Features

FRCP 26(a)(2)(B) governing the disclosure of expert witnesses in federal court was adopted in 1993 with the hope that "the length of the deposition of such experts should be reduced, and in many cases the report may eliminate the need for a deposition" altogether. Advisory Committee Notes, Fed. R. Civ. Pro., Rule 26, 28 U.S.C.A. (1993).

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Features

Highlights of the latest commercial leasing cases from around the country.

In today's complex real estate world, shopping center owners are finding that redeveloping a shopping center may not be enough to remain competitive. Well-known retail analysts are commenting that consumers are tired of the mall concept that forces someone to wade through a department store to access an enclosed mall, when all they are really looking for is the quick purchase of a pair of shoes. Analysts, including PricewaterhouseCoopers and others, have concluded that as many as one-third of the nation's 1200 malls are obsolete, or nearly so. After decades of both owner and retailer consolidation, the 10 largest mall real estate investment trusts now control approximately 47% of all malls. About 20% of these are "D" level malls which should probably be de-malled. The Congress for the New Urbanism has called many of these lower-performing enclosed regional malls, "greyfields." This is a comparison to "brownfields," the term commonly used to refer to abandoned and partially contaminated commercial facilities.

Many commercial office leases fail to identify or delineate all costs a tenant may incur in the initial build-out or subsequent alteration of its office space. Such costs, if not understood, negotiated upfront and documented in the lease agreement, will substantially reduce the actual dollars a tenant has available for its initial leasehold improvements from the landlord-provided tenant allowance and will increase the cost of alterations during the lease term. While not expressed in purely face-value economics, there are also many other issues which, if not addressed appropriately in the lease, will cost the tenant additional time and money. This article details some of these costs and issues and suggests ways to address them in your lease.

A team of researchers at the Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory has developed an interactive computer program that building managers and owners can use to assess their vulnerability to &mdash; and to prepare for &mdash; chemical, biological, and radiological (CBR) weapons attacks or accidental toxic releases. The Building Vulnerability Assessment and Mitigation Program (BVAMP) can be obtained free through a Web site established by Berkeley Lab, which provides advice on CBR responses for buildings. (<i>www.lbl.gov</i>) CBR threats can include deliberate terrorist attacks, resulting in the release of hazardous materials, or accidents such as freight-train derailments and refinery releases. The heating, ventilation, and air conditioning system (HVAC) is often the first line of defense in the case of airborne CBR agents. Consequently, according to one of Berkeley Lab's principal investigators, preplanning and manipulating the HVAC system can significantly reduce the severity of a release.

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Highlights of the latest franchising news from around the country.