Commercial Lease Disputes
Verified Update
Ruling Issued
The Alabama Supreme Court on October 16, 2026, affirmed a trial court's order striking as untimely a commercial tenant's opposition to its landlord's motion for partial summary judgment, leaving intact a $65,827.50 unpaid-rent judgment and a ruling that the tenant, Montgomery Civic Ballet, Inc., owes its landlord, Commercial Properties, Inc., defense and indemnity on mold-related personal-injury claims arising from the same shopping-center lease. On the landlord's cross-appeal, the Court reversed in part and remanded, holding the trial court could not simultaneously certify the partial judgment as final under Rule 54(b) while also purporting to dismiss the entire case.
$65,827.50 unpaid-rent judgment affirmed; tenant also held to owe landlord defense and indemnity on separate personal-injury claims
Oct 16, 2026
Supreme Court of Alabama
Zoning & Land Use
Verified Update
Ruling Issued
The Alabama Supreme Court granted a writ of mandamus on October 16, 2026, directing a Baldwin County circuit court to enter judgment for the City of Fairhope and its Planning Commission on developer 68V BTR Holdings, LLC's negligence claim over the denial of two apartment-complex applications, holding that both the volunteer Commission members and the city employees who advised them are immune from suit. The ruling leaves 68V's separate arbitrary-and-capricious and substantive-due-process claims against the City and Commission pending in the trial court.
Unspecified negligence damages claim over denial of two apartment-development applications; no dollar figure stated in the opinion
Oct 16, 2026
Supreme Court of Alabama
Commercial Lease Disputes
Verified Update
Ruling Issued
The Texas Court of Appeals for the First District affirmed summary judgment for a Harwin-area Houston shopping center ownership group against a restaurant tenant's claims for breach of lease, fraud, DTPA violations and quantum meruit over disputed repair costs and a refused sublease. The court held the tenant's own lease terms assigned electrical, plumbing and HVAC maintenance to the tenant, that the tenant never gave the written notice the lease required before claiming a roof-repair default, that an oral sublease-consent promise was unenforceable under the statute of frauds, and that the lease's $522,000 total consideration exceeded the threshold exempting the transaction from the DTPA. The trial court's $23,580 trial and $15,000 appellate attorney's fee awards to the landlord were also affirmed.
$23,580 trial attorney's fees plus $15,000 appellate fees awarded to landlord
Oct 16, 2026
Court of Appeals of Texas, First District (Houston)
Zoning & Land Use
Verified Update
Ruling Issued
The Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania on October 15, 2026, affirmed dismissal of a constitutional challenge brought by Orchard BJK Company, LLC and Pocono Mountains Industries, Inc. against Coolbaugh Township's 2023 amendments tripling wetland buffer distances under its stormwater ordinance. The developers sued while their own petition asking the Township's Board to waive the new buffers for a planned warehouse on Lot 2 was still pending before the Board, and the court held the claims were not yet ripe because the Board could still grant the waiver.
Not a monetary claim; developer sought a declaratory judgment voiding stormwater buffer ordinance amendments as unconstitutional and invalid special legislation
Oct 15, 2026
Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania
Construction Defect
Verified Update
Ruling Issued
New York's Appellate Division, First Department, on October 15, 2026 affirmed liability but vacated a roughly $1.4 million mechanic's-lien and breach-of-contract judgment that bathroom-fixtures supplier Waterworks Operating Co. won against 514 West 24th Owner LLC over unpaid materials delivered to a Chelsea redevelopment project. The court rejected the Owner's argument that an unauthorized construction manager's change orders could not bind it, but found Waterworks' proof of $237,069 of the claimed damages improperly relied on a reply-only affidavit, and remitted the case to Supreme Court to recalculate damages.
$1,396,058.74 judgment vacated and remitted for recalculation of damages
Oct 15, 2026
Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of the State of New York, First Department
Lending & Foreclosure
Verified Update
Pending
Trade press reported October 15, 2026 that U.S. Magistrate Judge Andrew M. Edison called it "pretty damn egregious" that a Nord Group subsidiary kept collecting rent on Edgewater Apartments, a 228-unit Lake Jackson, Texas complex, after Freddie Mac had already foreclosed on the property, and then sued its own lender over the dispute rather than turning over the proceeds. The report describes a broader pattern across Nord Group's multifamily portfolio of lenders and investors accusing Nord entities of diverting rents, submitting falsified insurance records, and letting buildings deteriorate, with court filings describing sewage backups, mold, and vermin at some properties.
Undisclosed loan balance; part of a broader multi-property Nord Group portfolio collapse
Oct 15, 2026
U.S. District Court, Southern District of Texas (Galveston Division)
Lending & Foreclosure
Verified Update
Filed
A 250,100-square-foot, four-building North San Jose office campus once occupied by eBay is heading toward foreclosure after owners Ocean West Capital Partners and Hana Asset Management defaulted on an $88.1 million loan from Deutsche Bank AG, which filed an initial notice of default in July 2026. The Real Deal and Hoodline reported October 15 and 17, 2026 that the unpaid balance has grown to $98.4 million and that Deutsche Bank plans a full foreclosure; the owners bought the vacant campus for $132.5 million in 2018, and Morningstar now values it at roughly $54.7 million.
$88.1M loan; unpaid balance grown to $98.4M as of October 2026
Oct 15, 2026
Santa Clara County, California (non-judicial trustee's sale)
Zoning & Land Use
Verified Update
Ruling Issued
On October 14, 2026, the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania affirmed a Berks County trial court ruling against C&B Development, LLC. The developer wants to build a 709,000-square-foot warehouse and a commercial building on a 75.5-acre tract in Maxatawny Township, near Kutztown University. The Maxatawny Township Zoning Hearing Board ruled that the private road the warehouse needs is a related impervious surface, so the ordinance's 500-foot setback from homes applies to it. The board also refused a dimensional variance, and the appellate panel upheld both rulings.
Dimensional variance and zoning interpretation (no dollar figure)
Oct 14, 2026
Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania
Zoning & Land Use
Verified Update
Ruling Issued
On October 14, 2026, the Massachusetts Appeals Court reversed a Land Court judgment that had let CRG Acquisition, LLC build an approximately 800,000-square-foot warehouse and distribution facility in Holliston without a special permit. The panel held that, even without deferring to the planning board's interpretation, the proposed facility's scale takes it out of the zoning bylaw's as-of-right 'wholesale office or showroom' warehouse category and into the bylaw's general-industrial-use category, which requires a special permit the planning board had already denied in 2021.
800,000-square-foot warehouse project at risk (no dollar figure stated)
Oct 14, 2026
Massachusetts Appeals Court
Construction Defect
Verified Update
Ruling Issued
On October 14, 2026, Florida's Fourth District Court of Appeal affirmed a trial court judgment that GSD Contracting, LLC breached its subcontract with All American Builders & Debris Removal, Inc. by withholding a $71,582.98 retainage owed on a five-story hotel project, after a mold-remediation dispute led GSD to terminate the subcontractor. The court reversed a separate $45,300 the trial court had also awarded for work All American never performed, since All American had never sought that amount and the subcontract itself barred recovery for unperformed work after a termination for convenience.
$71,582.98 retainage affirmed; $45,300 unperformed-work award reversed
Oct 14, 2026
District Court of Appeal of Florida, Fourth District
Construction Defect
Verified Update
Ruling Issued
The Appellate Division, Second Department, affirmed a Queens County trial court's denial of CG & J Realty, LLC's motion to vacate a Lien Law §19 bond and dismiss CFS Enterprises, Inc.'s action to foreclose a mechanic's lien on CG & J Realty's commercial property. The court held that CG & J Realty's NYSCEF filing of its order to show cause did not satisfy Lien Law §59's requirement of personal service on the lienor, so the motion was properly denied regardless of the merits of the underlying lien dispute.
Lien amount not stated in the opinion; dispute over discharge of a mechanic's lien bond on Queens commercial property
Oct 14, 2026
Supreme Court of the State of New York, Appellate Division, Second Judicial Department
Zoning & Land Use
Verified Update
Ruling Issued
The Michigan Court of Appeals affirmed the Michigan Tax Tribunal's determination that a Redford Township commercial property, a former bowling alley converted for a Dollar General store, had a true cash value of $525,000 for the 2023 tax year. The panel rejected owner Zecorra Enterprises, LLC's argument that the tribunal should have relied on its own appraiser's lower valuation and renovation deduction rather than the township's.
$525,000 true cash value determination affirmed
Oct 14, 2026
Michigan Court of Appeals
Environmental
Verified Update
Filed
The City of San Antonio sued the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in federal court in San Antonio on October 13, 2026 (Case No. 5:26-cv-06542). The city wants to stop federal plans to turn a nearly 640,000-square-foot industrial warehouse on the city's East Side into a detention and processing center for up to 1,500 people. The city argues that the agencies have not done the environmental review the National Environmental Policy Act requires. It asks the court to bar further development until that review is complete.
Injunctive relief; warehouse bought for $66.1 million
Oct 13, 2026
U.S. District Court, Western District of Texas
Commercial Lease Disputes
Verified Update
Ruling Issued
On October 13, 2026, the Appellate Division, First Department unanimously affirmed a $1,216,177.36 jury judgment for a preschool operator, Ordinary Faces LLC, and its founder against their landlord, Bohemian Brethren Presbyterian Church. The jury found the church breached lease provisions requiring it to cooperate in obtaining city approvals and to act diligently on a fire alarm system, which kept the tenant from getting the Department of Buildings sign-off it needed to run the school. The court upheld the lost-profits award, held a rent abatement was not the tenant's only remedy, and ruled that a landlord-liability cap did not bar recovery after the church sold the building.
$1,216,177.36 judgment
Oct 13, 2026
New York Supreme Court, Appellate Division, First Department
Zoning & Land Use
Verified Update
Ruling Issued
On October 13, 2026, the Court of Appeals of Virginia affirmed the dismissal of Recycled Properties, LLC's challenge to the City of Chesapeake's refusal to approve a site plan for a warehouse and office building at its construction-debris landfill. The city had found the buildings would expand a legally nonconforming use and asked for more information and a conditional use permit. The court held the owner's complaint, read with the city's denial letter attached to it, did not plead facts showing the denial was arbitrary or outside the zoning ordinance.
Site plan approval; statutory damages claim dismissed
Oct 13, 2026
Court of Appeals of Virginia
Eminent Domain
Verified Update
Ruling Issued
On October 13, 2026, the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania affirmed a McKean County order enforcing a settlement between the City of Bradford and property owner DewBoi Properties, LLC over the city's taking of 374 square feet of an alley behind DewBoi's property for a new bus station. The owner had accepted $30,000 and the city's promise to relocate two utility poles, then balked when one pole was to be moved elsewhere on its lot, citing lost parking for its tenants and their customers. The court held the signed agreement unambiguously allowed relocation onto DewBoi's property and rejected the owner's mutual mistake defense.
$30,000 condemnation settlement
Oct 13, 2026
Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania
Zoning & Land Use
Verified Update
Ruling Issued
The Michigan Court of Appeals affirmed a Grand Traverse Circuit Court ruling rejecting Schell Road, LLC's mandamus action against Grant Township over its special land use application to operate a gravel mine on 80 acres it purchased in 2022. The panel held that Schell Road's application was incomplete under the township's pre-amendment zoning ordinance, so the company never had the clear legal right to a public hearing that mandamus requires, and let stand the trial court's finding that the township did not act in bad faith when it amended its mining ordinance for the first time since 1998 while the case was pending.
Not stated in the opinion
Oct 13, 2026
Michigan Court of Appeals
Lending & Foreclosure
Verified Update
Filed
Quinlan Development Group sued on October 13, 2026 in New York County Supreme Court to foreclose on the leasehold interest behind a stalled life-sciences and office development at 320 West 31st Street near Penn Station, alleging the owner, Maple 1 Farley Owner LLC, defaulted on a $54 million mortgage that has grown to $65.9 million with accrued and default interest. Quinlan acquired the loan from Bank of China in September 2026 and also sued Cannon Hill Capital Partners, the project's developer, as a recourse guarantor.
$65.9 million claimed owed (including accrued and default interest) on an original $54 million mortgage
Oct 13, 2026
Supreme Court of the State of New York, New York County
Lending & Foreclosure
Verified Update
Filed
A three-building, roughly 287,370-square-foot office campus at 190, 210, and 230 West Tasman Drive in North San Jose fell into default after owner KU Education's affiliate failed to repay an $80 million loan, originated by Jefferies LoanCore in 2016, that matured unpaid in August 2026. The Real Deal and The Registry reported October 13, 2026 that KU Education was served a notice of default in October; the campus serves as the corporate headquarters of air-taxi developer Archer Aviation, which leases the 190 and 210 buildings.
$80M loan matured unpaid
Oct 13, 2026
Santa Clara County, California (non-judicial trustee's sale)
Commercial Lease Disputes
Verified Update
Ruling Issued
On October 12, 2026, a California Court of Appeal panel affirmed a judgment for cannabis retailer TGS CC Ventures, LLC and its parent and lease guarantor Jushi, Inc. in a suit by developer Pacific Collective, LLC over a 15-year build-to-suit lease for a dispensary at 3800 Sepulveda Boulevard in Culver City. The court held that the lease implicitly required Pacific to buy the land from ExxonMobil within a reasonable time, and that substantial evidence supported the referee's finding that its delay justified TGS's February 2020 rescission. Pacific had alleged damages of more than $20 million against the tenant and guarantor.
Damages alleged to exceed $20 million; $4.2 million land purchase
Oct 12, 2026
California Court of Appeal, Second Appellate District, Division Three
Lending & Foreclosure
Verified Update
Filed
ACORE Capital recorded a notice of default against developer GPI Companies in September 2026 over West End, a 235,000-square-foot creative office campus at 10730 West Pico Boulevard in West Los Angeles, built on the site of a shuttered Macy's at the former Westside Pavilion. The Real Deal reported the default on October 12, 2026, saying ACORE claims more than $80 million is owed; the campus, completed in 2022, reportedly remains entirely vacant.
More than $80M claimed owed; 2024 refinancing reported at $97.6M
Oct 12, 2026
Los Angeles County, California (non-judicial trustee's sale)
Lending & Foreclosure
Verified Update
Filed
AZ 175th Street LLC, which owns a mixed-use building at 91-10/91-14 175th Street in Jamaica, Queens, filed a voluntary Chapter 11 petition in the Eastern District of New York on October 10, 2026 (Case No. 26-44763). The petition reports about $14 million in assets and $12.6 million in liabilities. It is the owner's second Chapter 11 case: the first, filed in May 2025 as a single-asset real estate case, was dismissed in October 2025 on the secured creditor's motion, and the order barred the debtor from filing again for 180 days.
$12.6 million in reported liabilities against $14 million in reported assets
Oct 10, 2026
U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Eastern District of New York
Lending & Foreclosure
Verified Update
Filed
Merchants Bank of Indiana has filed a foreclosure complaint, reported on October 10, 2026 as filed earlier in October, in Cook County Circuit Court against borrower GRV Jackson Park LLC, seeking to foreclose on three apartment buildings in Chicago's South Shore and Jackson Park areas. The suit covers two loan facilities totaling $6.4 million made in June 2024, on which the borrower allegedly stopped making monthly payments in March 2025. The complaint also names the venture's two principals under their unconditional guaranties and seeks to hold them liable for any deficiency.
$6.4 million in two loan facilities
Oct 10, 2026
Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois
Premises Liability
Verified Update
Filed
Microsoft sued JLL in Manhattan state court, alleging the real estate services firm broke its promise to defend and indemnify Microsoft against lawsuits arising from the build-out of its office at 122 Fifth Avenue and to name Microsoft as an insured under JLL's $10 million liability policy. The suit stems from a worker's personal-injury case over a March 2023 forklift accident during the build-out, to which Microsoft was added as a defendant in 2025.
Defense costs and indemnity; $10M liability policy at issue
Oct 9, 2026
New York Supreme Court, New York County
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