Worldwide: Litigation, Mediation & Arbitration

The answer, at least in Massachusetts, is yes. In Cesar v. Sundelin, the Massachusetts Appeals Court recently ruled that, in dividing a marital estate that includes a family business.

In "Berkowitz v. Berkowitz", Civil Action No. 11-10483-DJC, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 31487 (D. Mass. March 9, 2012), the U.S. District Court denied a motion to dismiss a complaint alleging breach of an oral trust.

The Wills and Succession Act ("WSA") came into force in Alberta on February 1, 2012.

A year after the uncertainty created in the Canadian corporate debt financing world by the Ontario Court of Appeal's pensions-friendly decision in the Indalex CCAA restructuring matter, the Quebec Superior Court, in April 2012, determined in a lengthy and well-reasoned decision that the key restructuring and pensions law principles underpinning Indalex do not apply in Quebec when considering the treatment of defined benefit amortization payment and deficit claims in a restructuring.

The Federal Court of Appeal ("FCA") upheld the judicial review decision of the Federal Court ("FC") in "Livaditis v. Canada Revenue Agency".

On February 24, 2012, the Tax Court of Canada ("TCC") rendered its decision in Morguard Corporation v. Her Majesty the Queen (2012 TCC 55 – PDF) on the issue of the taxation of break fees received in the context of a takeover bid pursuant to a "lock-up agreement".

Section 8(b) of the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act ("RESPA") provides that "[n]o person shall give [or] accept any portion, split, or percentage of any charge made or received for the rendering of a real estate settlement service in connection with a transaction involving a federally related mortgage loan other than for services actually performed."

There has been much publicity regarding the incidents of falling glass from condo balconies in Toronto over the past year.

On February 21, 2012, New York state’s highest court unanimously refused to extend due process protection to property owners challenging a tax lien foreclosure sale on grounds that they did not receive notice of their repurchase rights. Consequently, New York property owners, who were unapprised of their repurchase rights, will be unable to challenge the foreclosure on that basis.

In a case very closely watched by the financial services industry, the Supreme Court yesterday unanimously rejected the effort to broaden the reach of the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act ("RESPA").

A person who receives an automated debt-collection call on his cellular phone in violation of the federal Telephone Consumer Protection Act can choose to file a lawsuit.

Last Term, the US Supreme Court held in AT&T Mobility LLC v. Concepcion, 131 S. Ct. 1740 (2011),