California recently enacted Assembly Bill 361, which allows formation of “Benefit Corporations.” Maryland was the first state to enact such a law, California is the sixth. The law allows formation of corporations that have goals other then maximizing profits. In the traditional form, corporation directors have a fiduciary duty to…
There are a number of steps troubled California home mortgage borrowers can take. The can negotiate with the lender or servicer of their loan. As I discussed last June in the California Real Estate Lawyers Blog, they can apply to the Keep Your Home California program HERE. One new step…
Senate Bill 332, added to the Civil Code as Section 1947.5, allows landlords of residential property, to ban smoking tobacco products as of January 1, 2012. This applies to dwelling units, defined in section 1940 as a structure or the part of a structure that is used as a home,…
The recent trend has been for pundits and politicians to cast the banks and investment houses as victims of the credit crisis and economic collapse, some in fact to say Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are the source of the problem. This argument, described by Barry Ritholz as The Big…
Adverse Possession, like prescriptive easements, require a party to “possess” or use the property in a way that gives notice to the world of their intent. But co-owners -regardless of their percentage of ownership, or if they are tenants in common or joint tenants- all have an equal right to…
California real estate brokers occasionally face lawsuits from disgruntled clients for negligence is performing their duties. A recent California decision points out that, where breach of fiduciary duty is alleged, the client has four years to sue, not two as in the case of negligence. This is a reminder that…
A right of first refusal is a preemptive right which gives the right-holder a contract right to buy the asset or real property if the owner decides to sell. It is different than an option because, under an option, the optionee/buyer can require the optionor/seller to sell the property. But…
Tender of performance is a critical concept that only arises in the event of a dispute. The general rule is that to claim the other party is in breach of contract, you have to first tender performance. 1. Tender must be made at the proper time and place. If the…
Occasionally an owner conveys property without reserving an express or written easement to continue using the property for purposes related to an adjoining parcel. Most often the easement is for access to the adjoining property. In such cases, the courts determine if there should be an “implied easement.” An implied…
California courts have generally provided for equitable easements, in cases in which three factors are present: 1. The party needing the easement is innocent , that is not willful or negligent. 2. where adverse possession and prescriptive easement rules do not apply; Adverse possession require unless the rights of the…