Newsletters

10.01.15

Use It or Lose It: San Clemente Required to Refund $10 Million in Unused Impact Fees

In a strict reading of a local agency’s responsibilities under the Mitigation Fee Act (Gov’t Code §§ 66000 et seq.), the Court of Appeal held that San Clemente’s failure to make the proper findings under the Act to retain almost $10 million in mitigation fees collected ...


09.15.15

Can You Keep a Secret?

Most real estate deals begin with a letter of intent defining the principal terms of the deal, the only enforceable paragraph of which is an agreement to keep the transaction strictly confidential.


09.02.15

Substance Over Form—A Refreshing Application of CEQA Analysis

The Court of Appeal in City of Irvine v. County of Orange elaborated upon the rules dictating when a supplemental EIR, as opposed to a subsequent EIR, analysis is appropriate, concluding that substance controls over title when deciding if the correct level of analysis was utilized.


08.12.15

Is Your Lease Financeable?

It is often the case that parties enter into a lease thinking it is a temporary use of space by the tenant, which frequently amounts to nothing more than an expense line item on the budget.


08.05.15

CSU Cannot Avoid Off-Site Traffic Mitigation Payments Because Legislature Failed to Approve Funds

The California Supreme Court has clarified language from its prior decision in City of Marina v. Board of Trustees of California State University (2006) 39 Cal.4th 341 by concluding that a state agency that has an obligation to make fair-share payments to mitigate off-site traffic impacts of a ...


07.08.15

As-Is Deals May Not Be So As-Is

To avoid litigation over mistaken or misinterpreted statements made in the course of negotiations, owners of real property rely on “as-is” and “independent investigation” clauses in their real estate contracts and leases.


07.02.15

Neighbors’ Noise Complaints Trigger EIR

The Sixth District Court of Appeal affirmed the trial court’s holding that preparation of an EIR was required for the approval of a use permit to allow wedding events on vineyard property.


06.24.15

The California Raisins Strike Back

In a pro-property rights opinion, the U.S. Supreme Court applies Fifth Amendment “takings” analysis to a federal program that confiscated a farmer’s raisin crop and orders payment of just compensation for the taking of private property.


06.17.15

Real Estate and Land Use: California Supreme Court Upholds Inclusionary Housing Zoning

In a much-anticipated ruling, the California Supreme Court has settled for now the question of whether or not a municipality may condition residential project approvals on the inclusion of affordable housing units, validating the over 170 local agency inclusionary housing ordinances in California.


06.10.15

5 Things to Know About Tenant Star

President Barack Obama signed the Energy Efficiency Improvement Act of 2015 into law on April 30, 2015.