Commercial

  • April 09, 2025

    Ill. Real Estate Broker Gets 4 Years For $3M Investment Scam

    A Chicago real estate broker has been sentenced to more than four years in prison after pleading guilty last year to allegations he duped clients into investing millions of dollars in properties that did not exist and then used the investors' funds for personal expenses, federal prosecutors announced Wednesday.

  • April 09, 2025

    Banks Back Private Credit's Rise. Should Borrowers Care?

    Banks provide back-financing in most real estate private credit deals and often have a say on what happens when a loan goes bad, but attorneys have different opinions about whether borrowers should be tuned into what's going on with their debt behind the scenes.

  • April 09, 2025

    Colliers Says Q1 Atlanta Office Market Trends Toward Balance

    Commercial broker Colliers said construction activity remained at its lowest level since 2011 in the first quarter as the overall vacancy rate rose slightly on a quarterly basis to 24.2% in Atlanta's office market.

  • April 09, 2025

    Mich. City Says Pot Co. Can't Challenge Rivals' Licenses

    A Michigan city is urging a federal court to throw out a suit by a would-be dispensary alleging that the city violated state law and the Constitution when it awarded its cannabis licenses, saying the company does not have a property right to sell substances that are illegal under federal law.

  • April 09, 2025

    Miami Offices See Uptick, Despite Decline In Construction

    The Miami office market got off to a positive start in 2025 after slowing down last year, although construction activity continued to decline in the sector, according to a new report from global real estate advisory firm Avison Young.

  • April 09, 2025

    Trade Policy Prompts Fla. 'Wait-And-See' Effect, CBRE Says

    Commercial broker CBRE said firms in Jacksonville, Florida's industrial market may be taking a "wait-and-see approach" while digesting changes in trade policy, based on Q1 figures showing the market saw its first quarter of negative absorption since 2019.

  • April 09, 2025

    Blackstone Clinches $10.8B European Real Estate Fund

    Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP-advised private equity giant Blackstone on Wednesday announced that it wrapped its latest European real estate fund with €9.8 billion ($10.8 billion) of total capital commitments.

  • April 08, 2025

    Expedia's Cuban Island Bookings Were Illegal, Jurors Told

    A Cuban-American man who says he is the rightful heir to an island off the coast of Cuba that was seized by the Communist government told jurors Tuesday that Expedia illegally trafficked in stolen property by offering reservations for resorts on the island through its website.

  • April 08, 2025

    NY High Court Probes If State Emissions Cap Preempts City's

    New York's highest court questioned Tuesday why the state Legislature did not explicitly state that it meant for a 2019 climate law to preempt a law regulating greenhouse gas emissions that New York City passed earlier that year, amid property owners' challenge to the city law.

  • April 08, 2025

    Univ. Of The Arts Gets Last Ch. 7 Property Sale Approved

    Philadelphia's University of the Arts received the Delaware bankruptcy court's approval Tuesday for its sale of an historic building, the seventh and final real estate sale in the defunct school's Chapter 7 case.

  • April 08, 2025

    Cushman Atty Transitions In-House As Kidder Mathews GC

    Kidder Mathews announced Monday that it has hired Edward Castro, a 30-year corporate attorney with experience in commercial real estate law, as general counsel advising the company and its 19 West Coast offices.

  • April 08, 2025

    House Panel Tallies Office Waste After DOGE, GSA Scrutiny

    Republicans on a U.S. House committee cast the federal government's office footprint as costly, out of date and underused in a Tuesday hearing that came after a federal agency posted and then promptly removed a list of some 440 buildings it described as "non-core" last month.

  • April 08, 2025

    Contractor's Win In Insurance Fraud Suit Upheld By 6th Circ.

    A Sixth Circuit panel affirmed Continental Building Co.'s defeat of a lawsuit that leveled insurance fraud claims at the general contractor, finding a subcontractor failed to trace its losses to Continental's claim that it defaulted on a contract.

  • April 08, 2025

    Mass. Board Upholds Town's Value Of Commerical Property

    An owner of a commercial property in Massachusetts failed to produce comparable sales to substantiate reducing the property's valuation by more than $400,000, the state Appellate Tax Board ruled Tuesday.

  • April 08, 2025

    Design Co. Denied Exit From Hurricane Subrogation Suit

    A design contractor facing a $4 million subrogation action over hurricane damage to commercial HVAC units at an Amazon sorting facility can't rely on notice requirements in Florida's construction defect law, Chapter 558, to argue the plaintiff insurers are statutorily barred from seeking reimbursement, a Florida federal court ruled.

  • April 08, 2025

    Lowndes Adds Fla. Real Estate Attorney From Shutts & Bowen

    The Lowndes law firm announced it had added Jason Williams, a former Shutts & Bowen LLP partner, as an Orlando, Florida-based shareholder in its commercial real estate department.

  • April 08, 2025

    Battery Park City Authority Hires Ex-CBRE Atty As GC

    Former CBRE legal counsel and managing director Elaine Kleinberg has been hired as general counsel for New York state's Battery Park City Authority, the public benefit corporation announced Monday.

  • April 08, 2025

    Olshan Frome Expands Real Estate Group With New Partner

    New York-based Olshan Frome Wolosky LLP has added an experienced real estate partner from Mintz Levin Cohn Ferris Glovsky and Popeo PC, in a move meant to aid in the expansion of the midsize firm's real estate law group.

  • April 08, 2025

    Rhodium Gets OK For $185M Settlement With Landlord

    A Texas bankruptcy judge on Tuesday approved a $185 million asset sale to settle a dispute between Rhodium Encore and its remaining landlord that will allow the bankrupt cryptocurrency miner to wipe out its debt with enough left over to pay shareholders.

  • April 07, 2025

    VA Plans Office Expansions Amid Federal Leasing Pullback

    The U.S. General Services Administration notified Congress of its plans to relocate, expand or consolidate existing U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs medical facility leases to the tune of an extra $205 million annually, even as the federal government sheds leases to cut costs.

  • April 07, 2025

    DOJ Says Partnerships Can't Wipe Out $4M Tax Lien

    Two partnerships cannot use a mortgage sale to foreclose on properties and wipe out the government's $4 million tax lien on a couple's real estate, the U.S. told a Washington federal court.

  • April 07, 2025

    Honigman Hires Ex-Ice Miller Real Estate Atty In Chicago

    Honigman LLP added former Ice Miller LLP partner Michael R. Tirman as a real estate transactions partner in its Chicago office, the firm announced Monday.

  • April 07, 2025

    Ex-TBS GC Chairs CoStar Board In Latham-Advised Refresh

    Latham & Watkins LLP advised CoStar Group on a "refreshment" of the company's board of directors that includes a new role for a former Turner Broadcasting Systems general counsel, according to a Monday announcement that follows pressure from hedge funds D.E. Shaw and Third Point.

  • April 07, 2025

    Denver Builder Says Ex-Employee Stole Info For Competitor

    A full-service general building contractor has accused a former employee and an industry rival in Colorado state court of using stolen confidential business information to make a competitive bid for a 2025 "large scale" Colorado project that's anticipated to create more than $20 million in revenue.

  • April 07, 2025

    In New York, Law Firms Are Staying Put

    Many law firms are opting to stay in their current offices in New York City. Here, Law360 Pulse looks at what is driving their decisions.

Expert Analysis

  • Climate Among Many Factors Driving Up RE Insurance Costs

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    A proactive approach to risk management may determine the viability of the U.S. commercial real estate sector as weather crises and other factors drive insurance costs higher, says Ulrick Matsunaga at Crosbie Gliner.

  • Bid Protest Spotlight: Debriefings, Timeliness, Documentation

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    ​James Tucker at MoFo examines three recent decisions from the Federal Circuit, the U.S. Government Accountability Office and the U.S. Court of Federal Claims concerning an agency's decision not to hold post-award discussions, a timeliness trap in certain Federal Supply Schedule procurements and the importance of providing contemporaneous documentation in price-evaluation protests.

  • A Look At Recent Case Law On Expedited Judgment In NY

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    A number of recent New York state court decisions clarify and refine the contours surrounding Civil Practice Law and Rule 3213, providing landlords, lenders and other payees guidance on how to seek accelerated judgment in certain litigation, says Alexander Lycoyannis at Holland & Knight.

  • Dealmaker Lessons From CFIUS' New Enforcement Webpage

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    The Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States’ recently launched webpage, which details the actions — and inactions — that led to enforcement activity, provides important insights for dealmakers about filing requirements, mitigation commitments and the cost of noncompliance, say attorneys at Dechert.

  • Reassessing Lease Provisions To Account For ESG Initiatives

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    As companies seek to build ESG considerations into their businesses, it's crucial to understand how such initiatives can quickly become significant enough to compel reassessment of lease agreement provisions, and how best to modify leases accordingly, say Julian Freeman and Gabe Pitassi at Cox Castle.

  • Avoid Getting Burned By Agencies' Solar Financing Spotlight

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    Recently coordinated reports and advisories from the U.S. Department of the Treasury, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the Federal Trade Commission maximize the spotlight on the consumer solar financing market and highlight pitfalls for lenders to avoid in this burgeoning field, says Mercedes Tunstall at Cadwalader.

  • Co-Tenancy Clause Pointers For Shopping Center Landlords

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    Large retail tenants often require co-tenancy provisions in their leases, entitling them to remedies if a shopping center's occupancy drops in certain ways, but landlords must draft these provisions carefully to avoid giving tenants too much control, says Gary Glick at Cox Castle.

  • Assessing Algorithmic Versus Generative AI Pricing Tools

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    A comparison of traditional algorithmic pricing models and those powered by generative artificial intelligence can help regulators and practitioners weigh the pros and cons of relying on large language models to price products or services, say Maxime Cohen at McGill University, and Tim Spittle and Jimmy Royer at Analysis Group.

  • Navigating A Potpourri Of Possible Transparency Act Pitfalls

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    Despite the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network's continued release of guidance for complying with the Corporate Transparency Act, its interpretation remains in flux, making it important for companies to understand potentially problematic areas of ambiguity in the practical application of the law, say attorneys at Sidley.

  • Keys To Successful Commercial Property Insurance Claims

    Excerpt from Practical Guidance
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    While insurance needs for commercial leasing arrangements are driven by the characteristics of the premises and the nature of the tenants' intended operations, there are several universal best practices landlords and their counsel can follow when making claims after loss or damage.

  • Tips For Handling Single Asset Real Estate Bankruptcy Cases

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    Bankruptcy counsel should consider several strategies when representing either a debtor or lender in single asset real estate debtor Chapter 11 cases, which generally arise when a debtor is forced to file for relief to stop an impending foreclosure sale.

  • Increased Scrutiny Raises Int'l Real Estate Transaction Risks

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    Recently proposed regulations expanding the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States' oversight, a White House divestment order and state-level legislative efforts signal increasing scrutiny of real estate transactions that may trigger national security concerns, say Luciano Racco and Aleksis Fernández Caballero at Foley Hoag.

  • Portland's Gross Receipts Tax Oversteps City's Authority

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    Recent measures by Portland, Oregon, that expand the voter-approved scope of the Clean Energy Surcharge on certain retail sales eviscerate the common meaning of the word "retail" and exceed the city's chartered authority to levy tax, say Nikki Dobay at Greenberg Traurig and Jeff Newgard at Peak Policy.