Partner Rachel Horsch recently moderated Bisnow’s panel, “Recovery of the Bay Area’s Office Market“. Topics covered how office spaces are evolving to accommodate for changing workforce
needs, such as changing layouts, offices in residential buildings and hybrid work. Panelists discussed these topics, showcasing their most innovative projects and shed light on the future of the market in the Bay Area. Click here to view the recording.
Anthony Cavender, a Houston-based Environmental & Natural Resources senior counsel was featured in an exclusive Q&A with AmLaw’s Texas Lawyer. Cavender is one of Pillsbury’s longstanding environmental lawyers, having joined the firm in 2003. Over the years, he quietly became one of the leading authorities on environmental decisions throughout the nation. Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, for instance, he penned 33 blog posts for Pillsbury’s Gravel2Gavel blog under the heading, “A Court-Side Seat.” A round up of last year’s year-in-review, which features excerpts of Tony’s blog posts can be found here. Cavender shares his views on how the environmental practice has evolved over the decades, what the long-term trends for the practice are, how he became a blogger, how he determines which decisions warrant a review, and what direction he thinks the respective agencies and courts will take under the new administration.
Read his full feature here.
On September 30, 2021, the United States Senate confirmed Rohit Chopra as Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). Mr. Chopra helped establish the CFPB following its creation through the Dodd-Frank Act and served as an Assistant Director at the CFPB from 2010 to 2015. Director Chopra will likely continue the CFPB’s focus on institutions’ responses to the COVID-19 pandemic, with a particular focus on the housing, small business lending, and mortgages among other things. Pillsbury colleagues Brian H. Montgomery, Craig J. Saperstein, Deborah S. Thoren-Peden, JiJi Park, The Honorable William Lacy Clay Jr., Yvette Puckett Cravins, and Daniel C. Wood explain additional insights in Senate Confirms Rohit Chopra as CFPB Director.
Real estate tokenization and smart home technology continue to grow, negotiations surrounding the bipartisan infrastructure bill stall its passing, artificial intelligence is poised to transform the construction industry, and more.
A first for commercial real estate occurs, proptech sees a significant increase in venture capital funding, the Victorian government shuts down all construction sites after protests turn violent, and more. Continue Reading ›
Diversity and inclusion efforts increase in the infrastructure industry, a recent United Nations report on climate change highlights its potential effects on real estate, construction projects fall behind schedule due to labor shortages, and more.
Proptech and office return delays continue to grow, the new infrastructure bill could track your travel data, investor activity shows an expectation that business properties will rebound after COVID-19 shutdowns, and more.
In our June 16 CMA Update, we discussed how the New York City Climate Mobilization Act (CMA) will affect building owners and the market for CMBS mortgage loans (loans pooled and resold as commercial mortgage-backed securities). (For more information on C-PACE financing, see Sustainable Buildings and Development: Carbon Emissions and the Recent Climate Mobilization Act of New York City.) In this update, we will outline some of the funding solutions that are available to New York City building owners looking to retrofit their buildings in order to comply with the CMA’s requirements.
Software is critical for countless businesses in the real estate and construction industries. After the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court’s recent decision in Oracle, there may be a sales tax refund opportunity for businesses (including real estate, construction companies) that license software for use in Massachusetts and in other states. Read more about the court’s decision here by Zachary T. Atkins and William L. Bennett.
On July 21, 2021, a group of bipartisan Senators formally introduced the Cyber Incident Notification Act of 2021. This legislation, if passed, would require nearly all federal contractors and subcontractors (at all tiers) to report actual and potential cybersecurity intrusions to the Department of Homeland Security within 24 hours. Unlike previous cybersecurity requirements that have applied only to contractors in certain industries, such as defense or information technology, this legislation is intended to cover contractors throughout the Federal supply chain. Therefore, real estate and construction companies that hold contracts or subcontracts in support of the Federal government would be subject to these new, more onerous reporting requirements. Colleagues Brian E. Finch, Michael R. Rizzo and Meghan D. Doherty discuss the bipartisan legislation in a recent alert.
Gravel2Gavel Construction & Real Estate Law Blog