![(Photo: Peter Foley for Bloomberg News) (Photo: Peter Foley for Bloomberg News)](https://www.comstocksmag.com/sites/main/files/imagecache/tile/main-images/blm_hr_jpeg.246195728_3.jpg?1577874530)
UC Davis Suspends KaloBios Drug Trial After CEO Shkreli’s Arrest
The University of California at Davis and Moffitt Cancer Center in Florida have suspended a planned drug trial sponsored by KaloBios Pharmaceuticals Inc. following the arrest of Chief Executive Officer Martin Shkreli on securities fraud charges.
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Striking Back Against Cyberattacks
California takes collaborative step to stop cyber threats, but is it enough?
From small businesses to big chains and state agencies, no system is 100-percent hacker-proof. But in September, Gov. Jerry Brown took another step to prevent cyberattacks that cause data breaches with an order to create the California Cybersecurity Integration Center (Cal-CSIC).
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Chevron CEO Blasts California Environmental Laws Governor Touts
As Governor Jerry Brown is in Paris urging other political leaders to follow his lead in curbing global warming, the chief executive of California’s largest oil company said the state’s policies “unambiguously raise energy costs and do nothing about greenhouse-gas emissions.”
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California Debt Foe Campaigns to Block Billion-Dollar Bond Deals
Dino Cortopassi, who lives near Stockton, watched as the California city loaded up on debt for amenities like a waterfront ballpark, only to slash services after the community went bankrupt. So he’s spending $4 million in an effort to give the state’s voters more power to curb bond sales.
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I’m Exempt — What Does That Mean?
If you feel you're owed flexibility, you're wrong
I just started a new job where I am an exempt employee. When I started, I was asked to provide a “regular work schedule” that I selected as 7:30 a.m.-4:00 p.m. When I inquired about coming in at 8:30 on Monday and Friday mornings, my employer said they didn’t favor that and as a new employee, I didn’t feel comfortable pushing back. As an exempt employee, what are the rules about standard hours?
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Death Penalty Opponents Dealt Blow as California Victory Tossed
A federal appeals court reversed a dramatic ruling last year that California’s death penalty system is unconstitutional, using decidedly undramatic grounds to do it.
![](https://www.comstocksmag.com/sites/main/files/imagecache/tile/main-images/1115_dept_discourse_nn.jpg?1577874530)
The Helping Hand
Senator Holly Mitchell says a level playing field is the mission behind most of her measures
California State Senator Holly Mitchell can be an imposing figure. While most people presume that term evokes physicality, it is Mitchell’s intellect and passion for defending those she believes have little or no voice in the political process that make her such a formidable figure around the Capitol. We talked with her about her effort to turn that passion into policy.
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A Breakdown of Marijuana Laws
What patients and dispensaries need to know at the federal, state, county and city levels
Sacramento City Council has outlawed outdoor cultivation by legal cannabis patients, citing public safety and smell concerns. Now, added to this ban is the classification of cannabis cultivation as wasted water: Patients are no longer allowed to water legal, indoor plants, yet there is no penalty on those growing equally-legal crops hydroponically indoors, like tomatoes or herbs. What legal right does the council have to single out this particular crop when cultivated in accordance with local and state laws?
![Alexandria Goff opened her own practice right out of law school. She specializes in estate planning, probate and equine law. Alexandria Goff opened her own practice right out of law school. She specializes in estate planning, probate and equine law.](https://www.comstocksmag.com/sites/main/files/imagecache/tile/main-images/1115_ft_law_jc_lead.jpg?1577874530)
The Contemporary Counselor
Law schools are responding to the gap in entrepreneurial education that up-and-coming lawyers need
Traditionally, the path from law student to full-fledged lawyer has been fairly straight-forward: A student starts out with a summer internship at a law firm, graduates and passes the bar exam, then gets hired at a law firm. In a secure and supportive work environment, law graduates can make good money, meet professional mentors and learn the skills required to be a real lawyer. This is the standard route, the one most students embark on every year. But more graduates like Alexandria Goff are choosing to buck tradition in the name of independence.
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Exempt Versus NonExempt: Why You Need to Know the Difference
Misclassifying could cost your business megabucks
You have 10 seconds to name the key differences that determine if an employee is exempt or nonexempt. Ready, set, go. Oh, you couldn’t do it? Color me surprised. Whether you’re an employer or an employee, not knowing the difference between the two is doing yourself a huge disservice, and, as an employer, can land you in some hot – scalding hot – water.