The construction industry in Tennessee — and anywhere in the world — is one of the usual suspects when it comes to identifying environmental bad guys. Indeed, according to the World Green Building Council, the construction industry alone accounts for 39% of the world’s carbon emissions. Carbon emissions are just one metric. There are many other concerns. There’s waste production, hazardous waste materials management, energy consumption, water usage efficiency, how materials and resources are sourced, and the kinds of transportation that are relied upon. At every turn, within every construction ..read more

Commercial landlords and tenants in Nashville typically have different priorities. Landlords are interested in making sure that they receive the agreed-upon rent on time and that their property remains in good condition. Tenants are focused on having a space that encourages their businesses to succeed and a landlord with reasonable expectations. Incorporating all the promises, responsibilities, and duties of landlords and tenants is essential to drafting a commercial real estate lease. What is included in a commercial lease? The specifics of your lease will be dependent on the type of business ..read more

Time is money. This is especially true in the construction industry, where you carefully schedule your projects to line up with your calendar to maximize your profits. Even those who are the most adept at scheduling their projects can face unexpected delays, though. When this happens, you might be at risk of losing out on much-needed income, sometimes costing you tens of thousands of dollars as you incur costs merely waiting for your turn to work on a project. So, what are you to do in these situations? One option at your disposal is to file a claim against the developer or the site owner, see ..read more

Property law is notoriously complex, and some of the most complex legal issues in real estate involve easements. Tennessee law defines an easement as a property interest that gives someone a right to use property owned by someone else for a specific purpose. For example, imagine that Amos owns a large plot of land in a rural area. His neighbor, Zack, owns an adjoining plot, but it is accessible only by driving a short distance over Amos’ land. Zack claims to have an easement over Amos’ property for this purpose. Creation of an easement The best way to create an easement is through a transfer i ..read more

Real estate purchases are big transactions for both the buyers and sellers of the homes. There are many aspects of home purchases that people on both sides of the sale need to consider before agreeing to the terms. There are usually tours of the home, negotiations and inspections that occur prior to closing. As these are major purchases, both sides want to ensure they are getting what they believe they should receive. If the process does not occur the way that the parties think it should or they believe they were misled in some way, it can lead to disputes. Disputes with real estate agents and ..read more

Many land-use disputes wind up in court after the municipal government agency with jurisdiction over the property in question issues a ruling with which the property owner or another party disagrees. A classic example of this phenomenon was presented to district judge J. B. Cox on Feb. 14, 2023, when he heard arguments concerning the proper use of a tract of land adjacent to other land owned and used by Jack Daniels for construction of whisky barrelhouses. The judge’s order was handed down on March 1. The dispute In 2012, Jack Daniels’ parent company, Brown-Forman, purchased a tract of land wh ..read more

Before construction projects start in Tennessee, the companies involved need to go through extensive planning. First, people need to establish the scope of the project and what needs to be accomplished. Then, contractors need to determine the materials needed for the project and estimate labor costs. After the contractors finish estimates, the contractors and customers sign contracts based on those estimates. Contractors cannot predict everything that may happen throughout a project when they provide their estimates before the project begins. Original specifications may be inaccurate as the pr ..read more

Even with a well-written lease, landlords may have to confront situations where tenants try to evade their legal obligations. In the event of a recession, there will be a greater risk of this happening. Leases and termination The terms of a commercial real estate lease play a major role in compliance and whether tenants will evade its requirements. Commercial leases usually favor landlords and have provisions that make them difficult to break. But tenants may also have rights to terminate a lease under conditions contained in the lease. A lease may also become impossible to perform. This could ..read more

Contracts make the construction industry go around. Without them, projects would be mired in disagreements that would be nearly impossible to resolve, and the industry would likely collapse on itself. Yet, even with the use of contracts severe disagreements can arise. If the terms of an agreement that you’ve relied upon have been breached, then you might want to take legal action to recover compensation for your damages or acquire a court order forcing the other party to live up to its terms of the bargain. But what about if you’re accused of breaching a construction contract? What can you do ..read more