Hot Topics in Real Property (2023 Real Property Section Winter Program)
8:25 Registration and Continental Breakfast
8:55 Welcome and Introductions
9:00 Welcome to the Land of Distress: Dealing With Real Property in Bankruptcy and Receivership
Lisa P. Sumner, Nexsen Pruet LLC, Raleigh
Unleased space, fraud, mismanagement — no matter the cause, when distressed properties wind up in a receivership or a bankruptcy case, practitioners need to be familiar with the process so they can anticipate the legal issues and counsel clients appropriately. Examine the automatic stay, how leases are treated in bankruptcy, and flashpoints in receivership cases.
10:00 Break
10:10 Commercial Leasing: Practice Points and Lessons Learned
Susan L. Elliott, Wyrick Robbins Yates & Ponton LLP, Raleigh
Whether you practice residential or commercial real estate, most practitioners will be asked to review and negotiate a commercial lease agreement at some point in their careers. Review the basics of leasing and delve into certain specific terms and conditions. In addition, attendees also hear about lessons learned from negotiations of office, industrial and retail leasing for use in today’s environment.
11:10 Break
11:20 What Took So Long? "Hot" Issues in the 2021 ALTA Forms
Nancy S. Ferguson, Chicago Title Company LLC, Greensboro
The ALTA 2021 policies and endorsement changes were developed over 15 years as a result of a lot of title battles, from access to zoning! This presentation focuses on some of the practical issues and misconceptions about title insurance coverage these forms were developed to address. So, what is "good title" or "marketable title" or "insurable title"? That is the question!
12:20 Lunch Break
1:20 What Is Hotter Than Hot? Solar Panels, Marketable Title and Other HOA Matters
James Matthew "Matt" Waters, Jordan Price Wall Gray Jones & Carlton PLLC, Raleigh
Solar panels, marketable title, and the application of the Condominium Act on condominiums created on or before October 1, 1986, all heated up in the appellate courts in 2022. These cases all signaled big changes or potential big changes to the operation and governance of community associations. This presentation explores these cases and the impact on community associations — both condos and planned communities — all over North Carolina.
2:20 Break
2:30 Land Use Entitlement Process in NC and the Regulation of Affordable Housing, Short-Term Rentals and Accessory Dwelling Units
Michael C. "Mike" Thelen, Womble Bond Dickinson (US) LLP, Raleigh
Discuss the possible pathways, processes and general time frames applicable to entitling real estate in North Carolina (annexation, rezonings, subdivisions, site plans, special use permits, etc.) in a way that might inform the structure of a purchase and sale transaction. Then learn how local governments regulate affordable housing, accessory dwelling units, and short-term rentals from a land use perspective.
3:30 Break
3:40 Competency and Confidentiality for Lawyers‡
Catherine Sanders Reach, NC Bar Association, Cary
Misfired emails. Erroneous attachments. Video conferencing bloopers. The Internet of Things. Improperly applied redaction. Overactive spam filters. Phishing. Exposed metadata. Weak passwords. Lost mobile devices. The list goes on. A lawyer's duties of competence and confidentiality are only two of the reasons to be security aware and competent in the use of technology. Learn how to avoid end-user error, maintain a security-first stance, guard client confidentiality and protect sensitive data. In this session we explore common threats to law firm security and how to avoid them.
4:40 Adjourn
‡ Indicates portion providing Technology Training credit
Description
Designed to address a variety of topics, the 2023 Real Property Section Winter Program discusses an assortment of trends and developments in real property law.
Contributors
Susan L. Elliott
Susan L. Elliott is Senior Counsel with Wyrick Robbins Yates & Ponton LLP in Raleigh. She has broad experience in multi-site real estate portfolio management and commercial transactions.
Prior to joining Wyrick Robbins, she was a member of the Real Estate and Commercial Development practice group at Parker Poe with more than 20 years of real estate experience. At Parker Poe, Susan assisted clients in the structuring, negotiating, and closing of commercial real estate transactions.
Susan earned her B.A. in English Language and Literature from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and her J.D., cum laude, from Villanova University Charles Widger School of Law.
Nancy S. Ferguson is Vice President and Senior State Underwriting Counsel for Chicago Title in the Greensboro office as well as North Carolina State Counsel for the Fidelity National Title Group.
Nancy provides legal underwriting support to our approved attorneys, agents and underwriters as well as focusing on claims management and prevention. This experience ranges from drafting and participating in significant legislation to working with industry leaders on comprehensive responses to marketplace changes to gathering or coordinating resources to help our customers practice better and more efficiently.
Nancy has served as officer and on multiple committees of the Real Property Section of the North Carolina Bar Association, as President of the North Carolina Land Title Association, President of the Greensboro Bar Association, Chair of the Greensboro Bar Association Real Property Section, as 18th Judicial District Councilor of the North Carolina State Bar, as a member of the Real Property Law committee of the North Carolina State Bar Board of Legal Specialization and is a member of the American College of Real Estate Attorneys (ACREL) and the American College of Mortgage Attorneys (ACMA).
Nancy is a frequent presenter at CLE seminars and has published articles on various real estate topics for many organizations. She is North Carolina co-editor of the ALTA Title Insurance Regulatory Survey. She is a co-author of North Carolina Real Estate, With Forms 3d Edition (Thomson-Reuters, West Publishing).
Nancy received her undergraduate degree and her J.D. from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and her M.B.. from Wake Forest University. She is a North Carolina State Bar Board Certified Specialist in Real Property Law: Business, Commercial, Industrial and Residential.
Catherine Sanders Reach is Director for the Center for Practice Management at the North Carolina Bar Association, providing practice technology and management assistance to lawyers and legal professionals. Formerly she was Director, Law Practice Management and Technology for the Chicago Bar Association and the Director at the American Bar Association's Legal Technology Resource Center.
Prior to her work at the NCBA, CBA and ABA she worked in library and information science environments for a number of years, working at Ross and Hardies as a librarian. She received a master's degree in Library and Information Studies from the University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa in 1997.
Catherine's professional activities include articles published in Law Practice magazine, Law Technology News and GPSolo Magazine, as well as numerous other publications. She has given presentations on the use of technology in law firms for national bar conferences, state and local bar associations and organizations such as the National Association of Bar Council and the Association of American Law Schools. In 2011 she was selected to be one of the inaugural Fastcase 50, celebrating fifty innovators, techies, visionaries, and leaders in the field of law and in 2013 became Professionalism for New Attorneys (PNA) a Fellow of the College of Law Practice Management. She served on the ABA TECHSHOW Board from 2007-2009, 2014-2016 and is co-vice chair in 2019.
Lisa P. Sumner is a member at Nexsen Pruet LLC in Raleigh. She has been helping creditors protect and enforce their rights in North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia for more than two decades by structuring deals to avoid risk and maximize recovery, pursuing effective collection strategies, and defending against lender liability claims. Clients seek Lisa's counsel to appoint receivers on behalf of creditors, evaluate the option of an involuntary bankruptcy, or for guidance in out-of-court workouts, loan modifications and forbearance agreements. In bankruptcy cases Lisa's clients frequently engage her to prosecute contested claims, seek stay relief, negotiate and challenge Chapter 11 plans, defend preference, fraudulent transfer and other adversary proceedings, oppose discharge of debts incurred through fraud or for student loans, and represent buyers seeking to purchase a debtor's assets through the Section 363 sale process.
Recognizing that litigation isn't always her client's best option, in the area of alternative dispute resolution Lisa has participated in numerous successful mediation conferences and completed training in the collaborative law process pursuant to the NC Collaborative Law Act.
Lisa earned her B.A. in Political Science and French from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and her J.D. from Duke University School of Law.
Brittany M. Teague is an associate with Womble Bond Dickinson (US) LLP in Winston-Salem. She is a transactional attorney who focuses her practice on commercial real estate. She has experience guiding her clients through all stages of the acquisition, disposition, and financing of a diverse range of commercial properties.
Brittany has assisted with a variety of commercial real estate projects including hotels, apartment complexes, medical practices, manufacturing facilities, and breweries. She also represents clients in commercial lease negotiations and various other commercial and corporate contracts.
Brittany earned her B.A., with highest honors, from The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and her J.D., summa cum laude, from Elon University School of Law.
Michael C. "Mike" Thelen is a partner with Womble Bond Dickinson (US) LLP in Raleigh. He has a formidable reputation for navigating real estate controversies throughout North Carolina. He pulls from his experience as a federal judicial clerk and Wall Street litigator to bring a creative approach to his practice, whether he is addressing the entitlement of controversial real estate projects in North Carolina or in controversies, including litigation, involving real estate.
Clients ranging from Fortune 500 companies to individual property owners have called on Mike to shepherd them through a variety of real estate controversies. He is deeply invested in both the business and personal goals of his clients and has successfully obtained and defended against land use entitlements for controversial developments, prosecuted and defended litigations involving real estate, and advised clients on business transactions involving real estate and on early-stage real estate disputes.
Mike is a widely published authority on real estate controversy issues in North Carolina and is often called upon by the media to shed light on complex legal issues and concepts. In addition, he routinely presents continuing legal education courses to state attorneys and contributes to the online legal, political and business communities through both long-form content and short-form social commentary. Mike is the founder and lead editor of the North Carolina Land Use Litigator, a multi-platform resource analyzing land planning, zoning, development, and commercial real estate matters in North Carolina.
Mike earned his B.A. from the University of Notre Dame and his J.D., with honors, from Notre Dame Law School.
James Matthew "Matt" Waters is a member of Jordan Price Wall Gray Jones & Carlton PLLC in Raleigh. He practices in the Firm's Litigation Section. He concentrates his practice primarily in the area of community association law, representing HOAs and condominium associations across North Carolina.
Matt's community association practice ranges from advising the Firm's numerous community association clients regarding covenant enforcement, amendments, title issues, and assessment collection matters, among many other things. Matt has extensive experience representing the Firm's community association clients in foreclosure actions in counties throughout North Carolina.
Matt's litigation practice also encompasses representing real estate developers and construction contractors in a variety of claims and disputes; and breach of fiduciary duty litigation in the area of Trusts and Estates.
Matt was elected and currently serves as Vice Chair of the North Carolina Bar Association, Real Property Section, and continues to serve (since 2019) as Chair of the Community Associations Committee for the Real Property Section.
Matt is a native of Eastern North Carolina, born and raised in Little Washington. Having been personally impacted by numerous hurricanes growing up in Little Washington, and engaging in his community afterwards, he saw first-hand the needs of people who might not otherwise have the access and means to hire an attorney of their choosing. Particularly in the wake of Hurricanes Matthew and Florence, Matt has dedicated time as a volunteer on a pro-bono basis to assist and guide residents of North Carolina effected by these storms through the aid of the NCBA-DLS and NC Legal Aid.
Matt earned his B.A. in History and Political Science from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and his J.D. from Campbell University School of Law.
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