California Court of Appeal, California Fair Plan Association v. Lara, as Insurance Commissioner, Docket No. B336043

Agency

 

Public Agency’s Quasi-Legislative Acts

 

Judicial Review

 

Petition for a Writ of Ordinary Mandate

 

Administrative Procedure

 

California law

 

 

 

A public agency’s quasi-legislative acts are subject to judicial review by a petition for a writ of ordinary mandate. (Code Civ. Proc., § 1085; Western States Petroleum Assn. v. Superior Court (1995) 9 Cal.4th 559, 566–567; California Manufacturers & Technology Assn. v. Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (2023) 89 Cal.App.5th 756, 769 (California Manufacturers).) Generally, “‘as to quasi-legislative acts of administrative agencies, “judicial review is limited to an examination of the proceedings before the officer to determine whether his action has been arbitrary, capricious, or entirely lacking in evidentiary support, or whether he has failed to follow the procedure and give the notices required by law.”’ [Citations.] When, however, a quasi-legislative act is challenged as inconsistent with the terms or intent of the authorizing statute, the standard of review is different, because the courts are the ultimate arbiters of the construction of a statute.” (California Assn. of Psychology Providers v. Rank (1990) 51 Cal.3d 1, 11, fn. omitted.) This appeal concerns the parties’ competing interpretations of the Basic Property Insurance Law—specifically, the statutory definition of “basic property insurance” set forth in section 10091, subdivision (c)(1). Because this issue is fundamentally one of statutory interpretation, we review the trial court’s denial of the petition de novo. (California Assn. of Psychology Providers v. Rank, supra, 51 Cal.3d at pp. 11–12; 20th Century Ins. Co. v. Garamendi (1994) 8 Cal.4th 216, 271–272; California Manufacturers, supra, 89 Cal.App.5th at p. 769; see also McGill v. Regents of University of California (1996) 44 Cal.App.4th 1776, 1786 in mandamus actions, the reviewing court exercises its independent judgment, performing the same function as the trial court].)

 

 

 

(California Court of Appeal, Dec. 5, 2025, California Fair Plan Association v. Lara, as Insurance Commissioner, Docket No. B336043, Certified for Publication)