Commercial

  • August 28, 2025

    Google To Invest $9B In Va. Data Center Projects

    Google plans to spend an additional $9 billion on building a Chesterfield County data center and expanding data centers in the counties of Loudoun and Prince William all through the end of 2026, the state's governor announced.

  • August 28, 2025

    Compliance Atty Who Duped Lender Wants New Trial

    A compliance lawyer convicted of pilfering from a $20 million line of credit that a subsidiary of Emigrant Bank extended to his tax-lien business has asked a Manhattan federal judge to order a new trial, arguing that prosecutors' evidence is insufficient and that the charges were "multiplicitous," in violation of the Fifth Amendment.

  • August 28, 2025

    Texas House OKs Lower Voter-Approval Property Tax Rate

    Texas would lower its maximum property tax rate permitted by law without voter approval for larger taxing jurisdictions under a bill passed by the state House of Representatives.

  • August 27, 2025

    Investor Wants $250K, SUV Returned In Cannabis Venture

    A Los Angeles investor is suing a number of people and entities who convinced him to sink $325,000 into a real estate and cannabis dispensary holding company, only to end up with no shares in the business and to discover the company's success was exaggerated.

  • August 27, 2025

    Father, Son Seek 2-Year Sentences In $280M Sports Park Fraud

    A father and son are both seeking two-year sentences from a New York federal court after pleading guilty to fraud related to the development of a Phoenix-area youth sports park with $280 million in investments, alleging prosecutors overstated their culpability for investor losses.

  • August 27, 2025

    Ukrainian Money Laundering Claim Against U.S. Is Paused

    Claimants in a $24 million arbitration accusing the U.S. government of overstepping its authority by initiating forfeiture proceedings aimed at unraveling an alleged Ukrainian money laundering scheme have agreed to suspend the claim for now, according to a notice.

  • August 27, 2025

    Lending Platform Originates $79M Luxury Miami Hotel Loan

    Institutional lending platform Madison Newbond announced Wednesday that it originated a $79.3 million loan for a 41-story, 357-room luxury downtown Miami hotel in a deal lined up by JLL Capital Markets.

  • August 27, 2025

    CoStar Says Copyright Claims Against CREXi Can't Wait

    CoStar Group Inc. told a California federal court that Commercial Real Estate Exchange Inc. is continuing to use its copyrighted images and urged the court not to put its infringement claims on hold for the rival listing platform's "makeweight" antitrust counterclaims.

  • August 27, 2025

    Attys Navigate Tangle Of Transit-Oriented Zoning In Miami

    The Miami City Commission's recent approval of a new category of transit-oriented zoning has added another layer to a rapidly changing, increasingly complex web of regulations and incentives that real estate attorneys must consider when guiding development projects in the city.

  • August 27, 2025

    CUNY Signs $40M Deal To Buy Manhattan College Campus

    New York City public university system the City University of New York has agreed to pay $40 million for the Downtown Manhattan campus of the private Metropolitan College of New York, according to an official MCNY voluntary filing.

  • August 27, 2025

    Contractors Looking To AI To Navigate Construction Tariffs

    Construction contractors are increasingly leveraging the power of artificial intelligence and technology to navigate the headwinds and uncertainty that have come with President Donald Trump's trade war, a technology executive recently told Law360 Real Estate Authority.

  • August 27, 2025

    Faegre Drinker Says Investor Can't Call Biz Loss Malpractice

    Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP told a New Jersey state court this week that a malpractice suit it faces from a real estate investor is nothing more than an attempt by the investor to shift responsibility for a failed investment.

  • August 27, 2025

    Jones Day Continues Real Estate Growth With McDermott Atty

    Jones Day announced the latest addition to its real estate practice on Wednesday, welcoming a New York-based attorney from McDermott Will & Schulte LLP.

  • August 27, 2025

    Jailed Pastor Cites Adams Dismissal In Bid To Beat Charges

    A clergyman serving a nine-year sentence for fraud cited his ties to New York City Mayor Eric Adams on Wednesday in a bid to have his conviction overturned in the wake of the Trump administration's dismissal of the charges against Adams.

  • August 27, 2025

    Simpson Thacher Closes Co.'s Texas Logistics Properties Buy

    Stonepeak acquired two Fort Worth, Texas, logistics assets that take up 748,000 square feet in a deal guided by Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP, the alternative investment firm announced.

  • August 27, 2025

    Atty Eyes Chilling Effect From Texas Foreign Ownership Law

    In the latest effort by states to deter foreign control of real estate, Texas has introduced a sweeping prohibition, effective Sept. 1, against certain countries owning real property in the state. Polsinelli shareholder Weston B. Rockers explains how deals could be structured going forward — and how the law may scramble existing transactions.

  • August 26, 2025

    Expedia Says 11th Circ. Ruling Dooms Helms-Burton Verdict

    Expedia, Orbitz and Hotels.com tried to undo a $29.85 million verdict over Helms-Burton Act violations Tuesday, telling a Florida federal judge the plaintiff, who claims his family owned a Cuban barrier island before its seizure by Fidel Castro's government, does not meet the Eleventh Circuit's recently set standard.

  • August 26, 2025

    Kirkland Guides REIT's $285M Seattle Office Tower Refi

    Hudson Pacific Properties Inc., guided by Kirkland & Ellis LLP, obtained a five-year, interest-only $285 million loan in a Wells Fargo-led deal to refinance a loan secured by the real estate investment trust's 668,000-square-foot office tower in Seattle's Denny Triangle neighborhood.

  • August 26, 2025

    White & Case Guides Hotel REIT's $480M Company Sale

    Braemar Hotels & Resorts Inc., guided by White & Case LLP, wants to sell itself for at least $480 million, the luxury hotels- and resorts-focused real estate investment trust announced Tuesday.

  • August 26, 2025

    Feds Look To Dismiss Calif. Tribe's $700M Casino Dispute

    The U.S. Department of the Interior, with the backing of two tribes and the California Gaming Association, is looking to dismiss a lawsuit over its decision to temporarily nix eligibility for a proposed $700 million casino and hotel project, arguing it doesn't constitute a final agency action under the Administrative Procedure Act.

  • August 26, 2025

    Ohio House Bills Seek To End Or Limit Property Taxes

    Three bills introduced in the Ohio House of Representatives would eliminate property taxes by 2030, allow voters to introduce ballot initiatives to lower property taxes and increase the approval threshold for passage of certain property taxes.

  • August 26, 2025

    Tax Credit Dispute Sparks $1.3M Lawsuit Against Jersey City

    A prominent Garden State developer filed a lawsuit against New Jersey's second-largest city, claiming the city improperly reversed its position on a longstanding tax agreement — demanding nearly $1.3 million in back payments that the developer says it does not owe.

  • August 26, 2025

    NYC Real Estate Week In Review

    Fried Frank, Davis Polk and Seyfarth guided a Manhattan real estate deal north of $1 billion, the first 10-figure New York City deed that's hit records this year and one of three large trades that became public last week.

  • August 26, 2025

    Calif. Senate OKs New Tax Default Property Sales Rules

    California county boards of supervisors would be required to take new steps before approving the sale of a tax-defaulted property under a bill passed by the state Senate. 

  • August 26, 2025

    Medical Cannabis REIT Seeks Escape From Shareholders' Suit

    A cannabis-focused real estate investment trust and its executives told a Maryland federal court to permanently dismiss a proposed securities class action, arguing that most of the "core" accusations about them misleading shareholders "are speculative or factually unsupported."

Expert Analysis

  • Corporate Liability Issues To Watch In High Court TM Case

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    The U.S. Supreme Court will hear arguments in a trademark dispute between Dewberry Group and Dewberry Engineers next week, presenting an opportunity for the court to drastically alter the fundamental approach to piercing the corporate veil, or adopt a more limited approach and preserve existing norms, say attorneys at Bracewell.

  • Plugging Gov't Leaks Is Challenging, But Not A Pipe Dream

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    As shown by ongoing legal battles involving New York City Mayor Eric Adams and Sean “Diddy” Combs, it’s challenging for defendants to obtain relief when they believe the government leaked sensitive information to the media, but defense counsel can take certain steps to mitigate the harm, says Kenneth Notter at MoloLamken.

  • A Legal Perspective On NYC's Retail Real Estate Evolution

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    As New York City's retail market begins to show signs of resilience after the challenges of recent years, landlords must be cognizant of legal implications from shifting trends toward shorter-term leases and pop-up stores, says Andrea Gendel at Pryor Cashman.

  • What Interest Rate Cuts Mean For Housing Markets

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    The Federal Reserve's recent reduction of interest rates may provide limited immediate relief for real estate sectors, but offers potential opportunities for commercial real estate investors and construction firms, which now face an environment ripe for new projects, say attorneys at Cozen O'Connor.

  • How CFIUS' Updated Framework Affects Global Investors

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    The recent change to the monitoring and enforcement regulations governing the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States will broaden administrative practices around nonnotified transaction investigations, increase the scope of information demands from the committee and accelerate its ability to impose mitigation on parties, say attorneys at Simpson Thacher.

  • Foreclosing Lenders Still Floating In Murky Legal Waters In NY

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    The New York foreclosure landscape remains in disarray after the state's highest court last month declined to weigh in on whether legal changes from 2022 that severely curtailed lenders' ability to bring successive foreclosure cases were retroactive, says Brian Rich at Barclay Damon.

  • NYC Hotel Licensing Law's Costs May Outweigh Its Benefits

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    A hotel licensing bill recently approved by New York's City Council could lead to the loss of many nonunionized hotels that cannot afford to comply, says Stuart Saft at Holland & Knight.

  • Calif. Ruling Offers Hope For Mitigated Negative Declarations

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    In Upland Community First v. City of Upland, a California appeals court upheld a warehouse development's mitigated negative declaration over its greenhouse gas emissions thresholds — a rare victory against this type of challenge providing reassurance that such declarations can be upheld, say attorneys at Sheppard Mullin.

  • There's No Crying In Property Valuation Baseball Arbitration

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    The World Series is the perfect time to consider how the form of arbitration used for settling MLB salary disputes — in which each side offers competing valuations to an arbitrator, who must select one — is often ideal for resolving property valuation disputes, say Sean O’Donnell at Herrick Feinstein and Mark Dunec at FTI Consulting.

  • Webuild Ruling Complicates Arb. Award Enforcement In US

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    A Delaware federal court's recent decision in Sociedad Concesionaria Metropolitana de Salud v. Webuild, if read literally, could undercut the United States' image as a proarbitration jurisdiction by complicating creditors' efforts to enforce awards against property in this country, says Jeff Newton at Omni Bridgeway.

  • How To Avoid A Costly CPA Limitation Hidden In Most Leases

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    The lease audit rights clause is a seemingly innocuous provision in most commercial real estate leases that ends up costing tenants millions of dollars each year, as they have unwittingly agreed to retain only an accountant to investigate and settle financial issues, says Jason Aster at KBA Lease Services.

  • Navigating FEMA Grant Program For Slope Fixes After Storms

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    In the aftermath of Hurricanes Helene and Milton, it is critical for governments, businesses and individuals to understand the legal requirements of the Federal Emergency Management Agency's grant programs to obtain funding for crucial repairs — including restoration of damaged infrastructure caused by landslides and slope failures, says Charles Schexnaildre at Baker Donelson.

  • Smith's New Trump Indictment Is Case Study In Superseding

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    Special counsel Jack Smith’s recently revised Jan. 6 charges against former President Donald Trump provide lessons for prosecutors on how to effectively draft superseding indictments in order to buttress or streamline their case, as necessary, says Jessica Roth at Cardozo Law School.