Real Estate & Property Law

Decades after Supreme Court OK’d interracial marriage, couple says RV park owner won’t rent to them

Interracial marriages have been legal in the state of Mississippi since 1967, following the landmark U.S. Supreme Court ruling Loving v. Virginia, and a year later the Fair Housing Act banned landlords from refusing to rent based on race, color, religion, sex or national origin. Yet Erica Flores Dunahoo, 40,…

Apr 5, 2016 10:15 AM CDT

Judge orders eviction of 100-year-old woman for causing commotion

A judge in Riverside County, California, evicted a 100-year-old woman from her Palm Springs apartment on Friday based on a request from her landlord, who sought her ouster because of alleged loud arguments and “deplorable conditions” in her apartment. The woman, Evelyn Heller, defended herself, the Desert Sun reports. She…

Apr 5, 2016 8:08 AM CDT

Blanket bans on renting to those convicted of a crime violate Fair Housing Act, feds tell landlords

The feds are warning landlords to beware of imposing blanket bans on renting to those with a criminal record. New guidance from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development says that relying simply on an applicant’s arrest record is improper and excluding an applicant based on a conviction requires…

Apr 4, 2016 5:00 PM CDT

Thanks to tip, court security found 2-inch blade brought to court by defendant, authorities say

Authorities said they found a weapon on a defendant in an Ohio courthouse last week, but might have missed it if they hadn’t been tipped about it in advance. Donald Moore III, 35, was in Elyria Municipal Court for an eviction case. Although the courthouse ordinarily has just a metal…

Mar 31, 2016 12:35 PM CDT

Defrauded builder claims convicted lawyer enjoys lavish lifestyle despite restitution order

A Wisconsin homebuilder defrauded by its former CEO claims a lawyer convicted in connection with the $20 million scheme is living a lavish lifestyle and moving assets to avoid paying remaining restitution. Bielinski Brothers Builders is seeking dismissal of a bankruptcy action filed by the lawyer, Michael Gral, formerly a…

Mar 30, 2016 8:18 AM CDT

Nearly evicted over urine leak on balcony, man files housing discrimination suit

A Michigan man has filed a discrimination suit after nearly evicted from his government-subsidized senior apartment building because a downstairs neighbor complained that urine had leaked from a container on his balcony. Plaintiff Steven Hamblin is disabled and suffers from a number of health problems, including congestive heart failure, obesity…

Mar 25, 2016 2:55 PM CDT

Former BigLaw lawyer is accused of stealing $2M from elderly client in sham real-estate transaction

An Atlanta lawyer arraigned on Monday is accused of stealing more $2 million from an elderly client in a sham real-estate transaction. The lawyer, Bennett Kight, formerly worked at Sutherland Asbill & Brennan, according to a lawsuit filed last year. The suit claims that Kight stole from trusts he oversaw…

Mar 22, 2016 9:10 AM CDT

Hoarder’s packed home held $12K in potato-chip packages, estate lawyer recounts

It was years ago when attorney Stacy Singer served as the executor of the estate of a woman she had known as an impeccably dressed, well-to-do widow in her 70s, but she still remembers the matter vividly. Walking across the deceased woman’s manicured lawn, Singer opened the door of her…

Mar 21, 2016 5:00 PM CDT

Mayor says law firm overcharged $657K in 11-year case, threatens criminal investigation

The mayor and a new inspector general for a suburban Chicago city are contending that a law firm overcharged by more than $656,000 during a hard-fought 11-year eminent domain case over a 356-unit housing project. Originally charged at $210 to $250 per billable hour when the matter began in 2005,…

Mar 21, 2016 10:40 AM CDT

Husband of disbarred lawyer sues her and her former clients over claimed real estate forgery

Disbarred amidst claims that she misappropriated funds, former Florida attorney Julie Kronhaus was sued by at least three former clients. Together they won $4.9 million in judgments, including trebled damages. Now a new plaintiff has filed suit against Kronhaus. But he’s no former client—he’s Kronhaus’s husband, reports the Orlando Sentinel…

Mar 21, 2016 10:15 AM CDT

Body in garden? Cannabis plants inside? Lawyer advises on ‘dark underbelly’ of sharing economy

Recent news reports of travelers encountering a body in the garden of a home in the Paris suburbs rented on Airbnb have focused attention on what attorney D. Hardison Wood calls “the dark underbelly of the sharing economy.” So what do you do if a vacation rental made online with…

Mar 17, 2016 11:55 AM CDT

Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy refuses to enter plea; supporters protest at federal courthouse

Following a protest outside the federal courthouse in Las Vegas, a Nevada rancher accused of orchestrating an armed standoff with U.S. government agents in a grazing-rights dispute was arraigned on Thursday. He refused to enter a plea. Amidst confusion about whether Cliven Bundy, 69, had a defense lawyer, a magistrate…

Mar 11, 2016 1:14 PM CST

Disbarred securities lawyer pleads guilty to evading $1.5M in taxes

A New York securities law attorney who moved to Florida in 1998 has pleaded guilty to tax evasion concerning $1.5 million the feds say he didn’t pay the government in income tax. Court documents say William J. Reilly, 62, who practiced law in both states, used law firm bank accounts…

Mar 8, 2016 12:15 PM CST

Jury says towns dominated by polygamous sect put religion above the law; awards $2.2M to 6 people

After nearly two months of trial and three days of deliberation, on Monday a federal jury in Phoenix found that two adjacent towns dominated by a polygamous sect have violated the rights of nonbelievers living within their precincts. Discriminatory policing and provision of municipal services such as water hookups violated…

Mar 8, 2016 11:56 AM CST

Jury awards $55M to sportscaster Erin Andrews in lawsuit over nude video

After about eight hours of deliberation, a Nashville jury on Monday awarded $55 million to sportscaster Erin Andrews in her lawsuit over a nude video taken from an adjoining hotel room by a stalker. While the jury found Michael David Barrett 51 percent responsible for taking the videos through a…

Mar 7, 2016 5:15 PM CST