More Real Estate Coverage
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May 01, 2024
Miss. Narrows Tax Break For Entities That Support Colleges
Tax exemptions for Mississippi nonprofit foundations that support colleges will only be provided to properties that are exclusively used to benefit the schools under a bill signed by the governor.
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May 01, 2024
Real Estate Authority Is Moving To Thursday
Beginning May 9, Law360 Real Estate Authority's two weekly newsletters — Commercial and Residential — will be distributed Thursday morning.
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April 30, 2024
PolyMet Must Give Up More Info In Mining Land Swap Suit
A federal judge has declined to sanction a Minnesota mining company in a discovery challenge by the Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa but ordered it to produce certain previously withheld information in the tribe's bid to undo a land swap for copper and nickel mining.
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April 30, 2024
GSA To Dump WWI-Era Liberty Loan Building, Citing Costs
The U.S. General Services Administration has announced it will be dropping the historic Liberty Loan Building in Washington, D.C., from the government's real estate portfolio, a decision that will save $15 million in reinvestment costs, the agency said.
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April 30, 2024
5th Circ. Backs La. Enviro Dept. In Gas Facility Permit Dispute
A Fifth Circuit panel upheld the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality's permitting decision for a liquefied natural gas export facility, rejecting concerns raised by the Sierra Club that the facility's emissions will surpass national ambient air quality standards.
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April 30, 2024
GRSM50 Moves Oakland Office To Walnut Creek In California
Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani LLP has moved its office in Oakland to a new space in Walnut Creek that will accommodate a growing roster and better serve clients across Northern California.
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April 29, 2024
US, Tribes Defend Water Rule Against States', Biz Groups' Suit
The federal government and several Native American tribes on Friday asked a North Dakota federal judge to toss a lawsuit by two dozen states challenging a rule defining the reach of the Clean Water Act's jurisdiction.
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April 29, 2024
Zoning Limits Cost Mich. Wineries $120M, Judge Told
A group of wineries told a federal judge Monday that a Michigan township's zoning restrictions have caused the vintners to miss out on $120 million in profits and stifled their growth, while the township's lawyer said the damages ask is unreasonable and unwarranted.
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April 29, 2024
Defendant Seeks Tribe's Confidential Data In Smoke Shop Suit
An entrepreneur being sued by the Cayuga Nation is arguing in New York federal court that he should be allowed to view "highly confidential" spreadsheets purportedly detailing revenue losses the tribe suffered due to an unlicensed smoke shop on tribal land, asserting he has no business ties to the store.
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April 29, 2024
Wash. Solar Co. Will Pay $465K To End Noncompete Suit
A Washington state judge has given a preliminary nod to a $465,000 settlement to end litigation accusing a residential solar energy equipment company of forcing workers to sign illegal noncompete clauses as a condition of employment.
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April 26, 2024
Support For 9th Circ. Rehearing In Oak Flat Dispute Mounting
At least 100 religious and nonprofit groups, law scholars, Native American coalitions and tribes are urging the Ninth Circuit to consider a full panel en banc hearing on a challenge to block a copper mining company from destroying a sacred Indigenous religious site in central Arizona.
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April 26, 2024
Neb. To Provide Film Tax Credit, Diaper Exemption
Nebraska will create a film production tax credit, provide a tax exemption for diapers, expand a sales and use tax exemption for nonprofit entities and establish or expand other credits under legislation signed into law by the governor.
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April 26, 2024
Insurer Can't Avoid Coverage Suit Against Escrow Agent
First American Title Insurance Co. must continue to be a party in Wesco Insurance Co.'s declaratory action seeking to avoid covering claims that Wesco's insureds improperly diverted escrow funds in real estate transactions to third parties with no valid claims to the funds, a Florida federal court ruled.
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April 25, 2024
Atty Sued For Malpractice Can't Rep His Firm, Ex-Client Says
A Seattle real estate broker suing her former attorney for allegedly botching arbitration proceedings has told a Washington state judge that that attorney can't both be a defendant and represent his firm in their counterclaims for unpaid fees.
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April 25, 2024
Real Estate Owner Indicted On $4.8M Tax Evasion Charges
A commercial real estate owner used a series of limited liability companies to hide $4.8 million in income from the Internal Revenue Service, according to an indictment in Washington federal court on tax evasion charges.
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April 25, 2024
3 Things Attys Should Know About Pa.'s $48B Spending Plan
Several areas of Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro's proposed $48 billion budget for 2024-2025 could result in more work for the legal industry, including more opportunities for crafting economic development deals, getting a recreational cannabis industry off the ground, and speeding up environmental permit applications, experts tell Law360.
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April 25, 2024
EU Parliament Gives Final Approval To AML Package
The European Parliament has given the final go-ahead to a package of laws to fight money laundering and terrorist financing, creating a single rule book and establishing a dedicated agency for the bloc.
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April 24, 2024
Bradley Arant Gains Real Estate Pro In Dallas From Gray Reed
Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP continues to expand in the Lone Star State, adding a real estate and environmental law partner in Dallas from Gray Reed & McGraw LLP.
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April 22, 2024
With Power Rules On Deck, EPA Awards $7B In Solar Grants
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on Monday said it awarded $7 billion in grants to boost residential solar energy development in low-income communities, kicking off a climate change-focused week in which the agency is expected to release pollution control rules for the power sector.
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April 22, 2024
Mo. Tax Board Says Horse Breeding Farm Is Agricultural Land
A Missouri property used to breed and care for horses that are shown at shows should have been classified as agricultural instead of commercial, the state tax commission ruled.
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April 22, 2024
Okla. To Expand Property, Income Tax Break For Airports
Oklahoma will expand a property and income tax exemption for municipally owned airports in the state under a bill signed by the governor.
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April 19, 2024
Up Next At High Court: Abortions & Presidential Immunity
The U.S. Supreme Court will return Monday for the term's final week of oral arguments, during which it will consider several high-stakes disputes, including whether a federal healthcare law can preempt state abortion bans and whether former President Donald Trump is entitled to immunity from criminal charges related to official acts.
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April 19, 2024
Quinn Emanuel Faces Class Action Over Fla. Fee Agreements
The wife of luxury home developer Nir Meir, who was charged with falsifying records and defrauding investors, is hoping to avoid paying more than $360,000 in attorney fees to Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan LLP in a proposed class action, saying her husband forged her signature on a fee agreement with the firm.
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April 19, 2024
EPA Says 2 'Forever Chemicals' Are Hazardous Substances
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on Friday officially declared two "forever chemicals" to be hazardous materials under federal law, which could bring a host of consequences for Superfund site cleanups and development projects.
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April 18, 2024
What 4 Real Estate Leaders Said At NYU's REIT Symposium
The public real estate investment trust sector will bounce back from its current troubles "at some point," said Jon Gray, Blackstone's president. He was not the only company executive who sounded hopeful about the industry's future at New York University's 28th annual REIT symposium.
Expert Analysis
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Pro Bono Work Is Powerful Self-Help For Attorneys
Oct. 22-28 is Pro Bono Week, serving as a useful reminder that offering free legal help to the public can help attorneys expand their legal toolbox, forge community relationships and create human connections, despite the challenges of this kind of work, says Orlando Lopez at Culhane Meadows.
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Rebuilding The Construction Industry With AI
Artificial intelligence in the construction industry will usher in a new era of innovation and efficiency, leading to cheaper, safer and more environmentally conscious building practices, but it will also bring concerns related to data security, workforce training and job displacement, say Josephine Bahn and Jeffery Mullen at Cozen O'Connor.
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The Pop Culture Docket: Judge Espinosa On 'Lincoln Lawyer'
The murder trials in Netflix’s “The Lincoln Lawyer” illustrate the stark contrast between the ethical high ground that fosters and maintains the criminal justice system's integrity, and the ethical abyss that can undermine it, with an important reminder for all legal practitioners, say Judge Adam Espinosa and Andrew Howard at the Colorado 2nd Judicial District Court.
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What Panama Canal Award Ruling Means For Int'l Arbitration
As the prevalence of international arbitration grows, the Eighth Circuit’s recent decision in Grupo Unidos v. Canal de Panama may change how practitioners decide what remedies to seek and where to raise them if claims are rejected, says Jerry Roth at FedArb.
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Newman Suspension Shows Need For Judicial Reform
The recent suspension of U.S. Circuit Judge Pauline Newman following her alleged refusal to participate in a disability inquiry reveals the need for judicial misconduct reforms to ensure that judges step down when they can no longer serve effectively, says Aliza Shatzman at The Legal Accountability Project.
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ESG Around The World: Japan
Japan is witnessing rapid developments in environmental, social and corporate governance policies by making efforts to adopt a soft law approach, which has been effective in encouraging companies to embrace ESG practices and address the diversity of boards of directors, say Akira Karasawa and Landry Guesdon at Iwata Godo.
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How And Why Your Firm Should Implement Fixed-Fee Billing
Amid rising burnout in the legal industry and client efforts to curtail spending, pivoting to a fixed-fee billing model may improve client-attorney relationships and offer lawyers financial, logistical and stress relief — while still maintaining profit margins, say Kevin Henderson and Eric Pacifici at SMB Law Group.
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Leveraging Municipal Bonds For Green Energy Finance
The U.S.'s transition to renewable energy will require collaboration between public and private capital sources — and that means that lawyers used to working in corporate finance must understand how the municipal bond market functions differently, due to its grounding in the U.S. Constitution, says Ann Fillingham at Dykema.
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Strategic Succession Planning At Law Firms Is Crucial
Senior partners' reluctance to retire, the rise of the nonequity partner tier and generational differences in expectations are all contributing to an increasing number of departures from BigLaw, making it imperative for firms to encourage retirement among senior ranks and provide clearer leadership pathways to junior attorneys, says Laura Leopard at Leopard Solutions.
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Maximizing Law Firm Profitability In Uncertain Times
As threats of an economic downturn loom, firms can boost profits by embracing the power of bottom-line management and creating an ecosystem where strategic financial oversight and robust timekeeping practices meet evolved client relations, says Shireen Hilal at Maior Strategic Consulting.
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5th Circ. Ruling Reminds Attys That CBP Can Search Devices
The Fifth Circuit’s recent Malik v. Department of Homeland Security decision adds to the chorus of federal courts holding that border agents don’t need a warrant to search travelers’ electronic devices, so attorneys should consider certain special precautions to secure privileged information when reentering the U.S., says Jennifer Freel at Jackson Walker.
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ESG Around The World: European Union
As the EU makes ESG regulation a priority, companies — both those based in the EU and others just doing business there — need to keep abreast of myriad new legislation that has either already taken effect or will in the near future, as noncompliance could result in fines, damages and director liability, say attorneys at Steptoe & Johnson.
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As AI Pricing Tools Evolve, So Does Antitrust Risk
As the use of pricing algorithms has given rise to regulatory scrutiny and civil actions, such as RealPage Rental Software Antitrust Litigation in the Middle District of Tennessee and Gibson v. MGM in the District of Nevada, independent pricing decisions and other best practices can help limit antitrust risk, say attorneys at Axinn.