Residential
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November 21, 2023
AmeriFirst Punts On Final DIP After Creditors File Release Suit
AmeriFirst Financial agreed Tuesday to delay a final ruling on its bankruptcy financing package after unsecured creditors in its Chapter 11 opened an adversary proceeding alleging the case was set up to exclusively benefit lender Reverence Capital Partners, which creditors say intentionally "destroyed" the debtor's business.
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November 21, 2023
East Harlem Landlord Says Nearby Project Is Sinking Building
The landlord of a nine-story mixed-use East Harlem building claimed Tuesday in a $6 million lawsuit that a developer's nearby construction project is causing the landlord's building to "sink and lean toward the construction site."
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November 21, 2023
Ga. Fragrance Co. Seeks Exit From Homeowners' Class Suit
A Georgia-based fragrance maker is seeking an early exit from a proposed class action brought by nearby homeowners who are accusing the company of negligence after a chemical explosion, saying its neighbors failed to provide any evidence or respond to discovery.
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November 21, 2023
DOJ Nabs Basquiat Painting In Malaysian Fund Clawback
"Wolf of Wall Street" producer Christopher "Joey" McFarland has agreed to surrender a self-portrait painted by the late artist Jean-Michel Basquiat as part of a settlement related to money laundering by a Malaysian state-owned investment fund.
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November 21, 2023
Real Estate Rumors: BridgeCity, Pittenger, Western Bank
BridgeCity Capital is said to have loaned $44 million for a Brooklyn residential project, former U.S. Rep. Robert Miller Pittenger has reportedly sold a Charlotte, North Carolina, mansion for a record $7.6 million, and Western Bank is said to have lent $27 million for a Florida project.
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November 21, 2023
Colo. Tax Measure Title Law Should Stand, Court Told
A Colorado law mandating disclosure of the potential impact on funding for state programs from tax changes in ballot measures does not regulate private speech or violate the First Amendment, Colorado's secretary of state told a federal court.
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November 21, 2023
NY Legal Aid Launches Public Housing Unit With Team of 5
New York Legal Aid says it is launching a public housing unit under the leadership of a civil law reform unit staff attorney that will confront the multifaceted challenges faced by the hundreds of thousands of New York City Housing Authority residents.
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November 21, 2023
5th Circ. Lifts Block On City's Sober Home Capacity Limit
A Fifth Circuit panel has lifted a district court's decision that blocked the city of Plano, Texas, from enforcing an eight-person zoning capacity limit on a sober living facility that asked to host more patients, saying the facility failed to prove the requested accommodation "was indispensable or essential."
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November 21, 2023
PE Real Estate Firm Loans $290M For Boston, NYC Towers
A Los Angeles-based private equity real estate firm has announced that it has provided financing for a pair of multifamily luxury towers in Boston and New York City, totaling $290 million in lending activity.
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November 21, 2023
McElroy Deutsch Says Stolen Funds Paid For Ex-Execs' Home
McElroy Deutsch Mulvaney & Carpenter LLP has told a New Jersey state court judge it will be able to show that two former firm executives used embezzled funds to purchase their million-dollar home, with the firm asking for restrictions to remain in place on the property during its civil case.
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November 21, 2023
New 276-Unit Apt. Complex To Come Up In Atlanta Suburb
Thompson Thrift will begin construction in December on its first apartment community in Georgia, which will be located in a suburb southwest of Atlanta, the company said Tuesday.
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November 21, 2023
Multigenerational Living Forces Rethink On Financing, Zoning
Multigenerational living has long been a tradition in certain communities, but as the classic American dream becomes less attainable, the multigenerational lifestyle is gaining traction among more families across the U.S., putting pressure on mortgage lenders and governments to rethink restrictive policies.
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November 20, 2023
Mont. Ranch Sues Forest Service Over Gate Access
Incline Ranch LLC on Monday accused the U.S. Forest Service of violating its easement with the ranch's owners by placing a gate to a nearby national forest on Incline's land, causing an overflow of public parking on the property and restricting access to portions of its acreage.
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November 20, 2023
RE Brokerage's Parent Co. Can Intervene In Coverage Suit
Century 21 Real Estate can intervene in a suit from its insurer that seeks to duck coverage claims in an underlying action over alleged violations of Washington state consumer protection laws, a federal magistrate judge said.
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November 20, 2023
Duolingo Notches PTAB Win On Computer Font Patent
The Patent Trial and Appeal Board has found that all challenged claims in a computer font patent were invalid, providing a boost to Duolingo Inc. and CoStar Realty Information Inc. as they fight infringement allegations over the patent in district court cases.
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November 20, 2023
NY Man Ordered To Pay $3.8M In Rental Fraud Case
An Empire State federal judge has ordered a Queens man to pay $3.8 million after a jury found the man guilty of stealing hundreds of thousands of dollars by renting out properties in New York City he didn't actually own.
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November 20, 2023
Atty Scolded For 'Scorched Earth' Tactics In Shooting Row
A Pennsylvania appeals panel on Monday scolded the attorney for a man suing over a shooting for "scorched earth" tactics and disregarding court rules by moving to schedule trial in the case while appeals were still pending.
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November 20, 2023
Re/Max, Anywhere Receive Initial OK For Antitrust Settlement
A Missouri federal court gave its preliminary blessing Monday to a settlement of claims against Re/Max and Anywhere, two of the brokerages that are defendants in a nationwide class action over an alleged conspiracy to fix buyer-broker fees.
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November 20, 2023
Insurers, Contractors Settle $4M Water Damage Row
A joint construction venture told a Florida federal court on Monday that its spat with a trio of insurers over coverage for a $4 million series of 2021 water damage incidents in a Miami high-rise was settled, and the court issued an administrative order closing the case the same day.
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November 20, 2023
Former Exec Says Real Estate Startup Reneged On Stock Deal
The former COO and co-founder of a startup real estate venture said its founder and the company breached his separation agreement and fired him without honoring a stock deal.
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November 20, 2023
Colo. Justices To Hear Landlord's Meth Lab Evidence Fight
The Colorado Supreme Court agreed on Monday to consider a landlord's appeal of sanctions over its alleged spoliation of evidence of a meth lab, with the landlord urging justices to adopt a clear standard for when a party's pre-litigation duty to preserve evidence is triggered.
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November 20, 2023
Insurer Wants NYC Apt. Flood Suit To Stay In Federal Court
An insurer who paid hundreds of thousands of dollars for flooding in a New York City apartment told a New York federal judge it should be allowed to seek repayment from the maintenance company it blames for the torrent, despite similar subsequent state court suits.
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November 20, 2023
AIG Unit Resolves Condo's $3.6M Irma Damage Coverage Suit
A Florida federal judge dismissed a Naples condominium association's $3.6 million Hurricane Irma damage lawsuit Monday against an AIG unit roughly a month after the parties resolved the case in mediation.
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November 20, 2023
Counties Say Homeowner's Seized Property Suit Must Go
A group of Michigan counties exhorted a federal judge to toss a renewed lawsuit that alleges they seized tax-delinquent properties and illegally kept the profits, saying the property owner repeated claims that were already rejected.
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November 20, 2023
AG Accuses Renovation Co. Of Elderly Homeowner Scheme
A presale home renovation company on Monday was hit with a lawsuit from the District of Columbia Attorney General Brian L. Schwalb claiming that the business targeted the elderly in a scheme that trapped owners into contracts for overpriced and lengthy repairs as they tried to sell their home, in violation of district laws.
Expert Analysis
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Ghosting In BigLaw: How To Come Back From Lack Of Feedback
Junior associates can feel powerless when senior colleagues cut off contact instead of providing useful feedback, but young attorneys can get back on track by focusing on practical professional development and reexamining their career priorities, says Rachel Patterson at Orrick.
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States Must Fight Predatory Real Estate Listing Agreements
As momentum against long-term real estate listing agreements continues to grow, states should take action to render existing agreements unenforceable and discourage future unfair and deceptive trade practices in real estate, says Elizabeth Blosser at the American Land Title Association.
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Steps To Success For Senior Associates
Excerpt from Practical Guidance
Adriana Paris at Rissman Barrett discusses the increased responsibilities and opportunities that becoming a senior associate brings and what attorneys in this role should prioritize to flourish in this stressful but rewarding next level in their careers.
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Legal Profession Must Do More For Lawyers With Disabilities
At the start of Disability Pride month, Rosalyn Richter at Arnold & Porter looks at why lawyers with disabilities are significantly underrepresented in private practice, asserting that law firms and other employers must do more to conquer the implicit bias that deters attorneys from seeking accommodations.
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Ohio Tax Talk: Building On Federal Affordable Housing Credit
Ohio's soon-to-be-implemented low-income housing tax credit could significantly affect the state's affordable housing landscape and influence tax-credit deal financing for these projects, though Senate changes may have dampened the new credit's immense potential, say Raghav Agnihotri and Rachael Chamberlain at Frost Brown.
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Appellate Funding Disclosure: No Mandate Is Right Choice
The Advisory Committee on Appellate Rules' recent decision, forgoing a mandatory disclosure rule for litigation funding in federal appeals, is prudent, as third-party funding is only involved in a minuscule number of federal cases, and courts have ample authority to obtain funding information if necessary, says Stewart Ackerly at Statera Capital.
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LA's High-Value Real Estate Transfer Tax Should Be Scrapped
Los Angeles’ recently implemented high-value property transfer tax has chilled the real estate market, is failing to meet revenue expectations and raises significant constitutional concerns, making it a flawed piece of legislation that should be invalidated, says attorney Paul Weinberg.
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How Attys Can Avoid Exposing Their Firms To Cyberattacks
Attorneys are the weakest link in their firms' cyberdefenses because hackers often exploit the gap between individuals’ work and personal cybersecurity habits, but there are some steps lawyers can take to reduce the risks they create for their employers, say Mark Hurley and Carmine Cicalese at Digital Privacy & Protection.
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Foreign Investment In Real Estate Is Getting More Complicated
Increasing federal scrutiny and a proliferation of new state laws targeting foreign investment in real estate may complicate or prevent transactions even by U.S. companies or funds that have shareholders or limited partners from China and other countries of concern, say attorneys at Akin.
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Virginia 'Rocket Docket' Slowdown Is Likely A Blip
After being the fastest or second-fastest federal civil trial court for 14 straight years, the Eastern District of Virginia has slid to 18th place, but the rocket docket’s statistical tumble doesn't mean the district no longer maintains a speedy civil docket, says Robert Tata at Hunton.
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Home Equity Option Contracts Appear Ripe For Rating
Given that home equity option contracts share similarities with evolving asset types like litigation funding, and that courts continue to characterize them as real estate option contracts, it seems they are poised to be rated in the near future, say Darius Horton and Holly Spencer Bunting at Mayer Brown.
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5 Management Tips To Keep Law Firm Merger Talks Moving
Many law firm mergers that make solid business sense still fall apart due to the costs and frustrations of inefficient negotiations, but firm managers can increase the chance of success by effectively planning and executing merger discussions, say Lisa Smith and Kristin Stark at Fairfax Associates.
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2 Critical Shortfalls In Fla. Condo Safety Amendments
New amendments to Florida's Building Safety Act provide condominium associations with more flexibility to comply with inspection deadlines, but vaguely defined extension criteria and unambiguous lines of responsibility warrant further legislative action, say Jordan Isrow and Andrew Ingber at Government Law Group.