Commercial

Expert Analysis

• Bankruptcy Ruling Shows Section 363's Magic Has Its Limits

  

  The Ninth Circuit Bankruptcy Appellate Panel's recent ruling in Groves demonstrates that Section 363 — which allows a debtor-in-possession to sell their property in order to generate cash — fails as a tool when it’s used to turn a nondebtor entities' property into property of a debtor's bankruptcy estate, says Brian Shaw at Cozen O'Connor.

• Shifts In The CRE Landscape Demand Creative Loan Solutions

  

  An increase in commercial real estate loan workouts makes it critical for borrowers, lenders and other CRE participants to examine all the available options and remedies, including mortgage and mezzanine foreclosures, bankruptcy filings and property short sales, say attorneys at Goulston & Storrs.

• A Smoother Process For CRE Receiverships In Conn.

  

  A newly effective Connecticut law concerning distressed commercial real estate provides a number of opportunities and strategic considerations for creditors, and should be watched even by counsel in other states as adoption of the law could become more widespread, say John Loughnane and Steven Coury at White and Williams.

• What Came Of Texas Legislature's Long-Promised Tax Relief

  

  Following promises of historic tax relief made possible by a record budget surplus, the Texas legislative session as a whole was one in which taxpayers that are large businesses could have done somewhat better, but the new legislation is clearly still a positive, say attorneys at Baker Botts.

• CRE Guidance Helps Lenders Work With Struggling Borrowers

  

  In recognition of growing troubles with commercial real estate loans, four federal regulators' recently updated loan accommodations guidance provides a helpful framework for approaching loan workouts without the punitive results of adverse classifications, say Jaclyn Grodin and Muryum Khalid at Goulston & Storrs.

• NYC Cannabis Landlord Accountability Law Has Limitations

  

  A recently passed bill in New York City, aiming to crack down on the illegal cannabis market by levying fines against landlords who knowingly lease to unlicensed sellers, contains loopholes that may potentially limit the bill’s impact and lead to unintended consequences, say attorneys at Falcon Rappaport.

• When Investment Banks Can Sell Real Estate In Calif.

  

  When investment banks sell businesses that own property in California, they may run into trouble if they are not licensed real estate brokers, unless the property is merely incidental to the deal at hand, say attorneys at Holland & Knight.

• Hedging Variable Interest Rates In A Volatile Market

  

  Variable rate loans, which were an advantageous borrowing method prior to the recent Federal Reserve rate hikes and subsequent volatility, are now the difference between borrowers remaining current on their obligations and defaulting due to the sharply increasing debt service requirements of their loans, say attorneys at Cassin & Cassin.

• Parsing FTC's Intercontinental-Black Knight Merger Challenge

  

  The Federal Trade Commission's recent Article III case challenging a merger between Intercontinental Exchange and Black Knight suggests the agency is using a structuralist approach to evaluate the merger's potential anti-competitive harm, says David Evans at Kelley Drye.

• Effectual Relief Questions Linger After Section 363 Ruling

  

  In the months since the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling in MOAC Mall Holdings, courts and practitioners must grapple with the issue of what effectual relief courts may grant upon an appeal of an unstayed sale order, says Monique Jewett-Brewster at Hopkins Carley.

• 3 Alternatives To CRE Collateralized Loan Obligations

  

  With current commercial real estate market conditions pushing issuers away from collateralized loan obligations, several Freddie Mac offerings should be considered as alternative exit strategies for mortgage loans secured by multifamily properties, say attorneys at Mayer Brown.

• Ga. Banking Brief: All The Notable Compliance Updates In Q2

  

  Legislation signed into law in the second quarter of the year in Georgia tackled a broad range of issues that will affect financial institutions, from money laundering and consumer protection to commercial financing disclosures and a lengthy cleanup of the banking and finance code, says Elizabeth Garner at Parker Hudson.

• Sackett Ruling, 'Waters' Rule Fix Won't Dry Up Wetlands Suits

  

  In the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court's recent ruling in Sackett v. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency narrowing the scope of Clean Water Act protections, the Biden administration is amending its rule defining "waters of the United States" — but the revised rule will inevitably face further court challenges, continuing the WOTUS legal saga indefinitely, say attorneys at Milbank.