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California's top law officer -- Attorney General Jerry Brown -- has raised $86,500 since January to fight an election-year lawsuit accusing him of failing to qualify for the statewide office he now holds. According to state disclosure forms filed Monday, Brown tapped three wealthy business executives -- including the president of Whole Foods -- who gave a combined $45,000 to Brown's Public Integrity Legal Defense Fund. The remaining cash was raised from various interest groups such as dentists, correctional officers and the Indian tribe that owns Thunder Valley Casino near Lincoln. Brown, a Democrat, is the latest politician to open...

Judge tosses suit against Jerry Brown Greg Lucas, Chronicle Sacramento Bureau Saturday, February 10, 2007 (02-10) 04:00 PST Sacramento -- A Superior Court judge tossed out a lawsuit Friday claiming Jerry Brown was not qualified to serve as state attorney general because he had not practiced law for all of the five years prior to his election in November. Superior Court Judge Gail Ohanesian rejected the lawsuit, saying that while Brown had chosen to let his membership in the State Bar of California be "inactive" from 1997 through April 2003, he was still eligible to practice law and had been...

Effort to halt oath of office hinges on legal inactivity of attorney general-elect A group of Republican activists has revamped its lawsuit challenging outgoing Oakland Mayor Jerry Brown's eligibility to serve as state attorney general. The amended complaint filed Wednesday in Sacramento County Superior Court seeks to prevent Brown, 68, from taking the office to which 56 percent of voters elected him Nov. 7. While the original lawsuit, filed Oct. 19, named local voter registrars as defendants in an attempt to get Brown booted from the ballot, the new complaint names Secretary of State Bruce McPherson and state Controller Steve...

California Attorney General-Elect Jerry Brown said yesterday he is looking forward to working with Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to create regulations for the enforcement of California’s new Global Warming legislation. Brown, who defeated state Sen. Chuck Poochigian, R-Fresno, by a decisive margin in Tuesday’s election, told the MetNews he wants regulations that are “practical, defendable and effective.” Noting that the California Department of Justice--which the attorney general heads--has sent six officers to Oakland to help with its crime problem Brown said he is also looking forward to expanding the program to help other cities in need. Poochigian focused on Oakland crime...

A judge on Tuesday ruled that votes for Jerry Brown for attorney general should be counted, delivering a blow to a long-shot bid by Republican officials to have the Democratic Oakland mayor declared ineligible for the office. Brown, the front-runner in the race against state Sen. Chuck Poochigian, R-Fresno, hailed the decision as proof that the Republican lawsuit was a political stunt. It's an "incompetent effort to sabotage the democratic process and the judge summarily threw it out by saying come in after the election," he said in a phone interview. But the five Republican officials suing promised to press...

SACRAMENTO -- A judge Tuesday rejected a request by Republican activists for a preelection hearing on their bid to bar Oakland Mayor Jerry Brown from becoming attorney general if the Democrat wins Nov. 7. Brown supporters declared victory and predicted that the lawsuit, which they called a "political stunt," would evaporate after his election day showdown with state Sen. Chuck Poochigian (R-Fresno). Republican officials say they will continue to press for a hearing after the election to get a fair airing of their challenge to Brown's qualifications to hold office. The activists focused their challenge on Brown's eligibility under a...

In the race for Attorney General of California, Democrat Jerry Brown boasts so much more name recognition than Chuck Poochigian, his Republican opponent, that by most accounts the race is no contest. Before his side job as mayor of Oakland, Brown was California’s secretary of state and governor. He comes from the state's star political dynasty and is heavily favored on November 7. There is, in fact, only one obstacle in his way to becoming attorney general: a major lawsuit alleges Brown should not even be on the ballot. "Brown has a serious problem, he's not eligible," says Tom Del...

The California secretary of state, the attorney general, and the state Democratic Party are seeking to intervene in a lawsuit filed by state Republican Party leaders challenging Democratic candidate Jerry Brown’s eligibility to run for state attorney general, Brown’s attorneys said yesterday. Zachary Wasserman of Wendel, Rosen, Black & Dean in Oakland, representing Brown, told the MetNews that it’s his understanding that attorneys representing plaintiffs Thomas G. Del Beccaro, Contra Costa County Republican Party chairman; Adam C. Abrahms, head of the Los Angeles chapter of the California Republican Lawyers Association; and others, have stipulated that Secretary of State Bruce McPherson...

Statement Regarding Suit Joinder October 23, 2006, 6:00 PM Today we were contacted by the Attorney Generals Office and the Secretary of State. Each expressed that they would seek to join the lawsuit as nominal defendants in an effort to be heard in this matter. Although the Plaintiffs are skeptical of the motives of the existing AG Bill Lockyer, we felt that the interests of justice would dictate that we agree to allow them to join the suit without opposition. We agree that they probably have an interest in the outcome of the suit given that it affects their...

Republican officials filed a lawsuit Thursday seeking to have Democrat Jerry Brown disqualified from the state attorney general race because he doesn't meet a basic requirement for the post. The Brown campaign dismissed the claims as baseless. At issue is a requirement that candidates be admitted to practice before the state Supreme Court for at least five years immediately preceding the election. According to the State Bar's Web site, Brown was admitted to the bar in 1965, went inactive in 1992, reactivated in 1996, went inactive again in 1997 and has been an active member from 2003 to the present....

CAMPAIGN 2006: Attorney General Republicans file lawsuit seeking to disqualify Brown as candidate Filing says he's not active member of bar -- mayor's spokesman calls action 'dirty trick' 10-20) 04:00 PDT Sacramento -- A lawsuit filed Thursday by two GOP party activists claims Oakland Mayor Jerry Brown's failure to maintain an active membership in the state bar for two of the past five years disqualifies him from holding the office of attorney general. State law says candidates for attorney general must have been admitted to practice before the California Supreme Court for "at least five years immediately preceding" election. Brown's...

Republicans are set to file a lawsuit Thursday in Sacramento County Superior Court that seeks to disqualify Oakland Mayor Jerry Brown from holding the state attorney general's office. The suit, to be filed by Tom Del Beccaro, chairman of the Contra Costa County GOP, will assert that Brown, a Democrat, will run afoul of a state law if he wins next month because he reactivated his status in the State Bar in May 2003. Government Code Section 12503 declares that no person is eligible to be attorney general unless "he shall have been admitted to practice before the Supreme Court...

Two Northern California county Republican chairmen intend to sue today to disqualify Democrat Jerry Brown from serving as state attorney general, but Brown's campaign calls it the last gasp of a desperate campaign. "I can't tell you the nuts and bolts of what's behind it but we will have the news conference" at 10:30 a.m. in Sacramento, Contra Costa County GOP chairman Tom Del Beccaro said Wednesday; Yolo County GOP Chair Mark Pruner is involved, too. A posting on Del Beccaro's Web site, www.politicalvanguard.com, said Oakland's mayor "is ineligible to serve as attorney general, because he does not meet the...

OAKLAND - Republicans are set to file a lawsuit Thursday in Sacramento County Superior Court that seeks to disqualify Oakland Mayor Jerry Brown from holding the state attorney general's office. The suit, to be filed by Tom Del Beccaro, chairman of the Contra Costa County GOP, will assert that Brown, a Democrat, will run afoul of a state law if he wins next month because he reactivated his status in the State Bar in May 2003. Government Code section 12503 declares that no person is eligible to be attorney general unless "he shall have been admitted to practice before the...