More Real Estate Coverage

  • April 10, 2024

    FBI, GSA Face Criticism Over Response To HQ Site Probe

    Republican lawmakers continued to criticize the FBI and General Services Administration on Wednesday over contentious plans for a new FBI headquarters, citing concerns over the planned site and size of the facility, and the agencies' responses to a related investigation.

  • April 10, 2024

    Real Estate Fund Raising Still Muted With $14B Bagged In Q1

    The biggest funds to close in the first three months of 2024 showed that investors are banking on multifamily, industrial and hospitality assets to net returns as the commercial real estate industry continues to hiccup, while capital raising overall is down compared to prior quarters.

  • April 10, 2024

    Real Estate M&A Is Down, But Perhaps Not For Long

    Mergers and acquisitions activity in the U.S. real estate industry was quieter than usual in the first quarter of the year, with 14 transactions closing at a combined total of nearly $3 billion, but signs indicate that more deals may be coming down the pipeline.

  • April 09, 2024

    Ohio Justices Voice Displeasure With Woodland Deduction

    Several Ohio Supreme Court justices sounded skeptical Tuesday of the state tax commissioner's valuation of a deduction for clearing woodlands that factors into assessments of agricultural properties, saying the figure appeared to be arbitrarily low.

  • April 08, 2024

    Citibank Can't Dodge Liability After Escrow Theft

    A Washington state appeals court said Monday that Citibank and a predecessor lender can't avoid liability after an escrow agent allegedly embezzled nearly $1 million from a real estate company's refinancing deals, in an opinion that said the trial court failed to correctly apply controlling case law still "good" after 70 years.

  • April 08, 2024

    Idaho Land Deal Would Sustain Legacy Of Pollution, Tribes Say

    A group of Idaho tribes is urging the Ninth Circuit to uphold a lower court ruling granting a partial win in their challenge to a land transfer for a fertilizer plant's expansion, arguing that if allowed to go forward, it would continue a decadeslong legacy of contamination for their communities.

  • April 08, 2024

    Mich. Regulators' Fraud Fears Are 'Nonsense,' Developer Says

    A real estate developer has told Michigan's high court that the state is raising unfounded concerns that Michigan will become a haven for fraudsters if the top court does not adopt a federal judicially created test to determine when an investment is a security, telling the justices Michigan's own securities law is controlling.

  • April 08, 2024

    Tribes Say Army Corps Mistakes Their Claims In 5th Circ. Row

    Two Native American tribes and a conservation group have told the Fifth Circuit that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and an Enbridge Inc. unit have intentionally mischaracterized their claims in litigation seeking to challenge the agency's permit authorization for a major oil terminal on Texas' Gulf Coast.

  • April 08, 2024

    Oak Flat Mining Decision Treads On Human Rights, UN Told

    The San Carlos Apache Tribe is urging a United Nations committee to ask the United States to withhold any permissions that would allow Resolution Copper Co. to proceed with any activity on a plot of land known as Oak Flat, arguing that a Ninth Circuit ruling allowing the land transfer merits urgent intervention to prevent further human rights violations on the sacred site.

  • April 05, 2024

    NJ Recycler's Fire Damage Suit To Remain In NJ, Judge Rules

    A New Jersey federal judge declined to move a paper recycler's fire coverage dispute to New York, but did agree to toss one of its claims against its insurer, finding the recycler's declaratory judgment and breach of contract claims were duplicative.

  • April 05, 2024

    5th Circ. Won't Touch Texas Oil Export Terminal License

    The Fifth Circuit has rejected environmentalists' attempt to undo federal approval for a deepwater oil export terminal off Texas' Gulf Coast, finding the U.S. Coast Guard adequately considered the environmental consequences of the facility in its environmental assessment.

  • April 04, 2024

    PE Firm Announces $1.25B JV To Buy, Develop Marinas

    Private equity firm Centerbridge Partners LP and marina owner Suntex Marina Investors LLC have formed a joint venture that aims to acquire and develop new marinas in the U.S. that are worth more than $1.25 billion, according to a joint announcement.

  • April 03, 2024

    Nationstar Adds 'Junk Fee' For Loan Payoff Quote, Suit Says

    A proposed class hit Nationstar Mortgage LLC with a suit alleging the mortgage servicing firm illegally charges homeowners a "junk fee" for written payoff quotes in violation of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.

  • April 03, 2024

    Mortgage Co. Targeted In News Report Hit With RICO Suit

    United Wholesale Mortgage LLC, its parent company and its CEO were hit with a proposed class action Tuesday in Michigan federal court accusing them of scheming with mortgage brokers to steer borrowers into more expensive loans the same day that Hunterbrook Media, a new journalism and hedge fund outfit, published its first investigative piece focused on the company.

  • April 03, 2024

    Maine Nuclear Waste Sites Not Eligible For Tax Exemption

    Maine won't allow facilities that store spent nuclear fuel to qualify as air pollution control facilities for property tax exemption purposes under clarifying legislation signed by the governor.

  • April 03, 2024

    Skanska Inks $1.4B Contract To Replace Seattle Bridge

    Skanska and Washington's Department of Transportation closed a $1.4 billion bridge replacement contract that aims to update Seattle's Portage Bay Bridge so that it's up to "current seismic resiliency standards," the construction and development company announced.

  • April 01, 2024

    Investors Group Says New EB-5 Guidance Violates APA

    A trade association of EB-5 visa regional centers brought U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services into D.C. federal court, accusing the agency of abruptly changing the minimum investment period for foreigner investors seeking green cards without soliciting public comments.

  • April 01, 2024

    SmartRent Workers Get Class Cert. In Unpaid OT Row

    A Georgia federal judge has granted conditional class certification to a group of former and current employees of a smart home technology firm, who allege the company failed to compensate them correctly for overtime hours they worked.

  • April 01, 2024

    Trump Urges 11th Circ. To Revive $475M CNN Defamation Suit

    Donald Trump has asked the Eleventh Circuit to revive a $475 million defamation lawsuit the former president filed against CNN, alleging the network spent years "wrongfully Hitlerizing" him by calling his challenges to the 2020 election results his "Big Lie."

  • April 01, 2024

    High Court Won't Hear Mass. Residents' Tribal Land Dispute

    The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday denied a petition by a group of Massachusetts residents seeking to reverse a ruling that allowed the Department of the Interior to take 321 acres into trust for the development of a billion-dollar tribal hotel and casino.

  • March 29, 2024

    Atty Called A Flight Risk In $1.3 Billion Tax Fraud Case

    An attorney serving a 23-year prison sentence for tax fraud in a $1.3 billion conservation easement scheme is a flight risk and should remain in federal custody while he waits for his appeal, the government told a Georgia federal court Friday.

  • March 28, 2024

    8th Circ. Won't Revive Fannie, Freddie Investors' FHFA Suit

    The Eighth Circuit on Thursday refused to revive Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac investors' suit alleging the Federal Housing Finance Agency's leadership and financial deals violated the U.S. Constitution, saying the investors failed to show how they were harmed by the now-upended restrictions on removing the agency's director.

  • March 28, 2024

    Va. Landowners Return To Supreme Court In FERC Challenge

    Virginia residents with property being condemned for the Mountain Valley Pipeline are asking the U.S. Supreme Court to review a D.C. Circuit decision dismissing their suit challenging the constitutionality of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's eminent domain authority, and its ability to delegate that authority to private companies.

  • March 27, 2024

    Navajo Sue Feds Over Withheld Forestry Program Funds

    The Navajo Nation claims the U.S. Department of the Interior unlawfully withheld more than a million dollars in funding for its contracted forestry management program, telling a D.C. federal judge the department should be forced to provide the money and accept the funding agreements proposed by the nation.

  • March 27, 2024

    Pittsburgh Aims To Ax $14M Of Nonprofits' Tax Waivers

    Officials with the city of Pittsburgh announced Wednesday that they will file challenges to tax exemptions for more than 100 properties within the city, claiming that they are no longer owned by nonprofits or serving a charitable function and should put up to $14 million back on local tax rolls.

Expert Analysis

  • Unpacking Long-Awaited Clean Energy Tax Credit Guidance

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    Recently proposed Internal Revenue Service regulations provide welcome confirmatory guidance on the application of investment tax credits as reworked by 2022's Inflation Reduction Act, prevailing wage and apprenticeship rules that are largely consistent with market expectations, and broader eligibility criteria that should please the wind power industry in particular, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

  • Understanding Discovery Obligations In Era Of Generative AI

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    Attorneys and businesses must adapt to the unique discovery challenges presented by generative artificial intelligence, such as chatbot content and prompts, while upholding the principles of fairness, transparency and compliance with legal obligations in federal civil litigation, say attorneys at King & Spalding.

  • Navigating USCIS' New Minimum EB-5 Investment Period

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    Recent significant modifications to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services’ EB-5 at-risk requirement are causing uncertainty for several reasons, but investors who consider certain key aspects of prospective projects can mitigate the immigration and investment risks, say Samuel Silverman at EB5AN, Ronald Klasko at Klasko Immigration, and Kate Kalmykov at Greenberg Traurig.

  • ESG Around The World: Mexico

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    ESG has yet to become part of the DNA of the Mexican business model, but huge strides are being made in that direction, as more stakeholders demand that companies adopt, at the least, a modicum of sustainability commitments and demonstrate how they will meet them, says Carlos Escoto at Galicia Abogados.

  • The Case For Post-Bar Clerk Training Programs At Law Firms

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    In today's competitive legal hiring market, an intentionally designed training program for law school graduates awaiting bar admission can be an effective way of creating a pipeline of qualified candidates, says Brent Daub at Gilson Daub.

  • DC Ruling Provides Support For Builders Risk Claim Recovery

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    To deny coverage for builders risk claims, insurers have been increasingly relying on two arguments, both of which have been invalidated in the recent U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia decision, South Capitol Bridgebuilders v. Lexington, say Greg Podolak and Cheryl Kozdrey at Saxe Doernberger.

  • What NJ's Green Remediation Guidance Means For Cleanups

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    Recent guidance from the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection promoting greener approaches to restoring contaminated sites demonstrates the state's commitment to sustainability and environmental justice — but could also entail more complexity, higher costs and longer remediation timelines, say J. Michael Showalter and Bradley Rochlen at ArentFox Schiff.

  • AI Can Help Lawyers Overcome The Programming Barrier

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    Legal professionals without programming expertise can use generative artificial intelligence to harness the power of automation and other technology solutions to streamline their work, without the steep learning curve traditionally associated with coding, says George Zalepa at Greenberg Traurig.

  • Preparing Law Students For A New, AI-Assisted Legal World

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    As artificial intelligence rapidly transforms the legal landscape, law schools must integrate technology and curricula that address AI’s innate challenges — from ethics to data security — to help students stay ahead of the curve, say Daniel Garrie at Law & Forensics, Ryan Abbott at JAMS and Karen Silverman at Cantellus Group.

  • ESG Around The World: South Korea

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    Numerous ESG trends have materialized in South Korea in the past three years, with impacts ranging from greenwashing prevention and carbon neutrality measures to workplace harassment and board diversity initiatives, say Chang Wook Min and Hyun Chan Jung at Jipyong.

  • General Counsel Need Data Literacy To Keep Up With AI

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    With the rise of accessible and powerful generative artificial intelligence solutions, it is imperative for general counsel to understand the use and application of data for myriad important activities, from evaluating the e-discovery process to monitoring compliance analytics and more, says Colin Levy at Malbek.

  • AI Isn't The Wild West, So Prepare Now For Bias Risks

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    In addition to President Joe Biden's recent historic executive order on safe, secure and trustworthy artificial intelligence, there are existing federal and state laws prohibiting fraud, defamation and even discrimination, so companies considering using or developing AI should take steps to minimize legal and business risks, says civil rights attorney Farhana Khera.

  • Navigating Discovery Of Generative AI Information

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    As generative artificial intelligence tools become increasingly ubiquitous, companies must make sure to preserve generative AI data when there is reasonable expectation of litigation, and to include transcripts in litigation hold notices, as they may be relevant to discovery requests, say Nick Peterson and Corey Hauser at Wiley.

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