In business situations where the COVID-19 6-foot social distancing recommendation of the CDC is impractical or impossible to meet, having your clients/customers sign or electronically accept a properly-prepared risk assumption waiver document may help inoculate your business from such future liability claims.Read More
SCOTUS decision in Atlantic Richfield Co. v. Christian is especially beneficial to similar Indiana neighboring property owners, because Indiana’s owner-friendly Environment Legal Action (ELA) statute allows neighbors added recovery under a less burdensome process, versus the common law nuisance process the Montana property owners endured.Read More
A constitutional challenge to Indiana’s Right to Farm Act (“RTFA”) was recently tossed by the Indiana Court of Appeals, rejecting a neighbor group’s claims that a Central Indiana concentrated animal feeding operation (“CAFO”) constitutionally deprived them of their property rights. In Himsel v. 4/9 Livestock, LLC, et al. the neighbors alleged nuisance, negligence and trespassing...Read More
For 20+ years, Kahn, Dees, Donovan & Kahn has been affiliated with Meritas Law Firms Worldwide, a global alliance of closely connected, yet independent law firms that each offer a full range of high-quality, specialized legal services. KDDK’s affiliation with Meritas enables our Evansville-based firm to deliver global coverage to our clients. Our Meritas affiliation allows KDDK...Read More
The Indiana Court of Appeals recently held that an Indiana landowner’s attempt to exclude the public from access to waterfront property on Lake Michigan was contrary to Indiana law. Specifically, this homeowner sought a declaratory judgment to confirm his alleged right to exclude the public. In addition to ruling that the public has access to...Read More
Having worked on real estate development projects and served regional economic development agencies, we have heard many site selectors’ differing perspectives. However, those site selectors and their job-producing global clients repeat three (3) key points that owners, developers and their communities should heed in trying to attract their next major project. Data must be open....Read More
The recent property assessment battle for big-box retail stores may turn out to be short lived. In the December 2014 case of Meijer Stores v. Marion County Assessor (available here), the Indiana Board of Tax Review (“IBTR”) ruled that big-box stores like Meijer are allowed to use vacant or abandoned big-box retail stores when using...Read More
The Sierra Club recently lost a case against a utility company in which it alleged that particulate matter emanating from a Texas coal-fired power plant violated federal environmental laws. In Sierra Club v. Energy Future Holdings Corp., No. W-12-CV-108 (W.D. Tex. March 28, 2014), the United States District Court ruled against Sierra Club on all...Read More
Security and value – win/win objectives sought by both sellers and buyers in negotiating supplier documents. Where pursuit of these objectives is sincere, one finds healthy supplier/purchaser relationships. Long-term profitability more often follows. This is rarely more apparent than in this week’s business news. Pharma leader Eli Lilly was reportedly just hit with a $6...Read More
Often overlooked, commercial real estate tenants, like buyers, should undertake environmental assessments before entering leases. Tenants are title holders just like buyers. Thus, they face succumbing to potentially expensive clean-up liabilities far exceeding a real estate tract or lease’s value. Skipping this pre-lease process can be disastrous. With so many landlords having financially failed over...Read More