Last week marked the 10th anniversary of the US Supreme Court’s 5-4 decision known as Kelo v. City of New London. In that decision the Supreme Court ruled private economic development is a public use under the 5th amendment to the US Constitution. This decision...
Content By KJK
Integrating “Livability Principles” in Brownfields Redevelopment
Reprinted with permission from Kara A. Allison, APR, of Hull & Associates, Inc. Have you applied for federal brownfields funding lately? Perhaps you’ve noticed an increasing emphasis on incorporating sustainable concepts, equitable development, and other...
Featured Resource: Ohio Board of Building Standards
As I’ve noted in prior posts, the State of Ohio has an incredible amount of information available online. Today’s article covers the Ohio Board of Building Standards (the “BBS"), which is under the purview of the Department of Commerce. The BBS is comprised of 15...
Watch Your Language with Condemnation Clauses in Commercial Leases
(“Say what you mean, precisely, or a judge will decide what you meant” #9) As established in other “Watch Your Language” articles for this Blog, as a general rule, courts will uphold language in commercial agreements (including leases), unless it is contrary to...
U. S. Supreme Court Issues Decision in Favor of Bank of America in Chapter 7 Lien Stripping Case
The U.S. Supreme Court issued its decision today in the consolidated cases of Bank of America, N.A., Petitioner v. David B. Caulkett, and Bank of America, N.A., Petitioner v. Edelmiro Toledo-Cardona, declining 9-0 to void the junior mortgage liens on the respondents’...
Ohio Supreme Court Holds Local Zoning Ordinance Regarding Abandonment of Mobile-Homes To Be Unconstitutional
A recent Ohio Supreme Court decision reminds local governments that their zoning laws cannot be used to unconstitutionally deprive property owners of their property rights. In State ex rel. Sunset Estate Properties, L.L.C. v. Lodi (Slip Opinion No. 2015-Ohio-790),...
Ohio Real Estate Tax “Avoidance”
Not paying taxes that are legally owed is often referred to as “tax evasion”, and has been, is and will always be illegal. Reducing one’s tax burden, legally, however, by taking advantage of applicable exemptions, credits…and other tax saving techniques authorized by...
When Improvements Abut Property Lines: Consider a Maintenance Easement
When improvements abut property lines, landowners will inevitably encroach on the neighboring property when maintaining and repairing their own property. Of course a landowner can always just ask for permission to have equipment, contractors etc. go onto the...
Featured Resource: ODNR–An Overview
As an attorney, I've come to appreciate over the years how our state government in Ohio is quite helpful when it comes to putting resources on the Internet. You just need to know where to look for it. Since this blog is about Ohio real estate law, I wanted to provide...
Ohio Dept of Natural Resources: Recent Regulatory Notices, Rule Announcements and Updates
ODNR regulatory news: NOTICE TO WELL OWNERS re: tubular goods (3/31/2015)— The requirements of R.C. 1509.16 became effective March 31, 2015. The statute was enacted by Am. Sub. H.B. 59 of the 130th General Assembly. Well owners are required to file a disclosure form...