Kristin Perry, et al v. Arnold Schwarzenegger, et al

Filing 359

Filed (ECF) Appellee City and County of San Francisco Correspondence: Letter to court attaching courtesy amici briefs. Date of service: 05/13/2011 [7752316] --[COURT UPDATE: Replaced PDF of letter at the request of counsel (to correct signature). Resent NDA. 05/13/2011 by DB] (MML)

No. S189476
IN THE SUPREME COURT OF CALIFORNIA
KRISTIN M. PERRY, et al., Plaintiffs and Respondents,
CITY AND COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO, Plaintiff, Intervenor and
Respondent
V.

EDMUND G. BROWN, JR., as Governor, etc., et al., Defendants;
DENNIS HOLLINGSWORTH, et al., Defendants, Intervenors and
Appellants.

Question Certified from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
The Honorable Stephen R. Reinhardt, Michael Daly Hawkins and N. Randy
Smith, Circuit Judges, Presiding
Ninth Circuit Case No. 10-16696

AMICUS BRIEF OF LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS OF
CALIFORNIA FILED IN SUPPORT OF PLAINTIFFSRESPONDENTS AND CITY AND COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO

GREINES, MARTIN, STEIN & RICHLAND LLP
Robin Meadow (SBN 51126)
Cynthia E. Tobisman (SBN 197983)
5900 Wilshire Boulevard, 12th Floor
Los Angeles, California 90036
Telephone: [phone] /Facsirnile: [phone]

Attorneys for Amicus Curiae
LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS OF CALIFORNIA

APPLICATION BY LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS OF
CALIFORNIA TO FILE AMICUS CURIAE BRIEF IN SUPPORT
OF PLAINTIFFS-RESPONDENTS AND CITY AND COUNTY OF
SAN FRANCISCO
The League of Women Voters of California applies for leave to file
the attached amicus curiae brief.
Interests of the League:

Formed in 1920, the League is a nonpartisan political organization
that encourages informed and active participation in government, works to

increase understanding of major public policy issues, and influences public
policy through education and advocacy. It does not support or oppose any
political party or any candidate.
The League has a dual mission: educating voters and the community
at large, and advocating for changes in public policy. In its education role,
the League strives to present information in a completely neutral manner.
The goal is to provide voters with the information they need to make their
own decisions and to create a well-informed community in general. In its
advocacy role, the League bases all its work on positions that are arrived at
through member education, discussion and consensus.
In both its voter education and advocacy roles, the League has been

deeply involved in the initiative process. In educating the public, the
League provides nonpartisan information about all propositions on the
California ballot. In its advocacy role, the League has actively supported
particular initiatives and opposed others. In addition, the League has
conducted two statewide member studies of the initiative and referendum

process in California and, based on these studies, supports citizens’ right
of direct legislation through the initiative and referendum process. The
League has advocated in the legislature for measures that would improve
the initiative process and against measures that would undermine its rational
and appropriate operation.
Accordingly, the League respectfully requests permission to file the
attached arnicus curiae brief, which discusses matters critical to the
operation of California government and the initiative process.
Rule 8.520(1) Requirements
Counsel has read the parties’ briefs on the merits and believes that
the proposed amicus brief will assist the Court in deciding the issue
presented. The proposed brief from an organization concerned with
vindicating the broader interests in functional government summarizes the
history of the initiative power and discusses the wide-ranging practical
problems with permitting private individuals to represent the interests of
the State, rather than speaking on behalf of their own private interests
(assuming they can establish such particularized interests).

11

No party, counsel for a party, or anybody other than counsel for
amici has authored the proposed brief in whole or in part or funded the
preparation of the brief.
Dated: April 29, 2011
Respectfully submitted,
GREINES, MARTIN, STEIN & RICHLAND LLP
Robin Meadow
Cynthia E. Tobisman

By________
Cynthia E. Tobisman
Attorneys for Amicus Curiae
LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS OF CALIFORNIA

111

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page

APPLICATION BY LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS OF
CALIFORNIA TO FILE AMICUS CURIAE BRIEF IN
SUPPORT OF PLAINTIFFS-RESPONDENTS AND CITY
AND COUI’4TY OF SAN FRANCISCO

i

INTRODUCTION

1

ARGUMENT

2

A.

B.

C.

As Conceived By The Progressives, The Initiative
Power Is The Electorate’s Check On The Legislature,
While The Recall Power Is Electorate’s Check On The
Executive Branch.

2

The Initiative Power Has Resulted In Rampant
Micromanagement Of The Legislative Process.

4

Permitting Initiative Proponents To Speak On Behalf
Of The State Would Render Litigation Over Initiative
Measures Unworkable.

7

1.

2.

Initiative measures regularly result in litigation,
requiring the courts and the executive branch to
harmonize conflicting laws and resolve questions
of constitutionality.

7

In order for litigation over initiative measures to
remain workable, the State must speak with
one voice.

10

Permitting initiative proponents—or any
elector who disagrees with the Attorney
General’s litigation decisions—to speak
on behalf of the State is a recipe for
confusion.

10

a.

iv

TABLE OF CONTENTS
(Continued)

b.

There are avenues for initiative proponents
to speak when they believe the Attorney
General is failing to defend a law, but
those avenues require the proponents to
speak in their own voices.

Page

12

CONCLUSION

14

CERTIFICATION

15

V

TABLE OF AUTHORITIES
Page
STATE CASES

Environmental Protection Information Center Inc. v. Maxxam Corp.
(1992) 4 Cal.App.4th 1373

13

Raven v. Deukmejian
(1990) 52 Cal.3d 336

8

State of Calfornia v. Superior Court
(1986) 184 Cal.App.3d 394

12

Strauss v. Horton
(2009) 46 Cal.4th 364

3, 4, 9

Styring v. City ofSanta Ana
(1944)64 Cal.App.2d 12

13

STATE STATUTES

California Constitution
Article II,

§

2, 11

8(a)

Code of Civil Procedure
Section 1085(a)

13

LAW REVIEW ARTICLES AND OTHER AUTHORITIES

Allswang, The Initiative and Referendum in Ca1U’ornia 1898-1998
(2000) p. 13

4

Butler & Ranney, Theory, Referendums: A Comparative Study of
Practice and Theory (1978)

7

Eule, Judicial Review ofDirect Democracy (1989) 99 Yale L.J. 1503

vi

4, 10

TABLE OF AUTHORITIES
(Continued)

Page

LAW REVIEW ARTICLES AND OTHER AUTHORITIES

George, Golden Gate University School ofLaw ChiefJustice
Ronald M George Distinguished Lecture Access to Justice
in Times ofFiscal Crisis (2009) 40 Golden Gate U.L.Rev. 1

6

George, The Perils ofDirect Democracy: The Calfornia Experience
(Oct. 1, 2009)

6

Grodin, In Pursuit ofJustice (1989)

6

Johnson, Gov. of California, Inaugural Address (Jan. 3, 1911)

3

Klatchko, The Progressive Origins of the 2003 Calfornia
Gubernatorial Recall (2004) 35 McGeorge L.Rev. 701

3, 13

Lee, Calfornia, Referendums: A Comparative Study ofPractice
and Theory (Butler & Ranney edits) (1978) pp. 88-89

6

Levinson & Stern, Ballot Box Budgeting in Calfornia: The Bane of
the Golden State or an Overstated Problem? (2010)
37 Hastings Const.L.Q. 689

5

Manheim & Howard, Symposium on the Calfornia Initiative Process:
A Structural Theory of the Initiative Power in Calfornia
3,5,6
(1998)31 LoyolaL.A.L.Rev. 1165
Office of the Secretary of State, A History of Calfornia Initiatives
(Dec. 2002), pp. 11-13

5

Ooley, State Governance: An Overview of the History of Constitutional
Provisions Dealing with State Governance (1996), p. 6, fn. 16

5

Stein, The Calf’ornia Constitution and the Counter-Initiative
Quagmire (1993) 21 Hastings Const.L.Q. 143
The Limits ofPopular Sovereignty: Using the Initiative Power
to Control Legislature Procedure (1986) 74 Cal.L.Rev. 491
vii

4, 9, 10

2

TABLE OF AUTHORITIES
(Continued)

Page

LAW REVIEW ARTICLES AND OTHER AUTHORITIES

The “Overlooked Hermaphrodite” of Campaign Finance.
Candidate-Controlled Ballot Measure Committees in
Calfornia Politics (2007) 95 Cal.L.Rev. 123
Van Cleave, A Constitution in Conflict: The Doctrine of
Independent State Grounds and the Voter (1993)
21 Hastings Const.L.Q. 95
De Witt, The Progressive Movement: A Non-Partisan,
Comprehensive Discussion of Current Tendencies in
American Politics (1915) pp. 213-215

viii

4

5 7, 8, 9

3

INTRODUCTION

The path that Intervenors present is an invitation to chaos.
The Court should decline to take it.
Because there is no explicit right in the California Constitution for
initiative proponents to act on behalf of the State (see Plaintiffs’ Ans. Br. 919; City of S.F. Ans. Br. 7-32), the question before this Court is whether,
as Intervenors argue, “constitutional necessity” requires that they be able to
do so (see Intervenors’ Opening Br. 24). The answer must be no.
Especially in light of the initiative system’s legislative excesses,
the executive and judicial branches of government play essential roles in
ensuring that California’s laws remain workable and constitutional. Those
roles will become impossible to discharge if, as Intervenors advocate,
initiative proponents can stand in the shoes of the State if they disagree with
the State’s litigation decisions.
The Constitution gives no special status to the official proponents of
an initiative. Accordingly, if Intervenors may speak on behalf of the State,
there is no principled reason why any elector who supported the initiative
cannot do the same.
In order for California’s government to function in an orderly
manner, the State must speak with one voice in cases involving initiative
measures. This means that initiative proponents cannot be permitted to
speak on behalf of anyone other than themselves.

1

ARGUMENT
A.

As Conceived By The Progressives, The Initiative Power
Is The Electorate’s Check On The Legislature, While
The Recall Power Is Electorate’s Check On The Executive
Branch.

By its terms, the initiative power is “the power of the electors to
propose statutes and amendments to the Constitution and to adopt or reject
them.” (Cal. Const., art. II,

§

8(a).) As the City of San Francisco has

already demonstrated, ample case law makes clear that this is a legislative
power. (City of S.F. Ans. Br. 16-17.)
The history of the initiative process supports this conclusion.
In 1911, Governor Hiram Johnson called a special election and the
Legislature placed the initiative, referendum, and recall proposals on
the ballot. (See comment, The Limits ofPopular Sovereignty: Using the
Initiative Power to Control Legislature Procedure (1986) 74 Cal. L.Rev.
491, 502-508.) This effort was the culmination of the Progressive Party’s
reform movement to wrest control of the political process from private
interests, primarily the railroads. (Ibid.) To achieve this goal, Governor
Johnson’s proposals gave the electorate tools to check abuses by the
legislative and executive branches of government.
The Initiative Power. The ballot materials in the campaign to ratify

the initiative proposal make clear that the initiative power was designed to
act as the check on the Legislature. They described the initiative power:
“It is not intended and will not be a substitute for legislation, but will
constitute that safeguard which the people should retain for themselves

2

to supplement the work ofthe legislature by initiating those measures which
the legislature either viciously or negligently fails or refuses to enact; and
to hold the legislature in check, and to veto or negative such measures as it
may viciously or negligently enact.” (Manheim & Howard, Symposium on
the California Initiative Process: A Structural Theory of the Initiative
Power in California (1998) 31 Loyola L.A. L.Rev. 1165, 1189 [Structural
Theory ofInitiative Power], citing Const. Amend. No. 22, in California
Ballot Pamphlet, Special Election (Oct. 11, 1911) (Comments of Lee C.
Gates, Senator, 34th District, and William C. Clark, Assemblyman, 59th
District), emphasis added.) Thus, “Hiram Johnson and his allies in
the Progressive movement sought to restore the connection between
government and the majority will by allowing the people to bypass an
unresponsive Legislature and enact their own legislation.” (Strauss v.
Horton (2009) 46 Cal.4th 364, 489 (cone. & dis. opn. of Moreno, J.).)
The Recall Power. With respect to the executive branch, the recall

power was the proposed vehicle to check abuses. (See Klatchko, The
Progressive Origins of the 2003 Calfornia Gubernatorial Recall (2004)
35 McGeorge L.Rev. 701, 703, citing Parke De Wift, The Progressive
Movement: A Non-Partisan, Comprehensive Discussion of Current
Tendencies in American Politics (1915) pp. 213-215.) As Governor
Johnson described the recall power, it was “the precautionary measure by
which a recalcitrant official can be removed.” (Id., citing Hiram Johnson,
Gov. of California, Inaugural Address (Jan. 3, 1911)
<http ://www. governors .library.ca. gov/address/23 -hj ohnson0 1 .html> (as of
Apr.28, 2011).)

3

Thus, the Progressives proposed a regime in which the initiative
power permitted the electorate to enact laws, while the recall power
permitted the electorate to remove public officials who failed to enforce
laws.
There is no indication that the Progressives intended to subvert
the judiciary’s role in reviewing the constitutionality of initiative measures.
(See Strauss, supra, 46 Cal.4th at p. 489 (conc. & dis. opn. of Moreno, J.).)
Nor is there any indication that they intended to subvert the executive
branch’s institutional roles, including its right to make decisions regarding
whether or how to defend a law against constitutional challenge. (See City
of S.F. Ans. Br. 19-21.)
B.

The Initiative Power Has Resulted In Rampant
Micromanagement Of The Legislative Process.

California voters have been busy at the ballot box ever since they
approved the slate of Progressive reforms in 1911. “A comparison of the
phone book sized ballot pamphlets of recent years with the more moderate
epistles often or twenty years ago indicates how rapidly the amount of
initiatives has increased.” (Stein, The California Constitution and the
Counter-Initiative Quagmire (1993) 21 Hastings Const. LQ. 143, 150
[Cal. Const. and Counter-Initiative Quagmire], citing Eule, Judicial Review
ofDirect Democracy (1989) 99 Yale L.J. 1503, 1506-1508, fn. 18.)1

Between 1912 and 2002, 1,187 initiatives were drafted and
circulated. (Comment, The “Overlooked Hermaphrodite” of Campaign
Finance: Candidate-Controlled Ballot Measure Committees in Calfornia
Politics (2007) 95 Cal. L.Rev. 123, 129 citing Allswang, The Initiative and
Referendum in Calfornia 1898-1998 (2000) p. 13.) Between 1912 and
2008, 325 initiatives qualified for the ballot, and ill were approved by the
4

By 1948 the Constitution had grown from 7300 words to 95,000
2
words. (Structural Theory ofInitiative Power, supra, 31 Loyola L.A.
L.Rev. at p. 1189 citing Ooley, State Governance: An Overview of the
History of Constitutional Provisions Dealing with State Governance (1996),
p. 6, fn. 16 <http ://www.californiacitvfinance.cornJCCRChistorv.pdf
[as of Apr. 28, 2011].)
The frequency of initiative measures has increased significantly over
the last several decades. The number of initiatives qualified for the ballot
rose from 10 in the 1960s to 24 in the 1970s, and then to 54 in the 1980s.
During the 1990s, California saw 61 qualified initiatives out of the nearly
400 circulated. (Office of the Secretary of State, A History of California
Initiatives (Dec. 2002), pp. 11-13 <http ://www.sos .ca.gov/elections/init_
history.pdf [as of Apr. 28, 2011].)
While the Progressives intended the initiative process to avoid
the domination of the legislature by powerful interest groups, interest
groups now dominate the initiative process. (Van Cleave, A Constitution in
Conflict: The Doctrine of Independent State Grounds and the Voter (1993)
21 Hastings Const. L.Q. 95, 121 citing Grodin, In Pursuit OfJustice (1989)
& Lee, Calfornia, Referendums: A Comparative Study ofPractice and

voters. (Levinson & Stem, Ballot Box Budgeting in Calfornia: The Bane
of the Golden State or an Overstated Problem? (2010) 37 Hastings Const.
L.Q. 689, 694-695; Office of the Secretary of State, A History ofCaflfornia
Initiatives (Dec. 2002), pp. 10-13
<http ://www.sos .ca. gov/elections/init hictor .pdf.)
The Constitution has shrunk somewhat since then, principally due to the
deletion of 14,500 words providing for the San Francisco Panama-Pacific
Exposition. (See, supra, 31 LoyolaL.A. L.Rev. atp. 1189, fn. 175.)
2

5

Theory (Butler & Ranney edits) (1978) PP. 88-89.) For example, the
insurance industry alone spent 88 million dollars on California initiatives
in 1988—more than George Bush spent on his entire presidential campaign.
(Structural Theory ofIn itiative Power, supra, 31 Loyola L.A. L.Rev. at
p. 1189.)
Chief Justice George described the result: “Initiatives have
enshrined a myriad of provisions into California’s constitutional charter,
including a prohibition on the use of gill nets and a measure regulating the
confinement of barnyard fowl in coops. This last constitutional amendment
was enacted on the same 2008 ballot that amended the state Constitution to
override the California Supreme Court’s decision recognizing the right of
same-sex couples to marry. Chickens gained valuable rights in California
on the same day that gay men and lesbians lost them.” (Remarks of Ronald
M. George, Chief Justice, The Perils ofDirect Democracy: The Calfornia
Experience, address at induction into American Academy of Arts and
Sciences (Oct. 1, 2009) <http://jurist.law.piH.edu/pdf/aaspeech.pdfy [as of
Apr. 28, 20111 (George Remarks).)
Thus, as one commentator concluded: “Hiram Johnson would not
recognize the electoral device he begat nearly a century ago. It is the
driving force in California politics and lawmaking. In major policy areas,
it has supplanted the legislature, not checked it...

.“

(Structural Theory of

Initiative Power, supra, 31 Loyola L.A. L.Rev. at p. 1190; see also George,
Golden Gate University School ofLaw ChiefJustice Ronald M George
Distinguished Lecture Access to Justice in Times ofFiscal Crisis (2009)
40 Golden Gate U. L.Rev. 1, 13 [“I doubt that Hiram Johnson and the other
progressives who saw the initiative power as a means to combat the power
6

of the railroad barons who controlled our state’s government in an earlier
era would recognize or approve of where that power has brought us”).)
C.

Permitting Initiative Proponents To Speak On Behalf
Of The State Would Render Litigation Over Initiative
Measures Unworkable.
1.

Initiative measures regularly result in litigation,
requiring the courts and the executive branch to
harmonize conflicting laws and resolve questions of
constitutionality.

The frequent use of initiatives has yielded frequent litigation.
This litigation is a natural outgrowth of several problems inherent in the
initiative process. These same problems make it essential for the judiciary
and the executive branch to be able to perform their institutional roles,
including harmonizing the state’s laws and addressing issues of
constitutionality.
First, “[u]nlike elected representatives, whose full-time employment
includes analyzing proposed legislation, members of the electorate may find
it difficult to devote much time to examining the voter handbook containing
the proposed new law.” (Constitution in Conflict, supra, 21 Hastings
Const. L.Q. at p. 120, citing Butler & Ranney, Theory, Referendums:
A Comparative Study ofPractice and Theory (1978).) As a result, voters
sometimes enact initiative measures that are poorly conceived and poorly
drafted, requiring courts to step in to make sense of them and to harmonize
them with other laws. In this context, the executive branch must make

7

decisions regarding how to defend and enforce the measures that the voters
have enacted without a full understanding of their potential complexity.
Second, the initiative process does not possess the same checks as
representative government—i.e, the opportunity to deliberate, debate,
revise, and compromise before a vote on the final version of a bill. (See
Constitution in Conflict, supra, 21 Hastings Const. L.Q. at pp. 120-121.)
Instead, once the Attorney General has certified a measure, there may be
only limited changes to the language of the initiative. (Ibid.) Moreover,
California is “unique among all American jurisdictions in prohibiting its
legislature, without express voter approval, from amending or repealing
even a statutory measure enacted by the voters, unless the Initiative measure
itself specifically confers such authority upon the legislature.” (George
Remarks, supra.) Again, the result is that the judiciary and the executive
branches are left to smooth the rough edges in initiative measures and to
harmonize them with existing laws.
Third, “constitutional change by voter initiative allows for
unchecked ‘majority tyranny,” since “popular will may restrict unpopular
rights.” (Constitution in Conflict, supra, 21 Hastings Const. L.Q. at p. 121.)
Nothing in the Constitution precludes voters from attempting to enact laws
that constrict the rights of disfavored minorities, such as criminal
defendants. (Ibid.; see also Raven v. Deukmejian (1990) 52 Cal.3d 336
[voters enacted measure that would have vested in the United States
Supreme Court all interpretive power as to certain fundamental procedural
rights of criminal defendants under the state Constitution].)
Yet, “[wihile the majority may vote to curtail unpopular rights, they
may do so only to the extent that such changes do not fall below the level of
8

protection provided for in the Federal Constitution.” (Constitution in
Conflict, supra, 21 Hastings Const. L.Q. at p. 122.) It thus falls to the
judicial and executive branches to check exercises of initiative powers that
transgress minority rights. Because the Attorney General has
a constitutional obligation to uphold the federal constitution (see City of
S.F. Ans. Br. 27), he or she must weigh enforcement decisions against the
backdrop of the federal constitution. And because the judiciary is charged
with “protecting persecuted minorities from the majority will” (Strauss, at
p. 489 (conc. & dis. opn. of Moreno, J.) it must decide critical questions of
constitutionality.
Fourth, the initiative process frequently requires the judicial and
executive branches to resolve inconsistencies between contradictory
initiative measures that purport to govern the same subject matter. This is
so because the problems of the initiative process have been magnified by
the development in recent years of a political strategy that the Progressives
surely never foresaw: placing two conflicting initiatives, or counterinitiatives, on the ballot simultaneously. “While the subject matter of
initiatives have always had some overlap, in the mid-1980s, groups started
strategically qualifying measures that explicitly contradicted another
measure.” (Cal. Const. and Counter-Initiative Quagmire, supra,
21 Hastings Const. L .Q. at p. 155.) The reason for this phenomenon is
simple: “While the one-half to one million dollar price tag for drafling and
qualifying an initiative measure may be daunting to citizen groups and
grassroots organizations, for corporations or industry groups opposed to
an initiative measure, the cost of qualifying a counter-initiative is a bargain

9

compared to spending ten to twenty million dollars in contributions for
advertising to defeat an initiative.” (Ibid.)
The result is that when two or more initiatives with contrary
provisions receive a majority of votes, “courts must decide which of the
provisions of the various measures will become law.” (Id. at pp. 145-146.)
Courts are tasked with preventing unworkable laws—laws that the
Legislature cannot touch—from going into effect. (Judicial Review of
Direct Democracy, supra, 99 Yale L.J. at pp. 1506-1507.)
2.

In order for litigation over initiative measures
to remain workable, the State must speak with
one voice.

Given frequent and complex litigation over initiative measures,
the ground rules must be clear. Most important, in order for litigation over
initiative measures to be practicable, the State must speak with a single
voice: The courts must know whom to listen to. Fortunately, the
constitutional framework dictates that there is a single voice—the Attorney
General. (See Plaintiffs’ Ans. Br. 9-10; City of S.F. Ans. Br. 8-10.)
a.

Permitting initiative proponents—or any
elector who disagrees with the Attorney
General’s litigation decisions—to speak on
behalf of the State is a recipe for confusion.

Intervenors argue that “the official proponents of an initiative have
authority under California law to assert the People’s interest in the validity
of that initiative when it is challenged in litigation, at least when public
officials refuse to defend it.” (Opening Br. 15.)
10

But this raises more questions than it answers, including these:
1. Can anyone who wants to speak on behalf of the State?
The Constitution grants no special status to initiative proponents. Rather,
the initiative power is “is the power of the electors to propose [and vote on)
statutes and amendments to the Constitution.” (Cal. Const., art. II, §8(a),
emphasis added.) Thus, if the official proponents can speak on behalf of
the State, there is no principled reason why every other “elector” cannot
assume the same mantel. And if anyone—and everyone—can speak on
behalf of the State, the resulting cacophony will make it impossible to
manage litigation over initiative measures.
2. What does “refuse to defend it” mean? Does “refus[a]l” mean
only the complete failure to defend, or could any official proponent—or

other elector—”assert the People’s interest” whenever the Attorney General
provides only a limited defense to the validity of an initiative? And what
happens if the proponents of an initiative disagree among themselves
regarding whether the Attorney General is adequately defending an
initiative measure, or how it should be defended—who then would speak
for the State? (See also City of S.F. Ans. Br. 27-30.)
3. Who decides and how does the determination get made, that
a given initiative measure is being left undefended or inadequately
defended, such that its supporters have the right to step in to speak on
behalf of the State? Does any elector who might disagree with the Attorney
General’s enforcement decisions have the right to petition a court for
a declaration that the Attorney General has unjustifiably refused to defend
an initiative or is taking an inappropriate position in litigation? And if this
is the procedure, why doesn’t this violate separation of powers principles?
11

(Cf. State of California v. Superior Court (1986) 184 Cal.App.3d 394, 397398 [trial court could not order Attorney General to be joined as a defendant
in a case involving defense of a law; “We believe the trial court has
exceeded its discretion, if not its powers, in compelling the Attorney
General’s participation. Our decision to liberate the State here is influenced
both by the lack of any specific authority for the court to order the State’s
participation and also by the doctrine of separation of powers”J.)
Intervenors argue that allowing initiative proponents to act on behalf
of the State “when public officials will not do so is necessary to preserve
the People’s initiative power,

.

.

.“

(Intervenors’ Opening Br. 16.) But

given the practical problems outlined above, the cure that Intervenors
propose is worse than the disease. Permitting initiative proponents to speak
for the State would compound the problems wrought by a runaway initiative
process and hamper the ability of the courts to resolve litigation over
initiative measures.
b.

There are avenues for initiative proponents
to speak when they believe the Attorney
General is failing to defend a law, but those
avenues require the proponents to speak in
their own voices.

This is not to say there is no recourse for initiative proponents who
believe the Attorney General has failed to discharge his or her constitutional
duty to defend an initiative.
Most important is the recall power to “fire” state officials who make
litigation decisions with which they disagree. Indeed, this is exactly what

12

the Progressives had in mind as a check on executive branch abuses.
(See

§ A, ante; see also The Progressivist Origins of the 2003 California

Gubernatorial Recall, supra, 35 MeGeorge L.Rev. at p. 705 [noting that
1911 ballot pamphlet materials advocated passage of recall by stressing that
if the people had the right “to hire” public servants then they must also have
the right “to fire” them if they were “unsatisfactory”].)
Moreover, in cases where an initiative proponent—or any other
elector—believes that the Attorney General has wrongly declined to defend
a law on the ground that it is unconstitutional, the proponent may petition
the courts for a writ of mandate compelling the Attorney General to defend
3
the law. (See Code of Civ. Proc.,

§

1085, subd. (a) [writ of mandate lies to

compel performance of”a duty resulting from an office”]; Environmental
Protection Information Center, Inc. v. Maxxam Corp. (1992) 4 Cal.App.4th

1373, 1380 [writ of mandate “lies to compel the performance of a legal duty
imposed on a government official”]; Slyring v. City ofSanta Ana (1944)
64 Cal.App.2d 12, 16 [“A duty resting on a public official which the law
requires him to perform may be enforced by a writ of mandate”].) In that
context, the courts can decide the question of constitutionality. (See City
of S.F. Ans. Br. 26, fn. 12.) If the courts conclude that, contrary to
the Attorney General’s opinion, a given law is constitutional, the
Attorney General could be compelled to defend it. But even then,
the Attorney General would be doing so in his or her own voice, avoiding
the perils described above.
The Court of Appeal and this Court rejected a voter’s attempt in this
case to compel the Attorney General to file a notice of appeal in the
Ninth Circuit in order to challenge the district court’s conclusion that
Proposition 8 was unconstitutional. (See City of S.F. Ans. Br. 5.)
13

Finally, in any instance where an initiative proponent has an actual
interest in the initiative measure, he or she can intervene to vindicate that
4
interest.
The bottom line: The proponents of an initiative may speak, but they
must speak in their own voice.
CONCLUSION

The Court’s decision on the critical standing questions posed by this
case will have a wide-ranging impact on litigation across the state. The rule
this Court announces will apply not just to high-profile cases like this one,
but to cases involving initiative measures touching all matters of California
life, from budgeting to criminal laws to gill nets. Because intractable
practical problems will result if the Court adopts Intervenors’ position that
initiative proponents may act on behalf of the State when they disagree with
the Attorney General’s enforcement decisions, the Court should reject it.
Dated: April 29, 2011
Respectfully submitted,
GRE1NES, MARTIN, STEIN & RICHLAND LLP
Robin Meadow
Cynthia E. Tobisman
By_________
Cynthia E. Tobisman
Attorneys for Amicus Curiae
LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS OF CALIFORNIA
We agree with the Plaintiffs and the City of San Francisco that the
Intervenors cannot show a particularized interest in this case sufficient to
create Article III standing. (See City of S.F. Ans. Br. 47; Plaintiffs’ Ans.
Br. 25.)
14

CERTIFICATION

Pursuant to Rules 8.204(c)(l) & (4) and 8.520(c) of the California
Rules of Court, I certify that this APPLICATION OF LEAGUE OF
WOMEN VOTERS OF CALIFORNIA FOR LEAVE TO FILE
AMICUS CURIAE BRIEF IN SUPPORT OF PETITIONER;
[PROPOSED] AMICUS CURIAE BRIEF contains 3,882 words, not

including the tables of contents and authorities, the caption page, signature
blocks, or this Certification page.

Dated: April 29, 2011

Cynthia E. Tobisman

15

PROOF OF SERVICE
STATE OF CALIFORNIA, COUNTY OF LOS ANGELES

I am employed in the County of Los Angeles, State of California. I
am over the age of 18 and not a party to the within action; my business
address is 5900 Wilshire Boulevard, 12th Floor, Los Angeles, California
90036.
On April 29, 2011, I served the foregoing document described as:
AMICUS BRIEF OF LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS OF
CALIFORNIA FILED IN SUPPORT OF PLAINTIFFSRESPONDENTS AND CITY AND COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO
on the interested parties in this action by serving:
See Attached Service List

()

By Envelope by placing a true copy thereof enclosed in sealed
envelopes addressed as above and delivering such envelopes:
-

(J)

By Mail: As follows: I am “readily familiar” with this firm’s
practice of collection and processing correspondence for mailing. Under
that practice, it would be deposited with United States Postal Service on
that same day with postage thereon ftilly prepaid at Los Angeles, California
in the ordinary course of business. I am aware that on motion of party
served, service is presumed invalid if postal cancellation date or postage
meter date is more than 1 day after date of deposit for mailing in affidavit.
Executed on April 29, 2011, at Los Angeles, California.

(J)

(State) I declare under penalty of perjury under the laws of the State
of California that the foregoing is true and correct.

Chance L. Lawrie

SERVICE LIST
Party

Attorney(s)

Kristin M. Perry
Plaintiff and Respondent

Rosanne C. Baxter
David Boies
Boies Schiller & Flexner, LLP
333 Main Street
Armonk,NY 10504
Richard Jason Bettan
Joshua Irwin Schiller
Boies Schiller & Flexner, LLP
575 Lexington Avenue, 7th Floor
New York, NY 10022
Theodore J. Boutrous
Christophe Dean Dusseault
Theano Diana Kapur
Gibson Dunn & Crutcher, LLP
333 S. Grand Avenue
Los Angeles, CA 90071
Ethan Douglas Dettmer
Enrique Antonio Monagas
Sarah Elizabeth Piepmeier
Gibson Dunn & Crutcher, LLP
555 Mission Street, Suite 3000
San Francisco, CA 94105
Jeremy Michael Goldman
Boies Schiller & Flexner, LLP
1999 Harrison Street, Suite 900
Oakland, CA 94612
Matthew McGill
Amir Cameron Tayrani
Theodore B. Olson
Gibson Dunn & Crutcher, LLP
1050 Connecticut Avenue, N.W.
Washington, DC 20036
Theodore Hideyuki Uno
Boies S chiller & Flexner, LLP
2435 Hollywood Boulevard
Hollywood, FL 33020

Paul T. Katami
Plaintiff and Respondent

David Boies
Boies Schiller & Flexner, LLP
333 Main Street
Armonk, NY 10504

Matthew McGill
Theodore B. Olson
Gibson Dunn & Crutcher, LLP
1050 Connecticut Avenue, N.W.
Washington, DC 20036
Sandra B. Stier
Plaintiff and Respondent

David Boies
Boies Schiller & Flexner, LLP
333 Main Street
Armonk,NY 10504
Matthew McGill
Theodore B. Olson
Gibson Dunn & Crutcher, LLP
1050 Connecticut Avenue, N.W.
Washington, DC 20036

Jeffrey J. Zarrillo
Plaintiff and Respondent

David Boies
Boies Schiller & Flexner, LLP
333 Main Street
Armonk,NY 10504
Matthew McGill
Theodore B. Olson
Gibson Dunn & Crutcher, LLP
1050 Connecticut Avenue, N.W.
Washington, DC 20036

City and County of San
Francisco
Plaintiff and Respondent

Erin Brianna Bernstein
Danny Yeh Chou
Ronald Patrick Flynn
Christine Bohrer Van Aken
Office of the City Attorney
1390 Market Street, 7th Floor
San Francisco, CA 94102
Vince Chhabria
Dennis Jose Herrera
Mollie Mindes Lee
Therese Marie Stewart
Office of the City Attorney
City Hall, Room 234
1 Dr. Canton B. Goodlett Place
San Francisco, CA 94102

Arnold Schwarzenegger
Defendant

Andrew Walter Stroud
Mennemeier Glassman & Stroud, LLP
980 Ninth Street, Suite 1700
Sacramento, CA 95814

Tamar Pachter
Office of the Attorney General
455 Golden Gate Avenue, Suite 11000
San Francisco, CA 94102
Howard Backer
Defendant

Kenneth C. Mennemeier
Mennemeier Glassman & Stroud, LLP
980 Ninth Street, Suite 1700
Sacramento, CA 95814

Edmund G. Brown
Defendant

Daniel Joe Powell
Office of the Attorney General
455 Golden Gate Avenue, Suite 11000
San Francisco, CA 94102
Tamar Pachter
Office of the Attorney General
455 Golden Gate Avenue, Suite 11000
San Francisco, CA 94102

Mark B. Horton
Defendant

Kenneth C. Mennemeier
Mennemeier Glassman & Stroud, LLP
980 Ninth Street, Suite 1700
Sacramento, CA 95814

Dean C. Logan
Defendant

Judy Welch Whitehurst
Office of the Los Angeles County Counsel
500 W. Temple Street, 6th Floor
Los Angeles, CA 90012

Patrick O’Connell
Defendant

Claude F. Kolm
Office of the Alameda County Counsel
1221 Oak Street, Suite 450
Oakland, CA 94612

Linette Scott
Defendant

Kenneth C. Mennemeier
Andrew Walter Stroud
Mennemeier Glassman & Stroud, LLP
980 Ninth Street, Suite 1700
Sacramento, CA 95814

Dennis Hollingsworth
Defendant and Appellant

James Andrew Campbell
Brian W. Raum
Alliance Defense Fund
15100 North 90th Street
Scottsdale, AZ 85260

Charles J. Cooper
Nicole Jo Moss
Howard C. Nielson
Jesse Panuccio
Peter A. Patterson
David H. Thompson
Cooper & Kirk, PLLC
1523 New Hampshire Avenue, N.W.
Washington, DC 20036
Andrew P. Pugno
Law Offices of Andrew P. Pugno
101 Parkshore Drive, Suite 100
Folsom, CA 95630
Martin F. Gutierrez
Defendant and Appellant

Charles J. Cooper
David H. Thompson
Cooper & Kirk, PLLC
1523 New Hampshire Avenue, N.W.
Washington, DC 20036
Andrew P. Pugno
Law Offices of Andrew P. Pugno
101 Parkshore Drive, Suite 100
Folsom, CA 95630

William Tam Hak-Shing
Defendant and Appellant

Charles J. Cooper
Cooper & Kirk, PLLC
1523 New Hampshire Avenue, N.W.
Washington, DC 20036
Terry L Thompson
Attorney at Law
P.O. Box 1346
Alamo, CA 94507
Andrew P. Pugno
Law Offices of Andrew P. Pugno
101 Parkshore Drive, Suite 100
Folsom, CA 95630

Mark A. Jansson
Defendant and Appellant

Charles J. Cooper
David H. Thompson
Cooper & Kirk, PLLC
1523 New Hampshire Avenue, N.W.
Washington, DC 20036
Andrew P. Pugno
Law Offices of Andrew P. Pugno
101 Parkshore Drive, Suite 100
Folsom, CA 95630

Gail J. Knight
Defendant and Appellant

Charles J. Cooper
Jesse Panuccio
Cooper & Kirk, PLLC
1523 New Hampshire Avenue, N.W.
Washington, DC 20036
Andrew P. Pugno
Law Offices of Andrew P. Pugno
101 Parkshore Drive, Suite 100
Folsom, CA 95630

Protectmarriage.com
Defendant and Appellant

Charles J. Cooper
Jesse Panuccio
Cooper & Kirk, PLLC
1523 New Hampshire Avenue, N.W.
Washington, DC 20036
Andrew P. Pugno
Law Offices of Andrew P. Pugno
101 Parkshore Drive, Suite 100
Folsom, CA 95630