Commercial
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June 27, 2024
AG Says Trump Recusal Bid Relies On 'Distortion Of Facts'
New York's attorney general says Donald Trump is relying on a "distortion of facts" in seeking to oust the judge who ordered the former president to pay $465 million in penalties in his civil fraud case.
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June 27, 2024
Colliers Sees Leasing, Portfolio Boon From AI Integration
Commercial real estate players willing to integrate artificial intelligence into their business practices could see benefits to their leasing processes, portfolio strategies and project management, among other areas, per a report released by Colliers.
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June 27, 2024
US Service Members Want Timeshare Class Action Certified
A putative class of U.S. service members who borrowed timeshare loans pushed for class certification for their suit in Florida federal court against two timeshare companies, which were accused of violating the Military Lending Act by not making legally required disclosures about the loans and arbitration requirements.
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June 27, 2024
Fla. County Owes Tax To Other County, Fla. Justices Rule
The Florida Supreme Court ruled Thursday that counties are not immune from being taxed on properties they own in other counties, affirming a decision that said Pinellas County cannot claim sovereign immunity to duck taxes on property it owns in neighboring Pasco County.
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June 27, 2024
Insurer Gets Early Win In $2.2M Texas Assault Coverage Suit
A bar's insurer has no duty to cover a $3.2 million personal injury judgment beyond the insurer's $1 million policy limit, a Texas federal court ruled, rejecting arguments from the bar, its owner and underlying plaintiffs that the insurer unreasonably denied the plaintiffs' presuit settlement demand.
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June 27, 2024
Ex-Deputy Mayor Of Newark Pleads Guilty In Bribery Scheme
A former deputy mayor of Newark, New Jersey, has admitted in federal court that he conspired with two business owners in a bribery scheme involving the acquisition and redevelopment of various city-owned properties, federal prosecutors said.
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June 27, 2024
Gibson Dunn Helps Faropoint Seal Industrial Fund At $915M
Real estate investment manager Faropoint, advised by Gibson Dunn & Crutcher LLP, raised $915 million for its third industrial real estate fund, surpassing its target, and plans to use the capital to buy 200 warehouses across the country, the firm said Thursday.
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June 26, 2024
Insurers Look To Tech Solutions To Reduce Water Damage
Two insurers have announced new emphasis on property technology solutions in recent days as a strategy for reducing the risk from water damage, a major source of claims for property owners and operators that leads to billions of dollars in payouts each year.
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June 26, 2024
Fla. Court Paves Way For $1B Miami Highway Expansion
A Florida appeals court on Wednesday affirmed a decision overturning an administrative law judge's ruling against a $1 billion Miami-Dade County plan for a highway extension into wetlands and agricultural areas, paving the way for the controversial plan to move forward.
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June 26, 2024
White House Unveils $1.8B In Transportation Grants
U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg revealed on Wednesday that the agency had awarded $1.8 billion in grants for 148 transportation infrastructure projects across the country, as part of the Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity discretionary grants program.
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June 26, 2024
First Citizens Bank Loans $52M For Fla. Logistics Center
First Citizens Bank has provided $52 million in construction financing to a joint venture that's building a logistics center in Boynton Beach, Florida, the bank announced on Wednesday.
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June 26, 2024
Sports Retailer Could Owe Atty Fees After 9th Circ. Appeal
The landlord of an Emeryville, California, commercial retail spot is owed $55,000 in attorney fees after defeating a suit filed by its French former sports retailer tenant, but that depends on the outcome of the latter's Ninth Circuit appeal, a California federal judge ruled.
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June 26, 2024
Judge Sides With Army Corps, Costco On Wetlands Permit
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers did not violate the Clean Water Act when it issued a wetlands permit for the development of a new Costco store, a Washington federal judge said in ruling against residents who opposed the project.
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June 26, 2024
EPA Funding Spurs Remediation Push On Alaska Native Land
Thousands of sites contaminated by WWII, oil and gas exploration and mining were transferred to Alaska Native ownership in a 1971 deal settling land claims in the state. Now, an influx of funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and other sources has seriously boosted cleanup work.
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June 26, 2024
Ex-Worker Says NC Justices Needn't Review Carcinogen Test
A former graduate student worker for North Carolina State University has told the Tar Heel State's highest court that the school is trying to delay a potential lawsuit by continuing its fight to keep the ex-employee and cancer patient from investigating a campus building for carcinogens.
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June 26, 2024
Red Roof Trafficking Case Settled In Middle Of Trial
The corporate owners of two Red Roof Inn locations in Atlanta and 11 women who claim they were trafficked there for years without intervention have reached a midtrial settlement ending the case.
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June 26, 2024
Six Flags, Cedar To Close $8B Merger Following DOJ OK
Six Flags Entertainment Corp. and Ohio-based amusement park peer Cedar Fair LP have cleared regulatory scrutiny from the U.S. Department of Justice, paving the way for a July 1 closing of the two companies' previously announced blockbuster $8 billion merger.
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June 26, 2024
Investor Weighing $63.5M Sale Of Times Square Property
Real estate investor American Strategic Investment Co. said Wednesday that it has agreed to a term sheet to sell its 9 Times Square property in Manhattan for $63.5 million.
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June 26, 2024
Miami-Dade Cites Animal Harm In Aquarium Eviction Action
Miami-Dade County has sued to evict an aquarium from a government-owned waterfront site following reports that the operator didn't clean and maintain the 70-year-old facility well enough and repeatedly failed to care for dolphins, manatees and other animals held at the theme park.
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June 26, 2024
Latham, Goodwin Lead Cold Storage Giant's IPO Filing
Real estate investment trust Lineage Inc., a large owner of cold-storage warehouses, filed plans on Wednesday for an initial public offering, represented by Latham & Watkins LLP and underwriters counsel Goodwin Procter LLP.
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June 26, 2024
Fried Frank, Kirkland Steer Logistics Real Estate Stake Deal
Private real estate investment firm Almanac Realty Investors bought a passive minority stake in logistics real estate-focused private equity firm Dermody Properties, in a deal guided by Fried Frank Harris Shriver & Jacobson LLP and Kirkland & Ellis LLP.
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June 26, 2024
A Picture Of Office Sector Distress
This five-part series from Law360 Real Estate Authority explores distressed office buildings in Chicago, San Francisco, Miami, Dallas and New York City in an illustration of how the stressors facing the asset class are playing out across the country.
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June 25, 2024
Wash. HOA Drops Water Damage Coverage Claims
A homeowners association agreed to drop its Washington federal case seeking up to $8.7 million in coverage for "hidden" water damage to its condos.
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June 25, 2024
Denver Hits Back At Landlord Suit To Void Energy Standards
The city of Denver says residential and commercial real estate trade groups have failed to show why they can't comply with recent city and state energy-efficiency standards for buildings and appliances, looking to ditch their lawsuit in federal court.
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June 25, 2024
Bristol-Myers Fights NJ City's $4.6M Fee On Campus Upgrade
Bristol-Myers Squibb asked the New Jersey Tax Court to reverse the state's upholding of a $4.6 million nonresidential development fee on renovations to buildings on a 91-acre campus, arguing the improvements were excluded from the levy.
Expert Analysis
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Tips For In-House Legal Leaders In A Challenging Economy
Amid today's economic and geopolitical uncertainty, in-house legal teams are running lean and facing increased scrutiny and unique issues, but can step up and find innovative ways to manage outcomes and capitalize on good business opportunities, says Tim Parilla at LinkSquares.
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How Cities Can Tackle Post-Pandemic Budgeting Dilemmas
Due to increasing office vacancies around the country, cities may consider politically unpopular actions to avoid bankruptcy, but they could also look to the capital markets to ride out the current real estate crisis and achieve debt service savings to help balance their budgets, say attorneys at Cadwalader.
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What Associates Need To Know Before Switching Law Firms
Excerpt from Practical Guidance
The days of staying at the same firm for the duration of one's career are mostly a thing of the past as lateral moves by lawyers are commonplace, but there are several obstacles that associates should consider before making a move, say attorneys at HWG.
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Guidance Adds Clarity To Energy Communities Bonus Credits
Recent IRS guidance on the Inflation Reduction Act's changes to tax credits for renewable energy projects offers much-needed pointers for developers and financing parties, and should allow them to more comfortably incorporate special bonus credits for projects in energy communities into their transactions, say Jorge Medina and Ira Aghai at Shearman.
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Cannabis Supercenters: Key Benefits And Legal Issues
Barstow, California’s novel plan to convert an abandoned mall into a cannabis supercenter could offer a potential blueprint for cannabis companies to thrive in a saturated market and for communities to repurpose underutilized retail spaces — but certain financing, zoning and leasing issues will need to be assessed, says Christopher Gordon at Fox Rothschild.
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A Case For Sharing Mediation Statements With Counterparties
In light of a potential growing mediation trend of only submitting statements to the mediator, litigants should think critically about the pros and cons of exchanging statements with opposing parties as it could boost the chances of reaching a settlement, says Arthur Eidelhoch at Eidelhoch Mediation.
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EB-5 Reform Continues To Weigh Heavily On Participants
Recent U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services guidance helps clarify aspects of the 2022 EB-5 Reform and Integrity Act, which increased oversight of EB-5 regional centers, but does not end the industry's continuing state of uncertainty, says Robert Divine at Baker Donelson.
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Preparing For Legal Scrutiny Of Data Retention Policies
Two recent cases involving Google and Meta should serve as a call to action for companies to ensure their data retention policies are updated and properly implemented to the degree of being able to withstand judicial scrutiny, especially as more data is generated by emerging technologies, say Jack Kallus and Labeed Choudhry at Kaufman Dolowich.
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Attorneys Should Have An Ethical Duty To Advance DEI
National and state bar associations are encouraging attorneys to apply diversity, equity and inclusion practices in the legal profession and beyond, and these associations should take it one step further by formally recognizing ethical duties for attorneys to promote DEI, which could better the legal profession and society, says Elena Mitchell at Moore & Van Allen.
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Data-Driven Insights Are Key To Attracting Today's Clients
As law firm growth slows and competition for clients increases, modern firms must rely on robust data analytics to develop the sector-based expertise and industry insights that clients increasingly prioritize in relationships with counsel, says Lavinia Calvert at Intapp.
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EV Chargers Can Bring Benefits For Calif. Property Owners
California property developers and owners face growing pressure to provide electric vehicle charging infrastructure — but this can be a unique opportunity to add value to real estate assets, and can be accomplished in multiple ways, say Riley Cutner-Orrantia and Eurie Hwang at Crosbie Gliner.
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Brownfield Renewables Guidance Leaves Site Eligibility Murky
Recent IRS guidance sheds some light on the Inflation Reduction Act's incentives for renewable energy development on contaminated sites — but the eligibility of certain sites for brownfield status remains uncertain, say Megan Caldwell and Jon Micah Goeller at Husch Blackwell.
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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.