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Real Estate
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July 22, 2024
Nationwide Seeks Travelers' Aid In Hot Tub Illness Row
Nationwide told a California federal court a Travelers unit must help defend a condominium association in an underlying lawsuit brought by a resident alleging he needed a double lung transplant because of hot tub contaminants, arguing Travelers' pollution exclusion and fungi or bacteria exclusion didn't apply.
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July 22, 2024
Catching Up With Delaware's Chancery Court
A $6 million bank fee, a $42.5 million shopping mall deal, some questionable Amazon deliveries and long-ago expired ketchup: it was all part of the comings and goings in Delaware's Court of Chancery last week. New cases involved mining and cybersecurity companies, board takeovers, "weaponized" director election provisions, and legal fees following a $3.1 billion telecom merger. In case you missed it, here's the latest from the Chancery Court.
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July 22, 2024
'Wolf Of Airbnb' Gets 51 Mos. As Judge Sees Lack Of Remorse
A Manhattan federal judge hit the Florida man who styled himself the "Wolf of Airbnb" with over four years in prison Monday, saying the risk is high that he will break the law again after scamming New York City landlords.
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July 19, 2024
Real Estate Recap: CMBS, Phoenix Evictions, Summer Break?
Catch up on this past week's key developments by state from Law360 Real Estate Authority — including trends in multifamily commercial mortgage-backed securities, a study of corporate landlord evictions in Phoenix, and the creative lengths real estate lawyers go to when closing the deal on a summer vacation.
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July 19, 2024
Credit Rater Presses 4th Circ. To Trash Developers' Libel Suit
Credit rating firm Dun & Bradstreet has asked the Fourth Circuit to scrap a group of apartment development companies' libel lawsuit, telling the court that nothing in a credit score was provably false.
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July 19, 2024
Bank Regulators Ask 5th Circ. To Unfreeze New Lending Rules
Federal banking regulators have urged the Fifth Circuit to rescind a Texas district court's injunction blocking implementation of new community lending rules, arguing in a filing that the district court's finding essentially rewrote the Community Reinvestment Act.
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July 19, 2024
Chubb Unit Beats Manufacturer In R.I. COVID-19 Coverage Suit
A knitted wire mesh manufacturer lost its bid for coverage for pandemic losses at its Mexico facilities because it didn't show that COVID-19 caused covered physical damage, a Rhode Island federal court ruled Friday, handing a win to the manufacturer's Chubb insurer.
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July 19, 2024
Calif. Justices Revive Row Over State Farm's Claims Handling
California's Supreme Court revived a policyholder's case over State Farm's claims-handling practices, reversing an appeals court decision and agreeing with the state's attorney general that California's statute of limitations on unfair competition actions, not the policy or insurance code, governed the timing of the case.
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July 19, 2024
Pa. Judge Orders Accused RE Fraudster To Pretrial Detention
A Pennsylvania federal judge has ordered an accused real estate fraudster to pretrial detention, finding that his previously undisclosed ties to Panama and the fact that he is charged with using fake identities in furtherance of an alleged scheme make him a flight risk.
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July 19, 2024
Signature Gatherers Must Comply With Mich. Election Law
A Michigan appellate panel said in a published opinion that petition signature gatherers must strictly comply with state election law, finding that the gatherers' failure to identify their town of residence rendered invalid every signature on petitions seeking to put a referendum question regarding a solar energy ordinance on the ballot.
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July 19, 2024
Co. Says La. Utility Ditched Millions In Restitution Claims
A Louisiana utility company wrongfully refused to accept $42.3 million in restitution for deficiencies found by a consulting company in meter technology that collects energy usage data, the consulting company alleged in Louisiana federal court.
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July 19, 2024
12 Firms Guiding IPO Quartet Projected To Exceed $5B
Twelve law firms are on tap to guide four initial public offerings scheduled for the week of July 22 that could exceed $5 billion combined, led by potentially the year's largest IPO from cold-storage warehouse giant Lineage Inc.
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July 19, 2024
San Francisco Lawmaker Floats Rent Algorithm Software Ban
A San Francisco lawmaker proposed a ban that would prohibit selling or using software that can be used for rent price fixing, and took aim at property management software companies such as RealPage and Yardi for their software allegedly being used for such a purpose.
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July 19, 2024
UK Litigation Roundup: Here's What You Missed In London
This past week in London has seen a libel clash between comedian Paul Currie and the Soho Theatre Company over allegations of anti-semitism, technology giant Huawei face a patents claim by Mediatek, Westfield Europe pursue action against Clearpay Finance for contract breaches and tour operating company Carnival hit chartered airline Maleth Aero for significant flight delays. Here, Law360 looks at these and other new claims in the U.K.
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July 18, 2024
OCC's Hsu Calls For 'More Nuanced' Preemption Approach
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency's acting chief has signaled plans for a potential shift in his agency's approach to federal preemption following a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision, calling for "more nuanced analysis" when evaluating the applicability of state laws to banks it oversees.
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July 18, 2024
Conn. Justices Order Redo Of Apartment Tenant's Fee Award
The Connecticut Supreme Court on Thursday gave a landlord another shot at reducing a $3,500 attorney fee award scored by a tenant in an eviction dispute, holding that the lower court failed to consider whether the total was reasonable under the relevant fee shifting statute.
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July 18, 2024
Atty Says Golf Malpractice Row Already Ran Its Course
An attorney seeking summary judgment in a legal malpractice suit told a New York federal judge that, five years and three courts later, the owners of the Foothills Club West Golf Court have still failed to produce evidence to support their allegations.
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July 18, 2024
Las Vegas Developer Says SEC's EB-5 Fraud Suit Falls Short
A Las Vegas developer urged a Nevada federal judge to toss securities regulators' allegations she misappropriated $10 million raised by overseas investors hoping to come to the U.S. to pay down a loan for a project unconnected to their applications, arguing Wednesday the regulators fail to allege a wrongful state of mind.
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July 18, 2024
6th Circ. Looks To Wash Hands Of Waters Of US Appeal
An exasperated Sixth Circuit panel on Thursday looked for an easy way to dispatch Kentucky and industry groups' appeal of the dismissal of their challenges to a federal government rule defining the scope of the Clean Water Act.
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July 18, 2024
NY Courts Limit Access To Ethics Data, Violating Own Rules
After a decade of widespread noncompliance with income and gift reporting rules, the New York court system's Ethics Commission has refused to publicly release all judges' annual financial disclosures, which safeguard against conflicts of interest, corruption and ethics lapses.
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July 18, 2024
Ind. Tax Board Agrees With $2M Valuation Of Unfinished Home
An Indiana local assessor correctly valued an unfinished mansion at $2.2 million in 2021 and $2.4 million in 2022, a state review board determined after agreeing with the assessor's cost approach.
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July 18, 2024
Mixed Results Greet 2 IPOs For Hospital Giant, Insurance Firm
Private equity-backed hospital operator Ardent Health and insurance brokerage TWFG Inc. began trading Thursday after completing two initial public offerings that raised $379 million combined at varying points of their price ranges, guided by four law firms.
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July 18, 2024
Judge With Lake Property Exits $217M Dam Repair Tax Suit
A Michigan federal judge said he would step aside in a fight over a $217 million tax assessment to fund dam reconstruction because he's part of the assessment district, though he warned that hundreds of plaintiffs could have their own conflicts.
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July 18, 2024
X's NYC Office Settles Ex-Janitors' Back Pay Suit
A group of unionized janitors who used to work in the New York City offices of social media company X have settled a suit alleging the company failed to comply with a city law requiring it to keep the janitors on for 90 days after terminating their contract.
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July 18, 2024
Property Co. Settles Ex-Manager's Race Bias Suit
A Black former apartment complex manager who accused her ex-employer of putting her in charge of a struggling development because of her race and then firing her for complaining about the situation told a Pennsylvania federal court that her claims had been settled.
Expert Analysis
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FBI Raid Signals Growing Criminal Enforcement Of Algorithms
The U.S. Department of Justice Antitrust Division's increased willingness to pursue the use of algorithmic pricing as a potential criminal violation means that companies need to understand the software solutions they employ and stay abreast of antitrust best practices when contracting with providers, say attorneys at Rule Garza.
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State Licensing Pitfalls Mortgage Servicers Must Beware
A recent enforcement action from the Washington Department of Financial Institutions demonstrates how subtle distinctions in state mortgage servicer licensing laws may come as a surprise to some companies, even if they never directly receive payments or interact with borrowers, says Clayton Swears at Hudson Cook.
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Keys To Strong Parking, Storage Contracts For NYC Buildings
Drafting and enforcing unambiguous parking and storage unit license agreements are essential tasks for co-op and condo boards in New York City, with recent cases highlighting how prudent terms can minimize potential headaches, say Matthew Eiben and Adam Lindenbaum at Rosenberg & Estis.
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Series
Solving Puzzles Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Tackling daily puzzles — like Wordle, KenKen and Connections — has bolstered my intellectual property litigation practice by helping me to exercise different mental skills, acknowledge minor but important details, and build and reinforce good habits, says Roy Wepner at Kaplan Breyer.
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Texas Ethics Opinion Flags Hazards Of Unauthorized Practice
The Texas Professional Ethics Committee's recently issued proposed opinion finding that in-house counsel providing legal services to the company's clients constitutes the unauthorized practice of law is a valuable clarification given that a UPL violation — a misdemeanor in most states — carries high stakes, say Hilary Gerzhoy and Julienne Pasichow at HWG.
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Realtor Settlement May Create New Antitrust Pitfalls
Following a recent antitrust settlement between the National Association of Realtors and home sellers, practices are set to change and the increased competition may benefit both brokers and homebuyers, but the loss of the customary method of buyer broker compensation could lead to new antitrust concerns, says Colin Ahler at Snell & Wilmer.
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In Memoriam: The Modern Administrative State
On June 28, the modern administrative state, where courts deferred to agency interpretations of ambiguous statutes, died when the U.S. Supreme Court overruled its previous decision in Chevron v. Natural Resources Defense Council — but it is survived by many cases decided under the Chevron framework, say Joseph Schaeffer and Jessica Deyoe at Babst Calland.
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What Fla. Ruling Means For Insurer Managed Repair Programs
A recent Florida state court ruling in Fraga v. Citizens Property Insurance, holding that the insurer could not seek to add additional terms in its managed repair program consent form, should promote clear written contract terms that clarify the relationship between insurers, policyholders and contractors, says Chip Merlin at Merlin Law Group.
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Preparing For CFPB 'Junk Fee' Push Into Mortgage Industry
As the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau considers expanding its "junk fee" initiative into mortgage closing costs, mortgage lenders and third parties must develop plans now that anticipate potential rulemaking or enforcement activity in this space, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.
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How To Clean Up Your Generative AI-Produced Legal Drafts
As law firms increasingly rely on generative artificial intelligence tools to produce legal text, attorneys should be on guard for the overuse of cohesive devices in initial drafts, and consider a few editing pointers to clean up AI’s repetitive and choppy outputs, says Ivy Grey at WordRake.
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Series
After Chevron: Opportunities For Change In FHFA Practices
The U.S. Supreme Court's overturning of the Chevron doctrine should lead to better cooperation between the Federal Housing Finance Agency and Congress, and may give the FHFA a chance to embrace transparency and innovation and promote sustainable housing practices, says Mehdi Sinaki at Michelman & Robinson.
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Series
NC Banking Brief: All The Notable Legal Updates In Q2
After federal banking agencies last quarter released a supplemental final rule updating the Community Reinvestment Act, North Carolina banks involved in community development should consider how the new rule might open up opportunities for investment and services that can benefit underserved areas, says Adam Goldblatt at Michael Best.
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Series
Boxing Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Boxing has influenced my legal work by enabling me to confidently hone the skills I've learned from the sport, like the ability to remain calm under pressure, evaluate an opponent's weaknesses and recognize when to seize an important opportunity, says Kirsten Soto at Clyde & Co.
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What NYC's Green Fast Track Means For Affordable Housing
New York City's Green Fast Track for Housing initiative, which went into effect last month, aims to speed up the environmental review process for modest residential developments and could potentially pave the way for similar initiatives in other cities, say Vivien Krieger and Rachel Scall at Cozen O'Connor.
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The Often Overlooked NY Foreclosure Notice Requirements
As multifamily real estate defaults mount, New York foreclosing parties should be aware of pitfalls and perils that can await the litigant who is not prepared to ensure adherence with tenant notice requirements under the Real Property Actions and Proceedings Law, say Christopher Gorman and John Muldoon at Rosenberg & Estis.