People Ex Rel. Gallegos v. Pacific Lumber Co.

This is an appeal from a judgment in a lawsuit brought by the District Attorney for Humboldt County on behalf of the People of California (the State) under California’s unfair competition law, Business and Professions Code section 17200 et seq. (UCL), for alleged fraudulent business practices. Judgment was entered against the State following the sustaining of a demurrer to the second amended complaint. In reaching the judgment, the trial court ruled that respondents the Pacific Lumber Company, Scotia Pacific Company LLC, and Salmon Creek LLC (collectively, Pacific Lumber) were immune from UCL liability under both Civil Code section 47, subdivision (b) and under federal law pursuant to the so-called Noerr-Pennington doctrine, and that the State had failed to state a cause of action based on Pacific Lumber’s alleged fraudulent business practices. We affirm.

FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

On February 24, 2003, the State filed a complaint against Pacific Lumber asserting causes of action arising under the UCL. The allegations in the complaint stemmed from a 1996 agreement between Pacific Lumber, the State of California and the United States known as the Headwaters…