Commercial

Expert Analysis

• Pending Legislation Holds Promise For SF Buildings

  

  Recently introduced state and local legislation could make it easier for office-to-residential conversion projects in San Francisco to secure approval and funding sources, although financial incentives similar to those implemented by other states may be necessary to ensure the feasibility of such projects, say Caroline Chase and Nick DuBroff at Allen Matkins.

• Ghosting In BigLaw: Why Better Feedback Habits Are Needed

  

  Not giving assignments or constructive criticism to junior associates can significantly affect their performance and hours, potentially leading them to leave the firm, but partners can prevent this by asking the right questions and creating a culture of feedback, says Rachel Patterson at Orrick.

• SVB Collapse Underscores Policy And Regulatory Pitfalls

  

  The recent failures of three American banks reveal hidden vulnerabilities, raise concerns about moral hazard, and highlight the need for tighter regulation and closer monitoring of unrealized investment-portfolio losses in the U.S. banking system, says attorney Patrick Meson.

• Law Needs A Balance Between Humanism And Formalism

  

  A recent Law360 guest article rightly questions the pretextual pseudo-originalism that permits ideology to masquerade as judicial philosophy, but the cure would kill the patient because directness, simplicity and humanness are achievable without renouncing form or sacrificing stare decisis, says Vanessa Kubota at the Arizona Court of Appeals.

• NY Bankruptcy Court Pivots On Commercial Rent Damage Cap

  

  A New York bankruptcy court departed from its prior precedent in the recent Cortlandt Liquidating case, effectively lowering the commercial rent damages cap, and making the court a little less friendly for landlords but potentially an attractive venue for debtors planning to reject significant commercial leases, say attorneys at MoFo.

• Short Message Data Challenges In E-Discovery

  

  As short message platforms increasingly dominate work environments, lawyers face multiple programs, different communication styles and emoji in e-discovery, so they must consider new strategies to adapt their processes, says Cristin Traylor at Relativity.

• Bankruptcy Sales Uncertain After Justices' Section 363 Ruling

  

  The U.S. Supreme Court's holding in MOAC v. Transform that Section 363(m) of the Bankruptcy Code is not a jurisdictional provision means parties to 363 sales are now at the mercy of courts that may have differing perspectives on the issue, creating uncertainty for trustees, third parties and purchasers, say Thomas Loeb and Carrie Brosius at Vorys.

• Thomas Report Is Final Straw — High Court Needs Ethics Code

  

  As a recent report on Justice Clarence Thomas' ongoing conflicts of interest makes evident, Supreme Court justices should be subject to an enforceable and binding code of ethics — like all other federal judges — to maintain the credibility of the institution, says Erica Salmon Byrne at Ethisphere.

• Commercial Real Estate Lending Checkup Amid Market Unrest

  

  Given the sustained volatility of current lending markets, now may be a good time for financing institutions to dust off their commercial real estate agreements and update them if necessary, say Emil Petrossian and Alexander Miller at Glaser Weil.

• La. Suit Could Set New Enviro Justice Litigation Paradigm

  

  Inclusive Louisiana v. St. James Parish, a lawsuit filed recently in Louisiana federal court that makes wide-ranging and novel constitutional and statutory claims of environmental racism based on centuries of local history, could become a new template for environmental justice litigation against governments and businesses, say attorneys at King & Spalding.

• Joint Representation Ethics Lessons From Ga. Electors Case

  

  The Fulton County district attorney's recent motion to disqualify an attorney from representing her elector clients, claiming a nonconsentable conflict of interest, raises key questions about representing multiple clients related to the same conduct and highlights potential pitfalls, say Hilary Gerzhoy and Grace Wynn at HWG.

• Lawyer Discernment Is Critical In The World Of AI

  

  In light of growing practical concerns about risks and challenges posed by artificial intelligence, lawyers' experience with the skill of discernment will position them to help address new ethical and moral dilemmas and ensure that AI is developed and deployed in a way that benefits society as a whole, says Jennifer Gibbs at Zelle.

• Policyholder Lessons From Sandy No-Coverage Decision

  

  A New York federal court recently decided that in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, Madelaine Chocolate knew Great Northern Insurance’s all-risk policy offered no coverage for storm surge — an important reminder that policyholders should review policy language for ambiguities or anti-concurrent causation clauses, say Dennis Artese and Joshua Zelen at Anderson Kill.