Windfarms proliferate in response to the growing need for renewable energy. At the same time, their birth and death can create collateral issues. For example, disposing of damaged turbine blades is a challenge. The blades are more than 100 feet long and could need to be cut to even fit on a semi-trailer for disposal.
Another Warning on Lien Waivers
I have lost count of the number of times I have warned construction industry clients to be careful with lien waivers. They may seem to be just routine—until they are not. A recent case from the Wisconsin Court of Appeals; Great Lakes Excavating, Inc. v Dollar Tree et al (March 30, 2021) underlines the importance
Finding the Future: Reviving Downtown Minneapolis – Bisnow State of the Market Panel
Every day, business and political leaders are tackling the question of how to revive downtown Minneapolis. After a year of dealing with the pandemic, social unrest, and shuttered businesses, they are searching for ways to bring people back downtown. Even as the state has ramped up vaccinations against COVID-19, downtown remains a ghost town
Larkin Hoffman’s Government Relations Team Releases Guide to Federal Funding for Nonprofits and Government Entities
The United States House of Representatives announced a new era for congressional influence over how the federal government spends some of the $1.4 trillion in discretionary spending approved every year. As of today, the Senate has not yet announced its plan but both chambers are in negotiations to implement this in a transparent and responsible
The Legal Fundamentals Series: Municipal Special Assessments
Special assessments are used to fund all manner of local improvement projects, including road, sewer, and water improvements. Any private landowner—residential, commercial, and even the religious—may someday receive a notice advising of a contemplated assessment against their property. A special assessment notice is not something to be ignored. If left unpaid, a special assessment ultimately
The State of Retail
The state of retail in Minnesota and around the country is a huge question-mark. The obvious effect of the ongoing COVID restrictions has delivered an unwelcome shock to the operations of even the very best brick and mortar retailers. Nobody can say with confidence when the cloud of uncertainty around COVID and the restrictions on
Policy Renewals Create Increased Risk in a Hardening Market
COVID-19 and the recent political unrest have come with implications that are either direct or consequential to the insurance market. Many businesses looking to renew long-standing commercial insurance policies are finding either increased premiums or a refusal of certain excess carriers to extend the same policy limits. This has caused many businesses to either shop
Do You Need a Teleworking Policy?
Before the COVID-19 pandemic, most employers were reluctant to allow employees to work from home on a continuous basis. Many companies prohibited all teleworking or allowed employees only to work remotely when recovering from an illness or when required as a reasonable accommodation. When COVID-19 hit, many employees began working remotely and it appears that
Land Development: Not for the Faint of Heart
Anyone experienced with developing land realizes that the regulatory process one must complete for a given development is daunting, at once complicated and cumbersome and surely expensive. I often tell landowners who want to become “developers” in order to capture more value in the price of their land, that it is not for the faint
Hold on to Your Hats! What to Expect Under President Biden’s Administration in Labor and Employment Law
Change in the political party of an administration can be expected to impact the development and interpretation of federal law and regulation. This is particularly true in the transition between former President Trump’s administration and that of President Joseph R. Biden.
President Biden has only been the President for two weeks, yet he has already
Did You Know There Is a New Independent Contractor Ordinance in the City of Minneapolis Effective January 1?
The City of Minneapolis determined that many freelance workers (independent contractors) need legal and economic protections since they are not covered by employment laws. The City, therefore, enacted the Minneapolis Freelance Worker Protections Ordinance (the “Ordinance”). This Ordinance, effective January 1, 2021, requires companies to enter into written agreements with most freelance workers.
The Ordinance