Subprime Lending or Options Backdating, Which Will Receive a Legislative Haymaker?

John Rak — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 16:29:24 GMT

Recently, the financial industry and the country itself has faced two sweeping market-related “scandals” or “crises” (for lack of a better term): the issues in the mortgage industry with subprime lending, and the executive stock option backdating situation. Both of these scandals will likely prompt legislation; I am curious as to which will engender the most profound legislative response.

Are You Buried In An Information Avalanche?

LexisNexis Real Estate Law Center Staff — Tue, 18 Mar 2008 11:02:20 GMT

Although the foundation of today’s Internet was built as a government project more than 40 years ago, relatively few people were using it at the beginning of the 1990s. Then Vice President Al Gore spoke glowingly of the promise of the “information superhighway,” which would improve the conduct of science and scholarship, provide an engine for economic growth, and most importantly, give people access to mountains of

Presumed Caffeinated: The Way I Drink it

Tom Hagy — Tue, 11 Mar 2008 19:11:02 GMT

So I am having a cup of coffee at Starbucks and in a dubious moment of consciousness (I am not a morning person; I am not even an afternoon person) I noticed a feature on the cup that’s probably been around for 10 years: Starbucks’ “The Way I See It” series of quotes from famous people. My coffee mates, one live, one virtual (don’t ask) had quotes from Newt Gingrich and Madeline Albright. I had this one from Presumed Innocent author Scott Tur

People: Throw Off Your Shackles and Blog!

David P. Rossmiller — Mon, 10 Mar 2008 13:29:02 GMT

As someone who has built a successful law blog and who has been blogging daily for more than two years, I’ve been asked to write a series of posts talking about how to blog, what to do and what not to do. “How to” blog is always a tricky, touchy subject, one that sounds dangerously close to impinging on the thing that is most beloved among bloggers, their autonomy and sense of freedom. The internet is the new Final F

Notice vs. Acceleration - Unlocking the Mystery

Bruce J. Bergman — Thu, 06 Mar 2008 23:46:12 GMT

Acceleration is one of the most elemental - and critical - concepts in the realm of mortgage foreclosures. But how this is accomplished, and the relationship of acceleration to the concept of notice is sometimes elusive. A quick primer spurred by issuance of a new case follows. [For the full story in detail, with citations, see The Green Building Finance and Investment Forum held on February 20-22 in San Francisco reinforced market trends which I have recently seen accelerating relative to the institutionalization of green building requirements. This was emphasized by several major entities represented at the program including the State of California, AIG, JP Morgan Chase and RREEF, among other such institutions, which indicated that not incorporating sustainability requir

In Search of the Lost Notes

LexisNexis Real Estate Law Center Staff — Fri, 22 Feb 2008 14:27:37 GMT

A recent story on www.bloomberg.com addresses a dilemma that mortgage note buyers and mortgage servicers may face when they attempt to foreclose on home loans: some courts are requiring foreclosure plaintiffs to present the original note evidencing the foreclosed debt. Some of the cases are state court cases involving foreclosure directl

Rails to Trails

Nancy Greening & Morgan Wade — Mon, 11 Feb 2008 15:31:31 GMT

Global Positioning Systems are facilitating the mapping of trails that were once rails and the Rails to Trails Conservancy is asking for volunteers to use GPS systems to help them create a national online map of trails (http://www.traillink.com/gps.aspx ).

A by-product of the rails to trails program has been the development of rails with trails. This occurs when a railroad retains use of the right of way, but works with a

Interesting times for Co-ops

Nancy Greening — Thu, 07 Feb 2008 12:08:45 GMT

I wonder if Co-ops will become more popular now that the famous 80-20 rule has been changed by the Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act of 2007. As author Patricia Hughes Mills explains in her new Special Alert on the subject: "…prior to the Act, the cooperative’s non-member income could be no more than 20 percent of its total gross income, in order for its stockholders to deduct real estate taxes and interest. This resulted in

The Big Dig Settlement: The Best They Could Do?

Gerald C. Matics — Wed, 06 Feb 2008 16:31:25 GMT

As I reported in the February issue of Mealey's Litigation Report: Construction Defects, a pair of contractors in a joint venture agreed late last month to split the bulk of a $458 million settlement with the U.S. and Massachusetts government over their allegedly shoddy work on Boston's Big Dig, a highway tunnel project that essentially relocated an elevated interstate highway below ground where it runs through the city. According to the governments, management consultant

U.S. Supreme Court Rules That the Court of Federal Claims Properly Ignored The Government's Statute Of Limitations Waiver

Timothy Raub — Wed, 06 Feb 2008 12:50:47 GMT

In a recent split decision, the U.S. Supreme Court mandated the U.S. Court of Federal Claims to consider the timeliness of cases even though the U.S. government may have waived the issue, John R. Sand &a

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