As the COVID-19 pandemic and civil unrest have swept through the United States, we have been presented with novel challenges and uncertainty in nearly all aspects of life, including commercial real estate. The world of commercial real estate, dominated as it is by highly-individualized leasing arrangements, has always presented real estate attorneys with unique leasing…

This post is co-written by Phyllis Karasov and Mike Schechter.

On Wednesday, June 24, we wrote an article on the Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry’s guidance that requires a preparedness plan for the construction industry. The guidance was confusing and placed onerous responsibilities on contractors, owners and public entities, including ensuring that plans among…

Recently I commented on a growing level of concern regarding Gov. Tim Walz’s use of his statutory public safety “emergency” authority to promulgate wide-ranging and consequential executive orders affecting the state’s economy and citizens.  While many groups, including health care and service organizations, were required to suspend their operations for at least two months, the…

This post is co-written by Phyllis Karasov and Mike Schechter.

This post was updated on 6/29/20 

In his recent Executive Order 20-74, Governor Walz ordered critical sector businesses to create and adopt a COVID-19 preparedness plan to make workplaces safe from the spread of the coronavirus, and his administration subsequently published guidance for specific…

Minnesota businesses and citizens have been operating under a Peacetime Declaration of Emergency, Executive Order 20-01, since March 16, 2020.  The impetus for the Declaration was the rapidly-emerging Coronavirus as a global health crisis with far-reaching implications.  Since the original Declaration, the governor has issued 75 Executive Orders addressing various COVID-related topics from health

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This post is co-written by Gary Van Cleve, Mitchell Simonson and Josh Folland

This unprecedented time of pandemic has brought social interaction to an abrupt halt with cautious open-up just beginning.  Americans have had to learn to live, work, educate their children, recreate, shop and otherwise transact business—all while social-distancing, self-isolating and not being physically…

Introducing our new CapWatch podcast series which is an extension of the Larkin Hoffman Podcast Briefing series. In this series, we discuss the end of Minnesota’s 2020 legislative session and the special session in June. The CapWatch podcasts cover the political dynamics at the Minnesota Capitol and give an overview of the policy and spending …

Clouds are gathering now on the payment horizon for the construction industry.  The clouds converging now and into the fall call for even greater attention to protecting construction industry receivables. This applies to the industry from top to bottom.  Construction was an “essential business” allowed to continue operating in Minnesota. That designation allowed work to…

On June 10, 2020, the Minnesota Supreme Court issued a decision affirming the Court of Appeals and upholding the determination that the Minneapolis Paid Sick and Safe Time Ordinance (“Ordinance”) applies to employers outside of Minneapolis, finding that the Ordinance was not preempted by state law and did not violate the extraterritoriality doctrine.

In 2016,…

  1. Notify Your Insurer.

    Typically, property insurance policies require notice of a claim as soon as practicable. Notice requires a description of when, where and what happened to result in a claim.  If you have a loss, put your insurer on notice immediately.

  2. File a Police Report.

    Make sure to file a police report.  Many policies

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