Real Estate & Property Law

SCOTUS will decide whether Miami can sue banks under the Fair Housing Act

The mortgage-lending practices of the nation’s largest banks and their effects on inner-city neighborhoods will be the backdrop in a U.S. Supreme Court case to be argued today.

Nov 1, 2016 2:40 AM CDT

Ammon Bundy’s lawyer is stunned with Taser and arrested after acquittals in refuge standoff

The lawyer representing Ammon Bundy was shocked with a Taser, tackled and arrested after he loudly objected to his client’s continued detention after his acquittal in Portland on Thursday. The surprising end came after the acquittal of brothers Ammon and Ryan Bundy, along with five others, following their six-week trial…

Oct 28, 2016 9:24 AM CDT

Woman fights to keep her treehouse abode after building inspectors cite code violations

A 65-year-old grandmother who once protested the Vietnam War is waging a fight over a new issue: Inspectors who say the treehouse she lives in must be brought up to code or torn down. The inspectors say Shawnee Chasser’s treehouse near downtown Miami is a safety hazard, the Associated Press…

Oct 26, 2016 9:29 AM CDT

How can employers reduce the risk of Pokémon Go?

While players are immersed in augmented reality, property managers need to watch for real-world safety repercussions.

Oct 1, 2016 3:50 AM CDT

Facing a bias suit and criticism, Airbnb takes steps to curb discrimination by its hosts

Airbnb is trying to reduce bias by its hosts after a lawsuit and a study alleged that blacks who try to rent through the website are experiencing discrimination. In a report released on Thursday, Airbnb says it will ask its hosts beginning on Nov. 1 to pledge not to discriminate,…

Sep 9, 2016 10:50 AM CDT

Supreme Court has pushed back arguments in these cases

The U.S. Supreme Court will hear 10 cases in November, but earlier granted cases on the free exercise clause and regulatory takings are not among them. The Supreme Court usually schedules cases in roughly the same order as they were granted, and its decision to delay the cases could be…

Sep 6, 2016 7:00 AM CDT

Enterprising college students are offering their dorm rooms for rent online

Forget a ramen noodle diet or digging for coins in the couch cushions. Some thrifty college students are setting their sights higher—offering their dorm rooms on the lodging rental site Airbnb to make some quick cash.

Sep 1, 2016 4:10 AM CDT

Did one marijuana joint make legal assistant’s home a ‘drug-related nuisance’? This AG thought so

An assistant at a law firm faced eviction after the Washington, D.C., attorney general wrote her landlord and said the home was a “drug-related nuisance”—an allegation stemming from the seizure of three suspicious cigarettes from her home. Rajuawn Middleton moved out of the home, the Washington Post reports. She is…

Aug 30, 2016 10:00 AM CDT

Does Airbnb have a legal responsibility to end bias by its hosts?

How can Airbnb voluntarily act to end discrimination? Ask civil rights warrior Kristen Clarke about her New York Times op-ed at our 10 Questions Live Google Hangout at 2 p.m. ET today. Click here to register.

Aug 25, 2016 7:00 AM CDT

Lawyer quits Palo Alto planning board over housing costs; monthly rent in shared house was $6,200

A California lawyer is airing her reasons for quitting a Palo Alto government board: She can’t afford to live there. In a letter posted online, lawyer Kate Downing says the home she rents with her husband—and another couple—is $6,200 a month, report the Recorder (sub. req.) and the San Jose…

Aug 22, 2016 8:00 AM CDT

HUD’s sale of delinquent mortgages to private investors violates fair housing laws, suit says

A lawsuit filed against the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development says that delinquent federally insured mortgages are being sold to private investors who provide fewer protections than the federal government. Most of the mortgages that are sold to the investors are from predominantly black neighborhoods, and the lack…

Aug 17, 2016 9:45 AM CDT

Homebuyers’ suit over threatening letters from ‘the Watcher’ is allowed to proceed

A New Jersey judge has refused to dismiss a lawsuit claiming the sellers of a $1.3 million home should have warned about a disturbing letter from a person who claimed to be watching the home. Judge Camille Kenny of Elizabeth, New Jersey, tossed emotional distress claims and other counts, but…

Aug 12, 2016 1:44 PM CDT

Judge imposes $1.8M in penalties for misleading law firm charges in more than 2,000 foreclosures

A Denver judge is imposing $1.8 million in penalties for two law firms’ false and misleading charges on title insurance in 2,291 foreclosures. Judge Shelley Gilman found that lawyer Robert Hopp, his law firms and title companies violated Colorado debt-collection and consumer protection laws, report the Denver Post, the Denver…

Aug 8, 2016 9:30 AM CDT

Hillary Clinton’s VP pick once litigated fair-housing cases and won a record $100M verdict

Hillary Clinton’s vice presidential pick, Sen. Tim Kaine of Virginia, is a Harvard law graduate who once worked at small law firms litigating civil-rights and fair-housing cases. The Virginia senator’s biggest financial win of his legal career was a $100 million jury verdict against Nationwide Insurance, report Law.com and Mother…

Jul 25, 2016 12:42 PM CDT

Pokemon Go spurs lawyers to stop and consider legal issues

Pokemon characters are on the loose, and it’s your job to catch and collect them. That’s the premise of the new Pokemon Go app, which uses your phone’s GPS and clock to detect where you are and make Pokemon characters appear on your phone screens, Vox explains. The Pokemon characters…

Jul 13, 2016 8:00 AM CDT