Though Brexit may seem far removed from the strategic concerns of many of those in the construction and real estate industries, for those large construction operations, developers and suppliers that are either already in the UK/EU or expanding their operations into those areas, every development is worth tracking. In Next…
I recently wrote here about the use of UPREITs, a form of real estate partnership combined with a real estate investment trust, to create liquidity for high net worth real estate investors while allowing them to defer taxable gains on highly leveraged and appreciated real property. Another tax deferral strategy…
There are two reasons why borrowing has become the tax-preferred method of financing a sophisticated real estate investment portfolio. First is the ability to finance improvements with debt, which offers depreciation deductions. Second is the ability to make leveraged distributions through refinancing without paying immediate tax on the proceeds. The…
In a very complex, hard-fought case, U.S. District Judge David Hittner discusses how the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality’s (TCEQ) regulatory affirmative defenses to alleged Clean Air Act (CAA) violations will be viewed by the courts, if not the regulatory agencies. Environment Texas Citizen Lobby, Inc., et al., v. ExxonMobil Corp., et…
Will the U.S. Constitution’s Commerce Clause always insulate interstate commerce from the imposition of state and local taxes? Not always, as the Texas Supreme Court recently confirmed, when it agreed with the Court of Appeals for the First District of Texas, that Texas counties are permitted to levy property taxes on natural…
On April 28, the Texas Supreme Court, affirming the Court of Appeals of Texas, First District, sitting in Houston, issued a unanimous ruling in the case of Forest Oil Corporation v. El Rucio Land and Cattle Company, Inc., et al. This case involves claims for environmental contamination caused by oil and gas…
Rebuilding America’s aging infrastructure is one task that most economists and civil engineers, and most Americans, agree should be at or near the top of President Donald Trump’s agenda. President Trump touted his background as a real estate developer to convince voters that he was best positioned to identify priorities…
The California Contractors State License Board (CSLB) recently announced that current Enforcement Chief David R. Fogt will serve as the CSLB’s new Registrar of Contractors starting May 2. This promotion makes David Fogt the first licensee to lead the CSLB’s operations in 20 years. Mr. Fogt obtained his California painting contractor’s license in 1986(now inactive).…
On April 18, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit affirmed the district court’s ruling in a Louisiana case that dismissed the plaintiff’s claims for property damage based on contamination caused to his property by long-term oil and gas operations conducted by the predecessors of Hess Corporation. The…
On April 20, an intermediate Court of Appeals for the First Court of Appeals, sitting in Houston, reversed the trial court and directed that court to reinstate an environmental enforcement action that had purportedly been settled by agreement of the officials of Brazoria County, Texas and the defendants. Brazoria County had…