Commercial

  • May 08, 2024

    Winstead Moves Austin Office To New Horizon Bank Site

    Winstead PC has relocated to Horizon Bank's newly completed office building in downtown Austin, Texas, moving from the Frost Tower, which the firm had called home for more than two decades.

  • May 08, 2024

    SEC Fines Real Estate Developer Over Unregistered Offering

    A real estate development company and its owner will pay $250,000 to settle the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's claims they sold investors $1.4 million in promissory notes in an unregistered offering.

  • May 08, 2024

    From Trophy To Dead Weight At San Francisco's 111 Sutter

    Paramount Group Real Estate, a New York-based firm with an $8.4 billion portfolio of trophy assets in New York and San Francisco, isn't interested in hindsight at 111 Sutter St., the Hunter-Dulin Building.

  • May 08, 2024

    Brokers Lean On Other Business With Transactions Flat In Q1

    Commercial real estate's big four brokers are still waiting for inflation to cool down so capital markets can rebound, despite signs in the first quarter that a recovery was underway.

  • May 08, 2024

    Norfolk Southern Class Counsel Talks Settlement, Legacy

    With residents of East Palestine, Ohio, on the verge of a $600 million payout for the 2023 Norfolk Southern train derailment, plaintiffs' co-lead counsel Jayne Conroy shared some thoughts about the role property values played in the proposed settlement and what ripple effect their arguments might have in similar cases.

  • May 08, 2024

    Ballard Spahr Real Estate Pro Joins Hyland Levin In NJ

    New Jersey regional firm Hyland Levin Shapiro LLP leveled up its real estate practice this week with the hire of a Ballard Spahr LLP attorney of more than five years, bringing significant experience in commercial real estate in and out of the law.

  • May 08, 2024

    Conn. Builder Drops $4.7M Stamford Pavilion Delay Suit

    A Connecticut general contractor has dropped its lawsuit accusing the city of Stamford and an architecture practice of causing delays in a $4.7 million project and driving up the building company's costs as it tried to build a pavilion in a city park.

  • May 08, 2024

    Colo. Lawmakers OK Historic Structure Tax Credit Extension

    Colorado's tax credit for rehabilitation of historic structures would be extended and apply to structures as young as 30 years old under legislation approved by the Senate and headed to the governor.

  • May 08, 2024

    Jones Day Hires Eversheds Construction Law Partner In NY

    Jones Day has hired a former Eversheds Sutherland construction litigation partner, who is joining the firm in New York to continue his practice focused on major infrastructure projects and other construction-related work, the firm recently announced.

  • May 07, 2024

    Manhattan Office Leasing Grows, But Rents Don't

    Though April activity in the Manhattan office sector drove year-to-date leasing up 42% compared to the prior year, average asking rents remained largely unchanged, per a report from CBRE.

  • May 07, 2024

    NYC Eatery Asks 2nd Circ. To Undo Revival Of Workers' Suit

    A New York City restaurant operator urged the Second Circuit Tuesday to reject a lower court finding that its workers' federal wage claims may be cut from their class action but can also be reinstated if the appeals court were to vacate their state wage claims, insisting the decision is unfair.

  • May 07, 2024

    WeWork Wins Interim OK Of $50M New Money DIP In Ch. 11

    A New Jersey bankruptcy judge said Tuesday he will approve $50 million of debtor-in-possession financing for WeWork, overruling objections from the office space provider's co-founder and ex-CEO Adam Neumann, whose lawyers alleged the financing agreement was actually an unfairly discounted asset sale in disguise.

  • May 07, 2024

    New Missouri Law Forces Landfills Further From Cities

    A new Missouri law will increase the radius for approvals needed from nearby municipalities for several types of landfills to one mile from half a mile, in what the governor called a "win for property rights."

  • May 07, 2024

    PolyMet Land Swap Discovery Order Paused, For Now

    PolyMet Mining doesn't have to produce information it had previously withheld in a Minnesota tribe's challenge to undo a land swap, a federal district court determined after the company asked for emergency relief to avoid any potential harm it said could come from wrongfully disclosing privileged documentation.

  • May 07, 2024

    Steward Health Gets Ch. 11 Loan, Says It Plans Hospital Sales

    A Texas bankruptcy judge Tuesday allowed Steward Health Care to take out $75 million in Chapter 11 financing to meet its next-day payroll after being told the hospital chain plans to sell facilities to pay down its $9 billion in debt.

  • May 07, 2024

    Lender Shanks Bid To Halt Ga. Golf Course Auctions

    A Georgia federal judge on Tuesday denied successive efforts from a lender to wrest control of the assets of an Atlanta-area golf club owner, whom attorneys for the lender describe as a "serial fraudster" likely to abscond with his assets while still owing millions on a 2023 loan.

  • May 07, 2024

    Title Insurer Gets Partial Win Against Lender In Lien Dispute

    A lender seeking coverage from its title insurer for mechanic's lien claims after the owner of a senior living community defaulted on its $26 million construction loan can only potentially get coverage under a disbursement endorsement in its policy, a Colorado federal court ruled, finding an exclusion applicable.

  • May 07, 2024

    Colo. House OKs Conservation Easement Tax Break Extension

    Colorado would extend its conservation easement tax credit through 2031 and raise its statewide annual cap on available credits under legislation approved Tuesday by the state House of Representatives.

  • May 07, 2024

    Judge Rips 2nd Circ.'s 'Erroneous' Ruling In Sears Lease Spat

    A New York federal district judge ruled that Sears Holdings Corp.'s lease for the Mall of America in Minneapolis should be returned to the bankrupt retail chain's liquidating trustee, saying that the decision gives "scant comfort" as it removed from the books "an obviously outlier ruling" by the Second Circuit.

  • May 07, 2024

    Vornado Exec 'Couldn't Be More Optimistic' About NYC Retail

    Retail property values and leasing activity are recovering in prime parts of Manhattan, particularly among storefronts along Fifth Avenue and in Times Square, a Vornado Realty Trust executive said on Tuesday.

  • May 07, 2024

    DLA Piper Pads Real Estate Group With New Chicago Partner

    DLA Piper has added a partner to the firm's real estate practice group who will join from Katten Muchin Rosenman LLP, saying the new hire's expertise spans asset classes and deal types.

  • May 06, 2024

    US Industrial Market Facing High Vacancy Rate, Report Says

    In 2024's first quarter, the U.S. industrial real estate market faced an imbalance of supply and demand for the eighth consecutive quarter, along with a high vacancy rate, even as leasing activity grew 2.2% compared to 2023's first quarter, according to a CBRE report released Monday.

  • May 06, 2024

    Colo. Lawmakers OK Land Cleanup Tax Credit Extension

    Colorado would extend its income tax credit for certain costs of environmental remediation of contaminated property for five years under legislation approved unanimously Monday by the state Senate and sent to the governor.

  • May 06, 2024

    Latham & Watkins, Simpson Thacher Steer Healthcare JV

    Healthcare Realty Trust Inc. and KKR announced on Monday that the two have entered a joint venture to own and invest in quality medical outpatient buildings, in a deal guided by Latham & Watkins LLP and Simpson Thacher & Barlett LLP.

  • May 06, 2024

    British National Admits To Coworking Business Ponzi Scheme

    A British citizen pled guilty Friday in Manhattan federal court to participating in a scheme to solicit investments using fraudulent misrepresentations about a coworking company where he was a principal.

Expert Analysis

  • Keys To Navigating The Post-Pandemic CRE Market

    Excerpt from Practical Guidance
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    As the commercial real estate market continues to face repercussions from the COVID-19 pandemic, lawyers should use office occupancy and leasing volume numbers to anticipate future trends and help guide clients through an uncertain landscape, says Joseph Calvanico at J2C Valuations.

  • To Hire And Keep Top Talent, Think Beyond Compensation

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    Firms seeking to appeal to sophisticated clients and top-level partners should promote mentorship, ensure that attorneys from diverse backgrounds feel valued, and clarify policies about at-home work, says Patrick Moya at Quaero Group.

  • How Rate Exportation Is Shifting Amid Regulatory Trends

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    All banks and their partners, including fintechs, that wish to lend to borrowers in multiple states and charge uniform interest rates should heed regulatory developments across the country and determine how best to mitigate risks in their efforts to offer credit to consumers on a nationwide basis, say attorneys at Ballard Spahr.

  • How The Commercial Real Estate Slump May Weigh On Banks

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    The continuing underperformance of the U.S. commercial real estate market has significant implications for the financial performance and disclosure requirements for various banks, especially regional ones with large debt exposures, say Atanu Saha and Yong Xu at StoneTurn.

  • Negotiating Material Escalation In Construction Contracts

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    As material price escalation clauses have remained popular in construction contracts despite an easing of recent supply chain issues, attorneys representing owners should understand key considerations for negotiating such clauses, and strategies to mitigate potential exploitation by contractors, says H. Arthur Black II at Brooks Pierce.

  • Landlords Should Prep As WeWork Faces Potential Ch. 11

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    After years of financial trouble and the recent announcement that it has substantial doubt that it would be able to continue as a going concern, WeWork may have a bankruptcy filing in its future that would have a significant impact on landlords and other stakeholders who are owed money by the company, say attorneys at Cadwalader.

  • Identifying Trends And Tips In Litigation Financing Disclosure

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    Growing interest and controversy in litigation financing raise several salient concerns, but exploring recent compelled disclosure trends from courts around the country can help practitioners further their clients' interests, say Sean Callagy and Samuel Sokolsky at Arnold & Porter.

  • Key Drivers Behind Widespread Adoption Of NAV Financing

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    While net asset value-based lending has existed for years, NAV lending has only started to move into the mainstream recently — likely due to difficult market conditions faced by sponsors including persistent inflation, high interest rates and a lack of exit opportunities, say Matthew Kerfoot and Jinyoung Joo at Proskauer.

  • Conn. Ruling Highlights Keys To Certificate-Of-Need Appeals

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    The Connecticut Supreme Court's recent decision in High Watch Recovery Center v. Department of Public Health, rejecting rigid application of statutes concerning certificate-of-need procedure, provides important guidance on building an administrative record to support a finding that a case is contested, say attorneys at Robinson & Cole.

  • The Pop Culture Docket: Judge Elrod On 'Jury Duty'

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    Though the mockumentary series “Jury Duty” features purposely outrageous characters, it offers a solemn lesson about the simple but brilliant design of the right to trial by jury, with an unwitting protagonist who even John Adams may have welcomed as an impartial foreperson, says Fifth Circuit Judge Jennifer Elrod.

  • Pickleball Makes Waves In Fla. Real Estate, With Risks In Play

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    Pickleball's burgeoning popularity in Florida is catalyzing a transformation in the state's commercial real estate market, but investors must take steps to navigate legal challenges related to noise, insurance and community dynamics, says Emmanuelle Litvinov at DarrowEverett.

  • 4 Business-Building Strategies For Introvert Attorneys

    Excerpt from Practical Guidance
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    Introverted lawyers can build client bases to rival their extroverted peers’ by adapting time-tested strategies for business development that can work for any personality — such as claiming a niche, networking for maximum impact, drawing on existing contacts and more, says Ronald Levine at Herrick Feinstein.

  • What Calif. Pot Permit Ruling Means For Enviro Compliance

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    While a California appeals court's recent decision in Lucas v. City of Pomona affirms the city's use of a statutory exemption for its commercial cannabis overlay permit program, the ruling does not mean that all applicants seeking similar approvals are exempted from state environmental compliance obligations, say Whitney Hodges and Barbara Machado at Sheppard Mullin.