News & Insights

Hassard Bonnington LLP joins the family of Renee Richards in mourning her death on March 9, 2025. Renee passed away after a short battle with lung cancer. We will miss her wisdom, guidance, spirit, creativity, energy and humor. She was a vital and vibrant force in the office and in court. She was a member of San Francisco-Marin Lawyer Referral and Information Service Committee and served as a vital member on the committee for over twenty years. Renee was a leader, an inspiration and just an unbelievably amazing person. She was an excellent trial attorney and provided invaluable guidance and advice to psychiatrists and other physicians during her career. She took great pride in her expertise in the area of patient privacy. HB was richer with Renee’s contributions and words cannot express how much we miss her. Renee leaves behind her wonderful husband John and her treasured son, James. The loss of Renee is felt deeply by all at HB, and especially by those of us with innumerable memories of legal prowess, sage advice and emotional strength that Renee portrayed on a daily basis.

Hassard Bonnington is excited to announce that our 2024 Law Fellows, Jonathan Chernoguz and Chris Blackburn have recently passed the California Bar Exam, and have joined HB as Associate Attorneys.Both Jonathan and Chris completed their legal studies at the University of California College of the Law, San Francisco, with concentrations in health law and policy. They have each proven to be valued assets to the HB team as they worked closely with our attorneys in various legal research, writing, and discovery projects.‍

Alexandra Seibert, Esq., senior associate at Hassard Bonnington, had an extraordinary win in federal court. In a complex case involving civil rights claims, parental rights claims and implicated personal autonomy/identity rights, Alex’s legal writing skills resulted in a complete dismissal of the case during the second round of Motions to Dismiss. […]

Yaffee v. Skeen (Third Appellate District, Case No. C097746, 11/25/2024) This lawsuit arose out of back and neck injuries the plaintiff suffered in a “rear-end” automobile accident on June 16, 2015. He did not immediately seek treatment in an emergency room. On July 7, 2015, his back pain worsened, and he sought treatment in the UC Davis emergency department. However, he was not admitted to the hospital at that time but did require extensive medical treatment over the next several months and years. […]

HB is excited to announce Brian Davies has joined our team as a Senior Associate. Brian has extensive experience in both litigation and medical malpractice with a specialty handling arbitration matters.

McCurry v. Singh (2024 WL 4141976) is a recent decision in which the Court of Appeal affirmed summary judgment in favor of the defendant doctor (Dr. Singh) on the ground there was no physician-patient relationship between the doctor and the deceased patient. […]

There are some common pitfalls with physician recruitment agreements, particularly in outlying, rural communities where newly licensed physicians are not likely to set up a practice without incentives. Problems can arise when a recruited physician turns out to be less successful than anticipated and the contractual relationship deteriorates. […]

Ms. Hansen-Arenas spoke on the “Legal Barriers to Reproductive Medicine Post-Dobbs” to provide insight into the impact and evolving implications of the Supreme Court’s 2022 reversal of Roe v. Wade on the healthcare industry in California and beyond. Her presentation covered a broad overview of the history of reproductive choice in this country, the changes […]

K.T. v. The Regents of the University of California: Demurrer to minor’s medical malpractice complaint sustained without leave to amend – statute of limitations not tolled due to “intentional concealment."

Navigating family law issues alongside medical concerns is always a difficult process for medical professionals. In Geffner v. Board of Psychology, 2024 WL 834986, the Court of Appeal reversed the trial court’s denial of Dr. Geffner’s petition for writ of administrative mandamus after the California Board of Psychology revoked Dr. Geffner’s license for failing to […]