From Permits to Penalties: A Deep Dive Into Coastal Development Law
Navigating Environmental Restrictions on Alternative Project Delivery for Complex Infrastructure Projects
On-Demand Webinar | Charting a Course for Offshore Wind Energy in California
[WEBINAR] Update on the California Environmental Quality Act: What’s New for 2018
[WEBINAR] Building a Solar Energy Project in 2018
How Trump's Infrastructure Plan Impacts the Energy Industry
BB&K's Charity Schiller Discusses CEQA Baseline
The California Coastal Act (The Act) is a critical piece of legislation impacting countless developers and homeowners within the coastal zones of California. Understanding the intricacies of The Act is pivotal for anyone...more
California stands at a pivotal juncture in 2025, confronting an array of environmental and housing challenges. As usual, the California State Legislature is considering numerous strategies to address these issues. This year’s...more
Governor Gavin Newsom stepped up his intervention on the California Coastal Commission last Monday, chiding the agency for providing “legally erroneous guidance” that threatens to create confusion and delay the rebuilding...more
California Gov. Gavin Newsom on Jan. 12 issued an executive order in response to the devastating wildfires, suspending environmental reviews required under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and permitting...more
On January 12, 2025, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed an executive order (EO N-4-25) to suspend permitting requirements under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and the California Coastal Act, with the...more
SB 684, which took effect on July 1 of this year, provides for streamlined, ministerial processing of certain residential projects in multifamily zoning districts consisting of no more than 10 single-family homes. The law...more
The California Legislature has continued to refine the Density Bonus Law over the years, making important updates to housing laws that impact developers across the state. Recent legislative changes include key updates on...more
California recently enacted two laws—the Offshore Wind Expediting Act (SB 286) and the California Offshore Wind Advancement Act (AB 3)—to accelerate the development of offshore wind energy that could have significant...more
In Pacific Palisades Residents Association, Inc. v. City of Los Angeles et al. (March 8, 2023, Case No. B306658) __ Cal.App.2d __, the Second District issued a strong opinion affirming the trial court’s ruling that a proposed...more
The Court of Appeal held that a writ petition asserting potential CEQA violations concerning the Campus Town project, a significant development project in Monterey County, was untimely because it was filed after the fixed end...more
Legislature passes enrollment cap reprieve for UC Berkeley in CEQA dispute - Courthouse News Service – March 14 - State legislators voted Monday to amend the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) to specify that...more
The California coast offers significant potential for offshore wind development that can help the state reach its renewable energy goals. Developers of wind energy projects located off the California coast will face a number...more
On May 6, 2021, members of Nossaman’s Coastal Development and Environment & Land Use Groups along with some special guest speakers discussed current proposals and pending regulations concerning offshore wind development along...more
Please join members of Nossaman’s Coastal Development and Environment & Land Use Groups on May 6, 2021 from 11:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. PT as we present “Charting a Course for Offshore Wind Energy in California” to discuss...more
A court of appeal has rejected Coastal Act and CEQA challenges to the Coastal Commission’s approval of expansions at the San Diego Convention Center. San Diego Navy Broadway Complex Coalition v. California Coastal Commission,...more
This Fall, the California Coastal Commission (“Commission”) was handed down two significant victories, further cementing its authority and jurisdiction within California coastal zones. These cases demonstrate that, in certain...more
In a 68-page published opinion filed September 27, 2019, the Fourth District Court of Appeal (Div. One) affirmed the trial court’s judgment rejecting a plaintiff group’s numerous challenges to the California Coastal...more
A court challenge to a local agency’s decision to grant a coastal development permit becomes moot when the Coastal Commission accepts an appeal of the decision, the California court of appeal ruled in Fudge v. City of Laguna...more
In Fudge v. City of Laguna (G055711), published on February 13, 2019, the Fourth District Court of Appeal joined the First and Sixth Districts by reaffirming the need for a litigant to wait for the California Coastal...more
On February 13, 2019, the Fourth District Court of Appeal in Fudge v. City of Laguna Beach (Feb. 13, 2019, G055711) __ Cal.App.5th ___, joined the First and Sixth Districts in holding that the Coastal Commission’s acceptance...more
In a published opinion filed February 13, 2019, the Fourth District Court of Appeal (Division 3) reaffirmed the need for a CEQA litigant challenging a coastal development permit to appeal to the Coastal Commission before...more
Land Use and Development Case Summaries (short form) - 1. PLANNING AND ZONING - CENTER FOR COMMUNITY ACTION AND ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE V. CITY OF MORENO VALLEY, 26 Cal. App. 5th 689 (2018) - Based on the language and...more
Welcome to CEQA News You Can Use, a quarterly publication of Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck Natural Resources lawyers. This publication is intended to provide quick, useful bites of CEQA news that we hope can be a resource...more
On May 3–4, 2017, the California Supreme Court heard oral arguments in three cases with significant implications for California land use law. Below we summarize the main issue(s) argued in each matter and possible outcomes....more
In Banning Ranch Conservancy v. City of Newport Beach, et al., the Supreme Court of California held that lead agencies need to expressly disclose and consider the jurisdictional claims and regulatory opinions of responsible...more