This program is eligible for 6 hours of CLE credit, including 1 hour of ethics, in 60-minute states. In 50-minute states, this program is eligible for 7.2 hours of CLE credit, including 1.2 ethics. Credit hours are estimated and are subject to each state’s approval and credit rounding rules.
Overview
Join us as we revisit hot topics from the 2023 Real Estate Institute.
How ChatGPT May Impact the Future of Real Estate Practice
During the past year we have heard a lot about ChatGPT and AI. During this session we will look into the future together and try to determine how AI will impact the practice of Real Estate law.
Jennifer Ellis
Commercial Evictions and How to Avoid Them
An overview of commercial evictions, from self-help, municipal and district justice court actions, common pleas court actions, and confessions of judgment. Both substantive law and procedures will be discussed. Practical strategies for drafting leases, and prosecuting and defending evictions, will also be reviewed.
H. Jeffrey Brahin
Structuring Real Estate Joint Ventures: A Path to Profitable Partnerships
A real estate joint venture is a partnership formed between two or more parties to jointly invest in a real estate project. These parties pool their financial resources, expertise, and skills to undertake a specific project, whether it's developing residential properties, acquiring commercial real estate, or venturing into niche markets like hospitality or industrial properties. Joint ventures offer a way for investors to leverage their combined strengths to achieve mutual goals while spreading the risks and rewards.
In this seminar, attendees will learn about the various considerations and challenges that clients will face when setting up the legal structure to govern a real estate JV, including capital contributions and calls, waterfall distributions and priority of returns, management and control terms, operational expenses, taxes, deadlock resolution, transfer restrictions, exit mechanisms, and defaults and remedies.
Scott Rothman
Distressed Commercial Real Estate: A Primer on Forbearance, Restructuring And Recovery
The presentation analyzes the framework and use of commercial real estate loan modifications, forbearance agreements, deeds in lieu, short sales and other options for loan workouts. It compares the negotiation strategies of the mortgagor, mortgagee, guarantor, and rescue capital provider. It provides examples of various provisions that the parties in interest would propose to obtain advantages as well as those to achieve compromise.
Gregory Gosfield, Corinne S Brennan, Alexandra M. Hill
The New Act 54 –Discriminatory Restrictions in Deed Covenants (Fair Housing and Unenforceable Deed Restrictions Update)
Restrictive covenants exist on many Pennsylvania properties, in deeds and other documents, often for legitimate purposes. What can be done when title to land includes discriminatory racial or religious covenants? Learn about the history of housing discrimination, the federal Fair Housing Act and PA Human Relations Act, how discriminatory restrictions were promoted by the US government and Supreme Court, and how new PA Act 54 allows repudiation of these relics of housing discrimination.
Marshal Granor
Risk Management for Real Estate Attorneys - How to Avoid Malpractice and Ethical Problems
This will be an interactive discussion about potential professional liability and ethical problems faced by real estate attorneys, and how best to avoid them. The presenters have represented real estate attorneys in various types of professional liability matters, and the goal of this program will be to discuss both potential risks, and solutions. Particularly in times of economic turbulence, real estate attorneys can face professional liability claims whether those claims have merit or are without merit. Either way, those claims can cost attorneys deductibles on their Lawyer Professional Liability policies. This discussion will focus on how to avoid such claims.
Paul Troy
Recorded in June 2024.
Faculty
Alexandra M. Hill, Esq.
Ms. Hill is a partner in the real estate & finance group at Klehr Harrison Harvey Branzburg LLP in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She focuses her practice on many aspects of commercial real estate finance, construction and investment with extensive experience representing owners, developers, investors and lenders in the origination, acquisition and disposition of mortgage loans, mezzanine financings, C-PACE financings, subordinate debt and post-closing modifications, including, loan restructurings and workouts. She received her B.A. from Emory University and her J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center, where she was Lead Articles Editor of The Tax Lawyer.
Corinne S. Brennan, Esq.
Ms. Brennan is a partner at Klehr Harrison Harvey Branzburg LLP in Philadelphia and concentrates her practice in commercial and consumer bankruptcy, reorganization, workouts, foreclosure litigation, regulatory matters related to consumer finance, and general consumer and commercial litigation. Ms. Brennan has over a decade of experience representing secured lenders, creditors, committees, equity security holders, and trustees in all facets of commercial and consumer bankruptcy proceedings, including contested matters, adversary proceedings, and appeals. Representative matters in bankruptcy include counseling both plaintiffs and defendants in preference litigation, fraudulent transfer actions, and dischargeability challenges. Ms. Brennan’s workout practice includes representation of national and regional banking institutions, credit unions, private equity firms, and high net-worth individuals in unique out-of-court financial reorganizations that require a combination of restructuring, transactional, and litigation expertise. Her diverse state court representative matters include receiverships, assignments for the benefit of creditors, quiet title actions, and commercial and residential foreclosure proceedings. Ms. Brennan has also represented clients in both the prosecution and defense of a wide variety of commercial claims, such as complex contract disputes, business torts, confessions of judgment, and fraudulent transfer actions. Ms. Brennan’s financial services practice also includes the regular provision of counseling to her clients on regulatory compliance and due diligence matters under the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA), Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA), Truth in Lending Act (TILA), and Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA). Ms. Brennan has successfully defended clients against claims and counterclaims based on alleged violations of these and other laws and frequently conducts in-house training seminars related to these topics.
Gregory G. Gosfield, Esq.
Mr. Gosfield is a business lawyer specializing in complex real estate transactions. He counsels clients on structuring debt and equity, and the use of various real estate entities such as commercial condominiums and multi-tiered leases, in both amicable and contentious settings. Mr. Gosfield is also a course planner and frequent lecturer to professional and trade associations and a prolific writer. Mr. Gosfield has regularly been named to the Best Lawyers in America, Chambers USA America’s Leading Lawyers for Business, and Pennsylvania Super Lawyers. Some of his recent representations include: the purchaser of a multi-hospital and medical office building portfolio; the declarant of a condominium for a multiuse hotel, retail, parking and residential project and the ground up development of over 2,000 student housing units in different states.
Scott M. Rothman, Esq.
Scott M. Rothman is a partner with the law firm Curley & Rothman, LLC, based in Conshohocken, PA. Throughout his 18 years practicing real estate law, he has represented joint venturers, developers, investors, commercial and residential buyers and sellers, commercial and residential landlords and tenants, lenders, realtors, title agencies, and title insurance underwriters. Mr. Rothman handles real estate transactional and litigation matters, in Pennsylvania and New Jersey. He also manages his firm’s affiliate title agency, Spring Mill Settlement Services, as a licensed agent and settlement officer in Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Mr. Rothman’s interest in real property was sparked prior to law school when he worked for Habitat for Humanity, assisting the organization with the acquisition of properties from the City of Philadelphia and various agencies including the Redevelopment Authority. Over twenty years later, Mr. Rothman remains passionate about fair housing and volunteers for Philly VIP to address and resolve “tangled titles” for low-income residents. When not at work, he enjoys sailing, spicy food, and outdoor activities with his children.
Marshal S. Granor, Esq.
Mr. Granor practices law at Granor and Granor, P.C. in Horsham, concentrating in the areas of community association law and real estate transactions. He is a member of the Solo and Small Firm Section Council, is a Past Chair of the Real Property, Probate and Trust Law Section and is currently a member of PBA’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Team and the Minority Bar Committee. He was a principal author of Pennsylvania’s Uniform Planned Community Act. Mr. Granor is a member of the Montgomery, Pennsylvania and American Bar Associations and of Community Associations Institute. He is a fellow in the College of Community Association Lawyers and has taught continuing education courses at CAI’s National Community Association Law Seminar. Marshal is an observer to the Uniform Law Commissioners committee on illegal deed covenants. He holds Pennsylvania and New Jersey licenses as a real estate broker and title insurance agent, as well as a license as a Pennsylvania Real Estate Instructor. Mr. Granor frequently teaches continuing education courses for the Pennsylvania Bar Institute including at the annual Real Estate Institute. He has served as an expert witness on community association and real estate matters in Pennsylvania courts, and has testified on community association legislation before committees of the General Assembly. He also teaches continuing education courses for real estate licensees, title insurance agents, and community association professionals. For 14 years, he and his wife, Tamar, served as co-presidents of the Hebrew Free Loan Society of Greater Philadelphia, where they remain active on its Board of Directors. In May of 2024, he received the Pennsylvania Bar Association’s President’s Award for his work on the enactment of Act 54 of 2023, Repudiation of Discriminatory Real Estate Covenants. Mr. Granor received his B.A. from the University of Pennsylvania and his J.D. from Temple University Law School
Jennifer L. Ellis, Esq.
Jennifer Ellis is a legal ethics attorney in Pennsylvania. She owns the consulting/law firm marketing company Jennifer Ellis, JD, LLC, through which she assists attorneys with issues such as electronic discovery, practice management, and online presence. Previously, Jennifer worked with a Philadelphia area personal injury firm, where she practiced legal ethics, managed the firm’s online presence, and oversaw its IT and security consultants. Jennifer also served as the Associate Director of Media Technology with the Pennsylvania Bar Institute, where she organized and presented courses on numerous issues, including law practice management, technology, and ethics. Jennifer speaks and writes throughout Pennsylvania and nationally on issues relating to law practice management, technology, ethics, marketing, and more. Find her online at jlellis.net.
H. Jeffrey Brahin, Esq.
Mr. Brahin is the owner and founder of Brahin Law Offices. He concentrates his practice in the area of real estate and commercial litigation, transactional real estate and corporate and general civil litigation. Mr. Brahin represents numerous landlords, tenants, property management companies and condominium associations in landlord/tenant litigation, litigation regarding options, adverse possession, partition, foreclosures, mechanics liens, the Real Estate Seller Disclosure Act, actions to quiet title and the Commercial Real Estate Broker Lien Act. He also handles commercial real estate acquisitions, sales, leasing and financing and represents a wide variety of companies and individuals in commercial litigation matters, including covenants not to compete, partnership and shareholders disputes, debt collection, trade name litigation and the Uniform Commercial Code. Mr. Brahin has a corporate practice that involves entity formation and dissolution, mergers and acquisitions, employment agreements, business-to-business contracts, joint venture agreements, and security agreements. He handles litigation throughout eastern and central Pennsylvania. Mr. Brahin has been the Co-Course planner for the Bucks County Business law institute for the past five years and was appointed by the Court to the Bucks County Injunction Practice panel. Mr. Brahin has also been appointed by the Court to serve as arbitrator on commercial litigation matters and serves as a Judge Pro Temp in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas. Mr. Brahin is a graduate of Tufts University (cum laude) and the Dickinson School of Law. He is a member of the Pennsylvania and Bucks County Bar Associations, Real Estate, Business and Civil Litigation Sections, the Civility in the Profession Section of the Pennsylvania Bar Association and the Fee Dispute and Solo and Small Firm Sections of the Bucks County Bar Association.
Paul C. Troy, Esq.
Mr. Troy joined the Montgomery County law firm of Kane, Pugh, Knoell, Troy & Kramer, LLP in 1991. He focuses his practice on the defense of professional liability and medical malpractice litigation. He has tried over 100 cases to verdict. Mr. Troy is a graduate of The Dickinson School of Law and was a law clerk to the Honorable Albert R. Subers in Montgomery County before entering private practice. Mr. Troy is a past President of the Pennsylvania Bar Institute. He has also served two terms on the Pennsylvania Bar Association Board of Governors, having served as Chair of the Young Lawyers Division and later as Chair of the House of Delegates. He is a past Co-Chair of the PBA Bar Leadership Institute. He has previously served as either Chair or Vice-Chair of the PBA Health Care Law Committee from 2000 until 2010. Mr. Troy was President of the Montgomery Bar Association in 2012. He was President of the Montgomery County Trial Lawyers Section in 2003. In 2011, Mr. Troy was honored by the Montgomery County Trial Lawyers Association by being named “Trial Lawyer of the Year.” He gives several presentations annually to County Bar Associations and private firms on the subject of Avoiding Professional Liability. In 2018, Mr. Troy was inducted as a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers.
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