Is There Liability for Terminating Contracts Related to Russia?
5 Key Takeaways | Contractual Approaches to Supply Chain Disputes: Is it Time for a New Paradigm?
COVID-19 Updates: Arizona Employment Law Issues
Among the problems resulting from COVID-19, is the pandemic’s effect on business. Numerous businesses were forced to close due to lock downs and supply chain issues. The economic slowdowns and business closures caused by...more
In the first Pennsylvania appellate case addressing the effects of government-ordered business closures due to the Covid-19 pandemic on a commercial lease default, the Pennsylvania Superior Court has held that the traditional...more
More than two years into the COVID-19 pandemic, anecdotal reports are that there have been many disputes between landlords and tenants about how the pandemic might affect the tenant’s payment obligations. Tenants reportedly...more
On June 29, 2021, in The Gap, Inc. v. 170 Broadway Retail Owner, LLC, the New York Appellate Division, First Department, overturned an earlier decision by the New York Supreme Court and issued a decisive victory to commercial...more
The advent of the COVID-19 virus and related shut-downs that commenced in early 2020 have had a dramatic impact on commercial real estate throughout the United States and resulted in numerous high profile lawsuits. ...more
It has been a busy couple of weeks in the UK with judgments in two important cases concerning COVID-19 rent arrears: Commerz Real Investmentgesellschaft mbh v TFS Stores Limited (TFS) ...more
Two recent cases from New York state court came out on opposite ends of the landlord-tenant and landlord-guarantor divides over COVID-19-related commercial lease disputes. On the pro-landlord end of the spectrum, in Mept 757...more
In February 2021, three Higher Regional Courts had to deal with the question of whether and on what legal basis the rents agreed in individual cases are to be temporarily reduced due to the official closure orders during the...more
The COVID-19 pandemic has strained commercial landlord-tenant relationships across the United States. As the courts wade their way through the backlog of lawsuits filed in 2020, there are a growing number of decisions...more
A Massachusetts Superior Court judge recently ruled that the doctrine of frustration of purpose excused Caffè Nero, a high-end coffee shop, from paying rent while its business was shuttered by government mandate. Although the...more
The lingerie brand Victoria’s Secret (“VS”) has struggled in recent years. VS’ overtly sexy aesthetic has failed to keep up with shifting consumer tastes towards comfort and gender and size inclusivity....more
What impact, if any, does a force majeure clause (or absence of one) have on common law excuse doctrines such as impossibility and frustration of purpose? A party who chooses to omit a force majeure clause from a contract...more
As discussed in our last update, the legal landscape continues rapidly to evolve in response to COVID-19. Six recent decisions, summarized below, highlight the continuing uncertainty as to the application of certain laws and...more
Since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, local municipalities and state governments throughout the country have implemented stay-at-home orders and mandated closures of businesses and restaurants to lower the spread of...more
Since the COVID-19 pandemic began, real estate owners and tenants have faced unprecedented day-to-day operational challenges from the loss of business and income. Two new real estate lawsuits seek to address these issues. ...more
Unlike the Great Recession in 2008, landlords and tenants responding to the negative economic impact of the COVID-19 health crisis appear to be focusing more on rent relief as opposed to strict interpretation and enforcement....more
New York courts are resuming some operations, but eviction proceedings, including for violations of commercial leases, are still suspended. However, those contracts — and the obligations they created — still exist. ...more
Much has been written about the general applicability of the frustration of purpose, impossibility, and impracticability doctrines to performance of leases and other contracts in the wake of COVID-19....more
As a result of COVID-19, landlords and tenants are coming face-to-face with legal theories that they may never have encountered before, such as force majeure, frustration of purpose, impossibility of performance,...more
As COVID-19 spreads throughout the United States and governors issue “shelter-in-place” orders and mandate the closure of non-essential businesses, landlords and tenants have encountered new and evolving challenges in meeting...more
Tenants and landlords should consider whether certain provisions such as force majeure, frustration of purpose, and/or impracticability of performance can protect them under current leases—and whether to include such...more
Due to the COVID 19 pandemic (hereafter, “COVID-19”), the closure of numerous shops and other businesses has been ordered by the authorities. Other shops and businesses are suffering losses in sales, some of them severe. As a...more
As COVID-19 continues to imperil the health of Americans, many state and local leaders have ordered businesses to close or to reduce services. In Rhode Island, for example, Governor Raimondo ordered restaurants to cease...more
The COVID-19 pandemic and the United States’ efforts to “flatten the curve” and slow the spread of the disease present considerable issues for commercial tenants and landlords. For instance, the Governors of New York, New...more
The English High Court has ruled that Brexit cannot be used as a reason to terminate a contract on the grounds of frustration. While the judgment concerned the effects of Brexit on a commercial lease, it reaches further than...more