Commercial
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August 07, 2025
10th Circ. Water Loss Ruling Spotlights Competing Exclusions
READY FOR FINAL EDIT -- The Tenth Circuit recently affirmed a ruling that excluded coverage for a Kansas office building's $1.75 million in water damage repairs from a broken pipe, providing insurance experts an unusual case for weighing two seemingly related exclusions against one another.
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August 07, 2025
Colo. Investor Claims It Was Cut From $132M Skyscraper Sale
A real estate investment firm that says it was wrongfully cut out of a $132 million purchase of a downtown Denver skyscraper at the eleventh hour sued the buyer, a private equity firm, in Colorado state court on Wednesday.
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August 07, 2025
NY AG, Ski Resort Square Up Over Resort Divestiture
A New York ski resort operator that bought a competing resort and shut it down must divest that resort to right the antitrust wrong a state judge found it had committed and restore competition to the market, the Empire State is arguing.
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August 07, 2025
Colo. Court Backs Landlord's Right To 'Fees On Fees'
In the first Colorado appellate decision to consider whether a prevailing party may recover attorney fees incurred to enforce a contractual fee-shifting provision, a state appellate panel ruled Thursday that a Denver coffee shop's landlord is entitled to an award of such fees.
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August 07, 2025
Texas Senate OKs Lower Voter-Approval Property Tax Rate
Texas would reduce its voter-approval property tax rate, the maximum rate a local government may adopt without voter approval, for large taxing units under a bill passed by the state Senate.
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August 07, 2025
Worker Says Property Firm Fired Her Over Medical Diagnosis
A property management firm has been sued in Georgia federal court by a former employee who alleged she was discriminated against and eventually fired after being diagnosed with ovarian fibroids requiring a hysterectomy and hernia repair.
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August 07, 2025
Tariffs Drive Cost Increases For Law Firm Office Build-Outs
Higher tariffs are driving higher construction costs for law firm office build-outs and renovation projects, as firms look to improve the quality of the office experience rather than increase its footprint, according to a new report by CBRE.
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August 07, 2025
Illinois Co. Fights Texas Insurance Law On Physical Offices
An Illinois-based company has sued the commissioner of the Texas Department of Insurance over a law that requires the company to have a physical presence in the state in order to keep its title insurance producer license, alleging on Thursday the requirement is unconstitutional.
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August 07, 2025
Legal Legend For MLB's Giants Focuses Efforts On Biz Side
A profile writer for the San Francisco Bar Association once called then-general counsel Jack Bair the "definition of the San Francisco Giants" and the person who "has probably done more for the Giants than just about anyone else."
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August 07, 2025
Trump Greenlights Private Equity, Crypto 401(k) Investing
President Donald Trump signed an executive order Thursday that aims to make it easier for retirement plans to invest in a wider range of assets, including cryptocurrency, private equity and real estate.
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August 07, 2025
Fed. Circ. Skeptical Of Realty Co.'s IRS Contract Dispute
Federal Circuit judges seemed skeptical Thursday of a realty company's claim that the IRS improperly blocked its bid to continue leasing office space to the agency after IRS employees complained about the building, with one judge challenging whether evidence actually showed the agency acted in bad faith.
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August 07, 2025
CoStar Asks Full 9th Circ. To Revisit Antitrust Ruling For Rival
Commercial real estate information company CoStar Group Inc. and a subsidiary are urging the Ninth Circuit to reconsider its ruling reviving antitrust counterclaims lodged by rival Commercial Real Estate Exchange Inc., which CoStar has accused in a suit of stealing property listing data and copyrighted photos.
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August 07, 2025
Texas Bill Seeks Two-Thirds Vote To Exceed Max Tax Rate
Texas would require two-thirds approval from voters to allow local taxing entities to increase property taxes beyond a maximum rate permitted by law without a vote under a bill introduced in the state House of Representatives.
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August 07, 2025
Former LVMH Atty Joins Realtors Association's Legal Team
The National Association of Realtors announced Thursday it has appointed as its vice president of litigation and associate general counsel the former vice president of legal affairs and head of litigation at LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton Inc.
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August 07, 2025
NC Biz Court Bulletin: Divorce Dust-Ups And Judicial Rebukes
Litigation in the North Carolina Business Court is heating up this summer with new complaints centered on fears a former state politician's divorce proceedings will impede his companies' operations and accusations that a climate technology company has failed to pay out a former engineer's ownership interest.
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August 07, 2025
Ohio Property Sale Too Old To Sway Valuation, Board Says
The sale of a commercial property was not close enough in time to its tax valuation date to be relied on as evidence of its value, an Ohio board said, upholding a local assessment.
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August 06, 2025
Calif. CRE Players Say Tariff Uncertainty Delaying Projects
Half of the real estate professionals polled in a survey on the California commercial real estate market said they are delaying or canceling development projects thanks to increased construction costs and global trade tensions tied to tariff uncertainty.
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August 06, 2025
NYC Council Approves Manhattan Mixed-Use Rezoning Plan
A rezoning plan that aims to build more than 9,500 homes in midtown Manhattan was approved Wednesday by the New York City Council's Committee on Land Use and a related subcommittee.
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August 06, 2025
Urban Edge Properties Closes $124M Mass. Retail Center Refi
Real estate developer Urban Edge Properties says it has closed on a $123.6 million loan to refinance a portion of open-air shopping center Shoppers World in Framingham, Massachusetts.
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August 06, 2025
Rising Star: Quinn Emanuel's Nasser Alrubayyi
Nasser Alrubayyi of Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan LLP won a dismissal for Raza Co. in its dispute with Azmeel Contracting over a $450 million construction contract, along with other big courtroom victories, earning him a spot among the construction law practitioners under age 40 honored by Law360 as Rising Stars.
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August 06, 2025
Rising Star: DLA Piper's Katherine Jahnke Dale
Katherine Jahnke Dale of DLA Piper has been a key adviser on a transformation of Chicago's Fulton Market neighborhood, along with projects that include a $7 billion redevelopment near the United Center and a purchase agreement for a former steel plant now envisioned as a technology hub, earning her a spot among the real estate law practitioners under age 40 honored by Law360 as Rising Stars.
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August 06, 2025
3 Key Foreign Entity Issues In Claiming Clean Energy Credits
Stricter foreign supply chain and business ownership rules were tacked onto clean energy tax credits that weren't eliminated under the new budget reconciliation law, raising major compliance hurdles that have practitioners eagerly awaiting implementation rules from the U.S. Treasury Department. Here, Law360 outlines key issues the agencies need to address in coming guidance on restrictions targeting projects linked to foreign entities of concern.
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August 06, 2025
2 Firms Guide $110M Financing For CBL Properties' Mall Buy
Beal Bank USA provided $110 million in financing to CBL Properties to help fund the shopping center-focused real estate investment trust's acquisition of four regional malls, in a deal guided by Husch Blackwell LLP and Dorsey & Whitney LLP.
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August 06, 2025
Akin, Latham Advise Apollo's Data Center Builder Stake
Apollo Global Management on Wednesday announced it will acquire a majority stake in Dallas-based builder Stream Data Centers in a deal advised by Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP and Latham & Watkins LLP that the asset manager said would enable possibly billions in digital infrastructure spending.
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August 06, 2025
2 Firms Guide $1.3B CMBS Deal For NYC Office Tower
The Durst Organization has obtained a $1.3 billion commercial mortgage-backed security loan from a Wells Fargo-led group, in a deal steered by Rosenberg & Estis PC and Cadwalader Wickersham & Taft LLP, to finance a trophy Times Square office tower, Rosenberg & Estis announced on Wednesday.

Under Pressure, Higher Ed Leans On Real Estate
As institutions of higher education contend with declining enrollment and federal funding cuts, some are finding creative ways to monetize their real estate, which comes with important legal considerations, according to attorneys.

Big CRE Brokers Report Stubborn Optimism In Q2 Results
With most of commercial real estate's major brokers posting leasing gains and capital markets closings, executives said recently in announcing second-quarter earnings that they expect activity to continue as clients grow jaded to drama from recent trade disputes.

A Dive Into Trump's 'Build, Baby, Build!' Plan For Data Centers
President Donald Trump's plan to snip red tape for data center projects targets environmental laws that have long been known to prompt delays and uncertainties for investors, but some questions remain over how the deregulatory actions will take shape and when.
Expert Analysis
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New NY Residential Real Estate Rules May Be Overbroad
New legislation imposing a 90-day-waiting period and tax deduction restrictions on certain New York real estate investors may have broad effects and unintended consequences, creating impediments for a wide range of corporate and other transactions, says Libin Zhang at Fried Frank.
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11 Essential Questions When Reviewing Hurricane Insurance
As we approach peak hurricane season, business owners must understand critical coverage elements, policy limitations and claim procedures of their commercial property hurricane insurance policies to protect their operations effectively, says Carlton Wilde at Bracewell LLP.
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6 Questions We Should Ask About The Trump Trade Deals
Whenever the text becomes available, certain questions will help determine whether the Trump administration’s trade deals with U.S. trading partners have been crafted to form durable economic relationships, or ephemeral ties likely to break upon interpretive disagreement or a change in political will, says Ted Posner at Baker Botts.
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Utilizing Rep And Warranties Insurance In CRE Transactions
With insurance and commercial real estate legal trends suggesting that representations and warranties insurance is likely to grow substantially in the next several years, CRE buyers and sellers should learn how such insurance can help resolve conflicting positions during transaction negotiations, say attorneys at Troutman.
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Recent Decisions Caution Against Broad Indemnity Provisions
Two recent decisions in disparate jurisdictions are reminders that businesses and practitioners should be mindful of contractual indemnity rights and draft indemnity provisions that enhance the predictability of enforceability without being overly broad, says Gregory Jaske at Olshan Frome.
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How Real Estate Funds Can Leverage Del. Statutory Trusts
Over the last two years, traditional real estate fund sponsors have begun to more frequently adopt Delaware Statutory Trust programs, which can help diversify capital-raising strategies and access to new sources of capital, among other benefits, say attorneys at Polsinelli.
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What 9th Circ. Ruling Shows About Rebutting SEC Comments
The Ninth Circuit's June opinion in Pino v. Cardone Capital suggests that a company's lack of pushback to a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission comment may be evidence of its state of mind for evaluating potential liability, meaning companies should consider including additional disclosure in SEC response letters, say attorneys at Barnes & Thornburg.
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2 NY Cases May Clarify Foreclosure Law Retroactivity
Two pending cases may soon provide the long-awaited resolution to the question of whether retroactive application of the New York Foreclosure Abuse Prevention Act violates the state Constitution, providing a guide for New York courts inundated with motions in foreclosure and quiet title actions, says Fernando Rivera Maissonet at Hinshaw & Culbertson.
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A Look At Florida's New Protected Series LLC Legislation
A new law in Florida enhances the flexibility of using limited liability companies as the entities of choice for most privately held businesses, moving Florida into a small group of states with reliable uniform protected series legislation for series LLCs, says Louis Conti at Holland & Knight.
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How Trump's Trade Policies Are Shaping Foreign Investment
Five months into the Trump administration, investors are beginning to see the concrete effects of the president’s America First Investment Policy as it presents new opportunities for clearing transactions more quickly, while sustaining risk aversion related to Chinese trade and potentially creating different political risks, say attorneys at Covington.
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Bill Leaves Renewable Cos. In Dark On Farmland Reporting
A U.S. Senate bill to update disclosure requirements for foreign control of U.S. farmland does not provide much-needed guidance on how to report renewable energy development on agricultural property, leaving significant compliance risks for project developers, say attorneys at Hodgson Russ.
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Observations On 5 Years Of Non-Notified CFIUS Inquiries
Since 2020, the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States has identified and investigated covered cross-border transactions not formally notified to CFIUS, and a look at data from 50 non-notified matters during that time reveals the general dynamics of this enforcement function, say attorneys at Cooley.
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How States Are Taking The Lead On Data Center Regulation
While support for data center growth is a declared priority for the current administration, federal data center policy has been slow to develop — so states continue to lead in attracting and regulating data center growth, say attorneys at Steptoe.