Real Estate

  • January 08, 2025

    DOI's Arctic Refuge Oil Lease Sale Yields No Bidders

    The U.S. Department of the Interior reported Wednesday that it has received no bids from companies to drill for oil and gas in Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.

  • January 08, 2025

    Farm Owner Can't Claim $6.5M For Border Wall, 5th Circ. Told

    The federal government argued Wednesday that a Texas woman isn't owed millions of dollars in compensation for a section of the state's border wall built on her land, telling the Fifth Circuit that a principle giving landowners rights to property improvements can't be equitably applied to the federal government.

  • January 08, 2025

    Judge Reverses His Own Ruling In Chicago Hotel Zoning Fight

    An Illinois federal judge ruled against the owners of a historic Chicago hotel Tuesday, dialing back an earlier victory he had granted them last year in a zoning suit against the city.

  • January 08, 2025

    Madigan Denies Extorting Developers For Law Firm Business

    Ex-Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan testified Wednesday that he never wanted a Chicago alderman to leverage his chairmanship of a powerful city council committee to steer business to Madigan's law firm, saying he merely asked for introductions to developers and felt "surprise and concern" when the alderman referenced a quid pro quo deal.

  • January 08, 2025

    Calif. Tribe Has Standing To Block Casino Project, Court Told

    A California tribe says it has constitutional standing to block the Interior Department from taking land into trust for a proposed casino project on its historic homelands, arguing that it suffered actual and concrete harm when the agency determined that no historic resources would be affected by the endeavor.

  • January 08, 2025

    Feds Again Deny Leaks In NYC Mayor's Corruption Case

    Federal prosecutors again rejected the claim that they had leaked classified information about New York City Mayor Eric Adams' corruption case to the press, telling a judge that they were not the source that allowed the New York Times to identify a grand jury witness and that Adams hadn't shown how he was prejudiced by the disclosure.

  • January 08, 2025

    Mortgage Cos. Fined $20M Over Cybersecurity Breach

    Bayview Asset Management LLC and three affiliates on Wednesday agreed to pay a $20 million fine and improve their cybersecurity programs to settle allegations from 53 state financial regulators that the mortgage companies had deficient cybersecurity practices and didn't fully cooperate with regulators after a 2021 data breach.

  • January 08, 2025

    Divisive Mass. Housing Law Can Stand With Administrative Fix

    Massachusetts' top appellate court on Wednesday upheld a controversial law requiring towns in Greater Boston to add housing density near mass transit facilities, but found that the state must take additional procedural steps before the law can go into effect.

  • January 07, 2025

    Feds Say Adams' Bid For Indictment Info Would Hinder Probe

    New York City Mayor Eric Adams is not entitled to more details about the charges in his corruption and bribery case, including the identities of alleged co-conspirators, federal prosecutors told a Manhattan federal court Monday, arguing that such information would prejudice the ongoing investigation and potentially lead to witness tampering.

  • January 07, 2025

    Fla. Real Estate Agent Gets Prison Time For $1M PPP Fraud

    A Florida federal judge on Tuesday excoriated a real estate agent for fraudulently obtaining more than $1 million from the Paycheck Protection Program, sentencing the agent to six months in prison and lamenting that she was prevented by a plea agreement from ordering additional restitution.

  • January 07, 2025

    Bill To Protect Wounded Knee Massacre Site Reintroduced

    A federal bill seeking to preserve a section of land at Wounded Knee Creek, where about 150 Lakota Indians were killed by the U.S. Army more than a century ago, has been reintroduced to the U.S. House for consideration during the Trump administration.

  • January 07, 2025

    Ex-Ill. Speaker Madigan Testifies In His Racketeering Trial

    Former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan took the stand in his own defense Tuesday, testifying that he neither traded his public office for private gain nor demanded or accepted anything valuable in exchange for his official action, adding that he was "very angry" to learn that people who he'd recommended for jobs did little to no work.

  • January 07, 2025

    Dallas County Settles With Developer In Denied Permit Row

    A Dallas developer and Dallas County buried the hatchet in a suit over the county's denial of a permit application for 11 residential lots in a subdivision, telling a Texas federal judge they had reached a settlement agreement in a Tuesday joint stipulation of voluntary dismissal.

  • January 07, 2025

    Mortgage Servicer Makes Borrowers To 'Pay-To-Pay,' Suit Says

    Residential mortgage servicer Select Portfolio Servicing Inc. must face a customer's proposed class action alleging it breaks North Carolina state laws with $15 fees it charges borrowers who make monthly payments over the phone.

  • January 07, 2025

    Biden Designates Two New National Monuments In California

    President Joe Biden on Tuesday designated two sites in California as national monuments amid years of calls from Native American tribes and state and federal lawmakers, in turn protecting 848,000 acres from development.

  • January 07, 2025

    Mont. Bill Floats Mine, Data Center Property Tax Changes

    Montana would lower the property tax rate imposed on metal mines, certain agricultural land and railroads but raise the rate on data center property as part of a bill introduced in the state Senate.

  • January 07, 2025

    Mich. Town Tries To Ditch $5M Suit Over Dispensary Flip-Flop

    A Michigan township accused of greenlighting, and then blocking, a developer's special-use permit for a marijuana dispensary said Tuesday the developer suing it for $5 million never actually got the required prequalification from the state.

  • January 07, 2025

    DOJ Revamps Process For Federal Real Estate Deals

    The U.S. Department of Justice has replaced "outdated provisions" that guided how federal agencies acquired real property with 10 new federal provisions that have the goal of "promoting government efficiency and saving taxpayer funds," the DOJ said Tuesday.

  • January 07, 2025

    Property Owner Says Insurer Owes $16.2M For Fire Damage

    A Colorado property owner is seeking to recover $16.2 million from its insurer for property damage caused by the 2021 Marshall Fire, telling a federal court the carrier wrongly concluded the properties did not sustain direct physical damage in order to justify replacement costs.

  • January 07, 2025

    NC Homeowners Certified In HOA Debt Collection Class Action

    A federal judge has certified two classes of North Carolina homeowners who allege that a debt collector charged excessive fees and sent misleading notices to scare people into ponying up the cash, but the judge excluded a third proposed class that she said was too ambiguous.

  • January 07, 2025

    Mont. Bill Seeks Review Process For Tax-Exempt Property

    Montana would require the state Department of Revenue to create a program to review property that is exempt from taxation under a bill introduced in the state House of Representatives.

  • January 07, 2025

    Developer Says Mass. Stalling $15M Brownfields Tax Credit

    The developer of a 3.5-acre luxury condo and apartment complex in Boston's Seaport District is accusing the state of improperly second-guessing the work of its licensed environmental remediation consultant to deny a $15.3 million brownfields tax credit, then dragging its feet on an administrative appeal.

  • January 07, 2025

    NC Biz Court Limits MV Realty's Usable Trial Evidence

    Embattled Florida real estate company MV Realty will not be allowed to introduce certain evidence at its upcoming fraud trial about its calls to consumers, as a punishment for providing the state inaccurate information during discovery, the North Carolina Business Court has ruled.

  • January 07, 2025

    Title Insurer Says Atty Skipped Bills, Let Staff Steal IOLTA

    Title insurer CATIC has fired back at a Connecticut attorney suing over his removal from the boards of two affiliated companies, accusing him of not paying bills, failing to prevent staffers from stealing money from his trust account, and breaching his duties to the company.

  • January 07, 2025

    DOJ Ropes Landlords Into RealPage Antitrust Case

    The U.S. Department of Justice dramatically expanded its antitrust case against RealPage on Tuesday, accusing half a dozen residential landlords of using the software company's tools to coordinate rental rates while reaching a settlement with one of the property owners.

Expert Analysis

  • The Often Overlooked NY Foreclosure Notice Requirements

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    As multifamily real estate defaults mount, New York foreclosing parties should be aware of pitfalls and perils that can await the litigant who is not prepared to ensure adherence with tenant notice requirements under the Real Property Actions and Proceedings Law, say Christopher Gorman and John Muldoon at Rosenberg & Estis.

  • Opinion

    Industry Self-Regulation Will Shine Post-Chevron

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's Loper decision will shape the contours of industry self-regulation in the years to come, providing opportunities for this often-misunderstood practice, says Eric Reicin at BBB National Programs.

  • 3 Ways Agencies Will Keep Making Law After Chevron

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    The U.S. Supreme Court clearly thinks it has done something big in overturning the Chevron precedent that had given deference to agencies' statutory interpretations, but regulated parties have to consider how agencies retain significant power to shape the law and its meaning, say attorneys at K&L Gates.

  • After Chevron

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    Since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the Chevron deference standard in June, this Expert Analysis series has featured attorneys discussing the potential impact across 37 different rulemaking and litigation areas.

  • Opinion

    Atty Well-Being Efforts Ignore Root Causes Of The Problem

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    The legal industry is engaged in a critical conversation about lawyers' mental health, but current attorney well-being programs primarily focus on helping lawyers cope with the stress of excessive workloads, instead of examining whether this work culture is even fundamentally compatible with lawyer well-being, says Jonathan Baum at Avenir Guild.

  • A Case Study For Calif. Cities In Water Utility Takeovers

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    With growing water scarcity and drier weather looming, some local governments in California have sought to acquire investor-owned water utilities by eminent domain — but the 2016 case of Claremont v. Golden State Water is a reminder that such municipalization attempts must meet certain statutory requirements, say attorneys at Nossaman.

  • Series

    Skiing And Surfing Make Me A Better Lawyer

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    The skills I’ve learned while riding waves in the ocean and slopes in the mountains have translated to my legal career — developing strong mentor relationships, remaining calm in difficult situations, and being prepared and able to move to a backup plan when needed, says Brian Claassen at Knobbe Martens.

  • Zoning Reform May Alleviate The Affordable Housing Crisis

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    As America's affordable housing issues continue to worsen, zoning reform efforts can help to provide more affordable homes and mitigate racial and economic segregation, though opposition from residents and in courts could present challenges, say Evan Pritchard and Madeline Williams at Cozen O'Connor.

  • Unpacking The Circuit Split Over A Federal Atty Fee Rule

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    Federal circuit courts that have addressed Rule 41(d) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure are split as to whether attorney fees are included as part of the costs of a previously dismissed action, so practitioners aiming to recover or avoid fees should tailor arguments to the appropriate court, says Joseph Myles and Lionel Lavenue at Finnegan.

  • NJ Justices Clarify First-Party Indemnification Availability

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    In Boyle v. Huff, the New Jersey Supreme Court recently held that indemnification can be available in first-party claims, resolving an open question and setting up contracting parties for careful negotiations around indemnity clauses, says Todd Leon at Marshall Dennehey.

  • Arbitration Implications Of High Court Coinbase Ruling

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's recent Coinbase v. Suski ruling not only reaffirmed the long-standing principle that arbitration is a matter of contract, but also established new and more general principles concerning the courts' jurisdiction to decide challenges to delegation clauses and the severability rule, say Tamar Meshel at the University of Alberta.

  • Fla. HOA Reforms Bring Major Wins For Homeowners

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    A recently signed law brings broad changes for homeowners associations in Florida, alleviating some pressure imposed by overly restrictive rules and potentially setting up litigation surrounding how HOAs enforce their governing documents, says Christopher Miller at Varnum.

  • Lower Courts May Finally Be Getting The Memo After Ciminelli

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    A year after the U.S. Supreme Court again limited prosecutors' overbroad theories of fraud in Ciminelli v. U.S., early returns suggest that the message has at least partially landed with the lower courts, spotlighting lessons for defense counsel moving forward, says Kenneth Notter at MoloLamken.

  • After A Brief Hiccup, The 'Rocket Docket' Soars Back To No. 1

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    The Eastern District of Virginia’s precipitous 2022 fall from its storied rocket docket status appears to have been a temporary aberration, as recent statistics reveal that the court is once again back on top as the fastest federal civil trial court in the nation, says Robert Tata at Hunton.

  • Addressing Labor Shortages In The Construction Industry

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    As the construction industry's ongoing struggle with finding sufficient skilled workers continues, companies should consider a range of solutions including a commitment to in-house training and creative contracting protocols, say Brenda Radmacher and Allison Etkin at Akerman.

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