Features

'Shell Game' Gets Away From Commercial Lease Guarantor
In the real estate business, as in many others, the question of just who is contractually responsible when things go wrong is a recurring one, particularly when a closely-held corporation or other business entity is involved.
Features

Early Termination Provisions: A Landlord's Saving Grace … If Done Right
The focus of this article is the “early termination provision,” a lease provision that affords landlords the tactical advantage they need. Specifically, this article seeks to: 1) guide the practitioner through the pitfalls of a poorly drafted termination provision; and 2) advise the practitioner how to craft a proper and effective termination provision.
Columns & Departments
Case Notes
Subtenants Not Entitled to Notice Under Law<br>Illegal Tenant Activity Negates Insurer's Responsibility to the Landlord
Features

Transient Rental Ban Does Not Violate Fair Housing Act
In a recent decision, the Eastern District of New York dismissed a multi-pronged challenge to a local municipal ordinance that regulates rental of property on a short-term or transient basis.
Features

When Can a Landlord's Consent to Assignment be Reasonably Withheld?
Assignment provisions in a commercial lease often boil down to the following seemingly simple, but more often than not complex, standard: that the lease may only be assigned or the premises subleased with the landlord's consent, not to be unreasonably withheld. The following examples of case law illustrate how courts have construed this provision under various circumstances.
Columns & Departments
Real Property Law
Neighborhood Garden Users May Establish Adverse Possession Claim<br>Purchaser Entitled to Return of Down Payment Upon Revocation of Mortgage Commitment After Expiration of Contingency Period<br>Law Firm Not Liable to Non-Client for Turnover of Escrow Funds<br>Law Firm Not Exempt From Claim Under RPL 265-B<br>Presumption of Due Execution Rebutted<br>Title Insurance Regulation Annulled
Features

Store Closing Lease Rejection in 'Shiekh Shoes'
Store closing or liquidation sales are a routine part of Chapter 11 cases involving retail debtors. These sales are consistently authorized by bankruptcy courts, despite lease provisions purporting to forbid them.
Columns & Departments
Development
City Not Estopped to Object to Nonconforming Building<br>Lawyer Advertising Billboards Not Treated As Onsite Advertisements<br>Town Not Obligated to Consider Zoning Amendment<br>East Harlem Rezoning Upheld
Columns & Departments
Landlord & Tenant
Failure to Register Precludes Landlord from Collecting Otherwise Lawful Rent Increases<br>Unlawful Entry and Detained Proceeding Requires Proof of Possession
Columns & Departments
Case Notes
Insurance Lapse Deemed Not Curable<br>Uncertain Method for Determining Future Rent Dooms Renewal Rights
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