District’s master plan amendment. The amendment would have changed the cu ...

Today, we submitted an amicus brief in the California court of appeal in San Diego Unified Port District v. California Coastal Commission. The case concerns the Port’s attempts to modify its land-use plan for Harbor Island, a popular tourist spot in San Diego Bay. The Commission denied the Port’s requested modification (which would fac ...

For landowners along California’s coast, maintaining the right to build a seawall or other protective device can mean the difference between preserving one’s home or having it fall into the sea during the next winter storm. The California Coastal Act recognizes the importance of preserving landowners’ rights to protect their prope ...

The California Coastal Act was designed to preserve coastal resources and public beach access while also protecting private property rights.  In furtherance of the last goal, the Coastal Act protects the right of property owners to build seawalls and other devices to protect their homes from storms and erosions.  Yet, over the past few years, &# ...

Surfrider Foundation has been battling Vinod Khosla in the California courts for several years, trying to force him to allow the public to cross his private property and use his private beach. We’ve written before about the myths and realities of that dispute–of which there are many. In August, a unanimous court of appeal panel … ...

Suit filed challenging Wisconsin’s illegal butter rule Briefing complete in challenge to California’s mining ban Opposition to California proposal to remove protection for homes Supreme Court requires return of seized property Oral argument held in Trinity Lutheran Suit filed challenging Wisconsin’s illegal butter rule We filed th ...

Last week, I had the pleasure to present on a panel addressing coastal access at a conference marking the 40th anniversary of the passage of the California Coastal Act. My remarks focused on the actual and potential conflicts between the Act (and how the Coastal Commission administers it) and the constitutionally protected rights of coastal … ...

In the past fortnight, we’ve seen two interesting developments in pending bills in the California Legislature to expand the authority of the California Coastal Commission.  Assembly Bill 203, proposed by rookie Assemblyman (and former commissioner) Mark Stone, would have forbidden the issuance of any new coastal development permit if the sit ...

Earlier this week, the California Supreme Court ruled in Pacific Palisades Bowl Mobile Estates v. City of Los Angeles that a mobile home park owner must obtain a coastal development permit under the California Coastal Act if he wishes to convert his park from tenant occupancy to resident ownership.  Pacific Legal Foundation submitted an amicus br ...