Introduction.  Contract law is pretty basic; once the agreement becomes “binding” on a party, withdrawal normally cannot occur without consequences.  The OREF Sale Agreement is no different. Reduced to basics, if the Seller refuses to perform before closing, the Buyer has a right to file a claim in arbitration for specific performance (i.e., asking the arbitrator to enter an award requiring the seller to perform the terms of the Sale Agreement) and for damages, if any. [Note: This issue can become complicated if the Seller had duties to perform before closing, such as subdividing the ..read more

[Clarification on caption: Yes, I’ve got my singular and plural nouns correct. “Oregon Realtors®” is the (recently new) name of the statewide association of Realtor®  members – ergo, the name Oregon Realtors® is singular. If one drops the registered bug (®) it becomes plural.] Background. Prior to the creation of Oregon Real Estate Forms LLC (“OREF”) in 1997, PMAR, ER, and OR had their own separate forms companies. In order of market share they were ranked as follows: PMAR, ER, OR. There were no limitations on where each Association’s forms could be used; PMAR members could use their for ..read more

According to Mayor Wheeler in a recent interview with the Oregonian (“Half the arrests in Portland last year were of homeless people. Mayor Ted Wheeler says that’s a problem“), the fact that the homeless accounted for one-half of the Portland arrests last year, was likely due to “profiling or implicit bias *** The police should be focused on policing criminal activity, and that’s sort of the beginning, the middle and the end of it for me.”  And he doesn’t buy the 50% statistic either: “I could play with statistics with you all day long.” Ted, Ted, Ted! Turn the telescope around ..read more

In a recent Wall Street Journal article, we learn that having exotic Latin honors after your degree isn’t quite as rare as it used to be.  The problem isn’t the honors bestowed, it’s the GPAs handed out like party favors.  And what’s more, at the prestigious University of Chicago, they are no longer using SAT and ACT scores for admission requirements. [See article here.]  What is achievement in a world of equals?  This is grade inflation marching lockstep with tuition inflation. ~PCQ You Graduated Cum Laude? So Did Everyone Else With more students boasting flashy GPAs ..read more

Penance: an act of self-abasement, mortification (see mortification) , or devotion performed to show sorrow or repentance for sin. He did charitable work as a penance. See, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/penance In the year of Harvey Weinstein, #MeToo, and a host of celebs being driven into at least temporary obscurity and humiliation, it seems the media and public can’t get enough. There is nowhere the stories don’t reverberate, from tabloids to dinner tables. There are now reports (here, here, and here) that many of those laying low are plotting their “comebac ..read more

Instagram is a simple way to capture and share the world’s moments. Follow your friends and family to see what they’re up to…. [Instagram App on Google] Drats! Foiled Again!  It appears that social media, for all its oddities, can also prove that pictures are worth…well, thousands of dollars in court sanctions.  It also  proves that social media, even for lawyers, who should know better, invites its users to throw caution to the wind. According to a New Jersey Law Journal article (here), it seems a labor and employment lawyer in New York failed to meet a November 23, 2016, filin ..read more

Prologue:  You can’t make this stuff up!  In an effort to shed its past transgressions, like a snake sheds its skin, Nationstar Mortgage has had a makeover that includes assuming a new name. It is now officially, “Mr. Cooper”. This redo, or in golfing parlance, “mulligan”, had been in the works for some time – since 2015. The backstory can be found, here and here.  This anthropomorphic transformation is, per its YouTube video, here, so the company can become “more human”. As I recall, Dr. Frankenstein tried that too, with disastrous results. ~PCQ In the Rogues Gallery of b ..read more

Dragon bridge, Ljubljana, Slovenia, Europe. “THE VESTIBULE: This Is The First Part Of Hell That You Come Across In Dante’s Inferno. It Is Reserved For The Indecisive. The Souls Here In The Vestibule Were Called “Opportunists” Who In Life Were Only For Themselves, And Were Neither Good Nor Bad. It Was Also Where All Of The Angels [Were] Who Didn’t Take A Side During The War Against God. The Punishment For This Area Of Hell Is The Souls Have To Follow An Aimless Banner That Never Plants Itself. The Souls Are Also Chased And Stung By Hornets.” A Guide Through The Circles of Hell. In the Di ..read more

[Trigger warning: This post has not been vetted by the Sensitivity Police. If you are offended by sarcasm, irony, satire, mockery, cynicism, acerbity, disdain, jest, banter, and other features occasionally found in normal, interesting, adult repartee, please discontinue reading this post, and find a safe space to curl up with a warm blankie.] A Precocious Eight-Year Old.  The Q-Law website site is now celebrating its eighth birthday. When I first began the site, much of its content was informational and educational, e.g. articles on broker risk management, real estate basics, title insura ..read more

“Trickle-down did not work. It got us into the mess we were in, in 2008 and 2009,” Mrs. Clinton said, referring to the idea that tax cuts on high-income households can spur economic growth. “Slashing taxes on the wealthy hasn’t worked. And a lot of really smart, wealthy people know that.” ~ Wall Street Journal, September 27, 2016 (“Donald Trump vs. Hillary Clinton on Tax Cuts for the Rich”) The Blame Game. The term “trickle-down economics” is the liberal pols’ pejorative for the theory behind “supply-side economics”, which holds that stable economic growth, in large part, is driven b ..read more