Disclosure of Environmental Liabilities

Consultant Not Liable to Residents of Housing Complex For Not Identifying Vapor Risks

Brownfields, consultant malpractice, Disclosure of Environmental Liabilities, Environmental Due Diligence, vapor intrusion / By

A California state court dismissed a negligence claim brought against an environmental consultant by residents of the infamous Ujima Village low income housing complex for failing to identify health risks associated with a former oil storage facility. The 300-unit Ujima Village complex had been constructed on a portion of the former 122-acre Athens Tank Farm …

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Appeals Court Reverses Judgment For Seller Who Failed To Disclose Wetlands on Disclosure Form

Disclosure of Environmental Liabilities, wetlands / By

We have reviewed several cases where sellers have been held liable for failing to adequately disclose environmental conditions in mandated property condition reports even where the property is sold “as is”. Another example is Wise v. Hays, 943 N.E.2d 835 (Ind. Ct. App. 2011), a state appeals court reversed a grant of summary judgment  in …

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Court allows Claim To Proceed Against Home Builder For Failing To Disclose Wetlands

Disclosure of Environmental Liabilities, wetlands / By

In Stalvey v. NVR, Inc., 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 2506 (N.D. Ohio 1/09/12), the plaintiffs entered into an Ohio Purchase Agreement with defendant for the construction and purchase of a house. As part of the Agreement, defendant provided plaintiff with a Topographic Survey & Improvement Plan that did not depict the presence of wetlands on …

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Wisconsin Appeals Ct Says Corporate Agents May Be Individually Liable for Misstatements in Property Condition Reports

Disclosure of Environmental Liabilities / By

In Ferris v. Location 3 Corp., 804 N.W.2d 822 (Wisc. Ct. App.  2011), the plaintiff Ferris purchased real property located from defendant Location 3 Corporation.3 Sometime after closing, Ferris discovered that the landfill adjacent to his property was also a Superfund4 site. Ferris then filed a complaint against Location 3 and certain employees of firm …

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Regulatory Re-Interpretation Triggers Contractual Indemnity

Air Pollution, Corporate and Real Estate Transactions, Disclosure of Environmental Liabilities, Environmental Due Diligence / By

Historical environmental compliance is critically important in corporate transactions especially when a business or facility may be subject to a regulatory programs that is evolving or subject to re-interpretation such as the New Source Review program. In such cases, the parties will try to contractually allocate the risks. Despite the fact that these agreements are …

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Statute of Limitations Bars Purchaser’s Claim For 1981 Pipeline Spill

Disclosure of Environmental Liabilities, Environmental Due Diligence, oil spills / By

In Carolyn Vickers Inc. v. Unocal Corp., 2011 Cal. App. Unpub. LEXIS 9642 (Ct. App-2nd Dist. 12/19/11), Alan Little Ventures (ALV) purchased a 4.1 acre tract of land in San Luis Obispo in 2005. The land had been subdivided into 17 lots by the sellers, Phyllis and Alex Madonna (the “Madonnas”), and was zoned for …

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A Lawyer, an Underwriter and an Appraisor-An Update

Brownfields, Disclosure of Environmental Liabilities, Environmental Due Diligence, Lender Liability / By

The title of this post sounds like a teaser to a bad joke but unfortunately it refers to the latest round of motions in two sprawling lawsuits involving a defunct planned community that was to be developed on what proved to be a part of a world war 2 bombing practice range. The defendants include …

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Study Analyzes Trends In Key Terms in M&A Deals

Corporate and Real Estate Transactions, Disclosure of Environmental Liabilities, Environmental Due Diligence / By

Shareholder Representative Services (SRS) recently issued the results of its M&A Deal Terms Study covering 196 private-target acquisition agreements. The deals closed between July 2010 and September 2011. The 2011 study compares results against an earlier study that encompassed deals from July 2007 to July 2010. Some of the interesting findings are: use of escrows …

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State Court Reduces Damages of Condo Purchaser Because It Failed To Conduct Environmental Investigation

Brownfields, Disclosure of Environmental Liabilities, Environmental Due Diligence / By

In the wake of the Great Recession, many foreign investors are buying bulk quantities of condominium units at what they perceive to be distressed prices for projects located in certain gateway cities such as Miami and New York. Frequently, these condominium projects are developed on brownfield sites. In phased transactions where multiple buildings are constructed …

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Chapter 13 debtor may not avoid cleanup order

bankruptcy, Disclosure of Environmental Liabilities / By

A Chapter 13 debtor had previously owned a gas station. After the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) issued a notice of violation involving failing to comply with underground storage tanks (USTs) regulations, the debtor filed its chapter 13 petition. In its Statement of Financial Affairs, the debtor disclaimed knowledge of environmental issues …

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