Commercial

  • November 25, 2024

    Hemp Sellers Say Conn. Cannabis Laws Violate Constitution

    A dozen Connecticut hemp retailers filed a federal lawsuit against the governor and attorney general challenging a number of state laws meant to regulate so-called high-THC hemp products, claiming the statutes are so vague they are unconstitutional.

  • November 25, 2024

    NYC Real Estate Week In Review

    Goldgrub Law and Mandelbaum Barrett are among the law firms that steered the largest New York City real estate deals to hit public records last week, a period that saw several large residential transactions across Manhattan and Queens.

  • November 25, 2024

    Law Firm Leasing Surpasses Pre-COVID Rate So Far In 2024

    The rate at which U.S. law firms are signing major office leases — those at or above 20,000 square feet — has surpassed pre-pandemic levels, according to new data released by Savills on Monday, showing that while activity is up, firms are divided on whether to expand, downsize or maintain their square footage.

  • November 25, 2024

    Aztec Fund Can Sell Colorado Building For $4.5M In Ch. 11

    A Texas bankruptcy judge Monday gave his blessing for bankrupt private equity investor Aztec Fund Holding Inc. to sell one of its real estate properties to Valley Equity Group LLC for just over $4.5 million.

  • November 25, 2024

    AG Slams Bid To 'Indoctrinate' Public In NJ RICO Case

    New Jersey Attorney General Matt Platkin has rebuffed attacks from businessman George Norcross and others charged in his office's sprawling racketeering case in a pair of opposition filings, accusing the defendants of attempting to try the case in the press and contending that their argument to toss the case is out of place.

  • November 25, 2024

    Fla. Judge Trims Complaint Over Deadly Crane Collapse

    A Florida state court judge Monday dismissed several liability counts against a Connecticut manufacturer sued in a lawsuit over a crane collapse in downtown Fort Lauderdale that killed a worker and injured at least two other people, saying the liability allegations must be more specific.

  • November 25, 2024

    Land-Use Attys Praise NYC's Modified Zoning Plan

    Land-use attorneys say a revised version of Mayor Eric Adams' City of Yes plan — New York City's most comprehensive zoning overhaul in over 60 years, if approved — will speed up affordable housing production, yet they stressed a continued need for more infrastructure investment and funding.

  • November 25, 2024

    3 Firms Guide $11.5B Building Materials Co. Buyout

    Summit Materials Inc. announced Monday that it has reached an agreement to be bought out by rival Quikrete Holdings Inc. that sees the construction materials company valued at $11.5 billion, in a deal guided by Davis Polk, Troutman Pepper and Covington.

  • November 25, 2024

    Justices Won't Review Mich. Gun Range Ban

    The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday rejected a proposed gun range's challenge to a Michigan town's zoning denial, denying its petition over Second Amendment protections for firearm training.

  • November 22, 2024

    Trump Taps Hedge Fund Billionaire Bessent To Head Treasury

    President-elect Donald Trump on Friday announced that he's selected Scott Bessent, a billionaire hedge fund manager and the founder of Key Square Group, to serve as secretary of the Treasury in his upcoming administration.

  • November 22, 2024

    NJ Hospital Must Give Up More Info In Exemption Fight

    A New Jersey hospital seeking a property tax exemption for unused floors in its building must produce more documentation to show the extent to which it tried to sell or lease that space, the state Tax Court said.

  • November 22, 2024

    Trustee To Take Over Ch. 11 Of NY Bar Assoc. Building Owner

    A New Jersey bankruptcy judge on Friday sided with a lender of the insolvent owner of the historic New York County Lawyers Association Building in Manhattan, ordering that a Chapter 11 trustee take over the property owner's bankruptcy cases.

  • November 22, 2024

    Big Lots Can Close On $760M Asset Sale, Judge Says

    A Delaware bankruptcy judge Friday approved the $760 million sale of bankrupt discount retail chain Big Lots to a private equity group and told creditors they were out of time to challenge the company's Chapter 11 financing.

  • November 22, 2024

    Property Plays: Fannie Mae, Extell, Knott Development

    Property Plays is a weekly roundup of the latest loans, leases, sales and projects around the country. Send your tips — all confidential — to realestate@law360.com.

  • November 21, 2024

    Ill. High Court Won't Shield Sun-Times In Trump Tax Case

    The Illinois Supreme Court ruled Thursday that the Chicago Sun-Times can't use an anti-SLAPP law to duck a defamation suit over the paper's coverage of an investigation into a $1 million property tax reduction granted to Trump Tower during the president-elect's first term.

  • November 21, 2024

    Weed Co. Must Pay $5M To Entrepeneur In Investor Dispute

    A marijuana consulting firm must pay $5 million to a former business partner after allegedly derailing plans to purchase a marijuana grow facility in Michigan by convincing the main investors to put their money into a Colorado weed business instead.

  • November 21, 2024

    Concerns Remain Over Pricing In Final Calif. Insurance Rule

    Insurers in California will be able to price policies using catastrophe models meant to predict future climate risks, but they must adhere to one of several options for increasing coverage availability, under a final rule that has left lingering concerns. Here, Law360 provides a background and overview of the regulation on catastrophe modeling and ratemaking.

  • November 21, 2024

    NYC Watchdog Calls Stadiums Bad Bet In Willets Point Report

    New York City's Independent Budget Office said Thursday that stadiums have proved a poor use of tax dollars in the first tally of expenses since Mayor Eric Adams announced a project to bring a soccer stadium, hotel and affordable housing to the city's Willets Point district in Queens.

  • November 21, 2024

    EB-5 Experts Eyeing 4 Suits For Needed Clarity

    A 2022 law that revived and revamped the EB-5 immigrant investor visa program has left stakeholders with unanswered questions, and immigration attorneys said at a webinar Wednesday that they're eyeing four current cases for potential answers.

  • November 21, 2024

    Hype For Energy Tax Perks Could Shield Regs From Repeal

    President-elect Donald Trump and Republican lawmakers could turn to an oversight tool called the Congressional Review Act to undermine clean energy tax credit regulations implementing key parts of Democrats' signature climate law, but the strategy may falter due to GOP support for the incentives.

  • November 21, 2024

    Ga. Attys' Easement Fraud Class Suit Shipped To State Court

    A Georgia federal judge kicked back to state court a proposed class action accusing conservation easement fund organizers of racketeering and defrauding investors, saying the organizers failed to prove that the proposed class had at least 100 investors or that the case hinged on federal law.

  • November 21, 2024

    Experts Cool On 'Chill' Defense In NJ RICO Case

    Former prosecutors and academics are doubtful two of New Jersey's most politically connected attorneys can convince a judge that the racketeering case against them will have a chilling effect on lawyering, given that prosecutors only have to show they knew the end game of the notorious Democratic power broker they're accused of helping.

  • November 21, 2024

    La. Parishes Can't Change Property Values After Court Rulings

    Louisiana parish assessors lack the authority to unilaterally change a property's assessment if they become aware of an error in the assessment after a local board or the state Tax Commission sets the property's value, the state attorney general's office said.

  • November 21, 2024

    PierFerd Adds Fla. Transactions Partner From Taylor English

    Pierson Ferdinand LLP just got a bit larger with the addition of a partner in Miami from Taylor English Duma LLP, bringing expertise in real estate, banking and financial services that is expected to bolster the firm's ongoing growth.

  • November 20, 2024

    Suit Alleges Fraud In Scuttled Deal Over Calif. Pot Grow

    A California company is looking to claw back a $250,000 down payment to purchase a cannabis entity's cultivation operation, claiming a grower and others involved in the failed deal conspired to take the money, according to a lawsuit filed in California state court.

Expert Analysis

  • Why Courts Are Nixing Insurer Defense Recoupment Claims

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    Following a recent trend, the Hawaii Supreme Court's decision in St. Paul Fire & Marine Insurance Co. v. Bodell Construction Co. provides a concise explanation of the argument that an insurer generally may not recoup costs for defending claims, based on three considerations, says Bradley Nash at Hoguet Newman.

  • The SEC's Cooled Down But Still Spicy Private Fund Rules

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    Timothy Spangler and Lindsay Trapp at Dechert consider recently finalized U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission rules, which significantly alter the scope of obligations private fund advisers must meet under the Investment Advisers Act, noting the absence of several contentious proposals and litigation that could result in implementation delays.

  • Trump NY Fraud Trial Shows Civil, Criminal Case Differences

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    Former President Donald Trump’s civil fraud trial currently unfolding in New York provides a reminder that civil bench trials can be just as damaging, if not more so, than criminal prosecutions, due to several key elements of civil litigation procedure, says retired attorney David Moskowitz.

  • A Year-End Look At Florida's Capital Investment Tax Credit

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    Notwithstanding the Walt Disney Co.’s feud with Gov. Ron DeSantis this year, Florida's capital investment tax credit will continue to make the state a favored destination for large corporations, particularly in light of the new federal alternative minimum tax and the Pillar Two top-up tax, says Alan Lederman at Gunster.

  • Crypto Has Democratized Trading In Bankruptcy Claims

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    Following the pandemic, there has been a wave of cryptocurrency bankruptcies and a related increase in access to information, allowing nontraditional bankruptcy investors to purchase claims and democratizing a once closed segment of alternative investing, says Joseph Sarachek at Strategic Liquidity.

  • Paths Forward For RE Buyers In Turbulent Market Conditions

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    Real estate borrowers are facing significant challenges in financing new acquisitions or developments amid escalating interest rates, but opportunistic debt funds may be able to help bridge through the present environment, say Jon Gallant and Jared Hodges at Knowles Gallant.

  • 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.

  • Inside Bank Regulators' Community Lending Law Overhaul

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    The federal banking agencies' recently finalized changes to the Community Reinvestment Act not only account for the gradual shift to an environment where lending and deposit-taking are primarily conducted online, but also implement other updates such as diversity initiatives and a new series of lending tests, say attorneys at Norton Rose.

  • Sellers Seeking Best Deal Should Focus On Terms And Price

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    Rising interest rates and a decline in the automotive mergers and acquisitions market mean that a failed deal carries greater stakes, and sellers therefore should pursue not only the optimum price but also the optimum terms to safeguard their agreement, says Joseph Aboyoun at Fox Rothschild.

  • Illinois Trump Tower Ruling Illuminates Insurance 'Occurrence'

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    In Continental Casualty v. 401 North Wabash Venture, an Illinois appellate court found that Trump Tower was not entitled to insurance coverage for operating its HVAC system without a permit, helping to further define a widely litigated general liability insurance issue — what constitutes an "occurrence," say Robert Tugander and Greg Mann at Rivkin Radler.

  • A Bird's Eye View Of NYC's New Parapet Inspection Law

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    Building owners in New York City should be ready for the city's new parapet inspection requirements going into effect in January, which will likely necessitate additional construction work for countless buildings not previously subject to formal inspections, says Benjamin Fox Tracy at Braverman Greenspun.

  • How Fla. Bankruptcy Ruling May Affect Equity Owners

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    A Florida bankruptcy court’s recent ruling in Vital Pharmaceuticals — which rejected the Third Circuit’s Majestic Star decision that determined a bankrupt corporation’s flow-through status was not protected by the automatic stay — may significantly affect how equity owners can mitigate the impact of flow-through structures in bankruptcy, say Eric Behl-Remijan and Natasha Hwangpo at Ropes & Gray.