In November of 2008 Pennsylvania’s new Mortgage Loan Industry Licensing and Consumer Protection Law went into effect (“Mortgage Lender Law”). The law was subsequently amended. Those amendments went into effect August 2009. The new Mortgage Lender Law is intended to provide better government control over mortgage lending practices. The law requires that, in almost every …

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By: Transactional Department There are substantial liability protections and other benefits to operating the business through a separate entity, rather than as a sole proprietor or general partnership.  Two of the most popular entities for small businesses are limited liability companies (“LLC”) and subchapter S corporations (“S-Corp”).  Either entity can provide liability protections for …

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How Does a Sherriff Sale Work? Every County in Pennsylvania conducts periodic sheriff’s sales of real estate.  They may be every month or every few months.  The sales are conducted in an auction format with open bidding.  The properties at sale are being sold at the behest of a creditor attempting to recover money owed.  …

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By: William J. Burke, III A new interstate natural gas pipeline may be coming through Chester County, Pennsylvania to transport natural gas out of northern Pennsylvania. The Commonwealth Pipeline (http://www.commonwealthpipeline.com) is in the planning stages and may pass through several Northern Chester County Townships on its way from Lycoming County to Berks County and beyond. …

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By: Stephen P. Lagoy At its September 15 meeting, the Board of Directors of CCBA approved the creation and implementation of a voluntary mediation program to be administered by the Bar Association.  The program design is the product of CCBA’s Alternative Dispute Resolution Section, the members of which worked on the concept for the past …

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By: Stephen P. Lagoy Elsewhere in this issue you will read that CCBA has adopted a Mediation Program to be launched in 2011.  Some of you may ask, what is mediation?  What do mediators do?  Why should I care?  This article is intended to answer those questions. Mediation may be defined most simply as facilitated …

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The Pennsylvania Superior Court established an Appellate Mediation Program in October of 2006. Though initially limited to appeals pending in the Eastern District, the Program was expanded in September 2008, to include the Court’s Western District. The Program serves the dual purpose of providing litigants with an Alternative Dispute Resolution (“ADR”) option at the appellate …

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A confession of judgment provision in a commercial lease can be an efficient means for a commercial landlord to obtain a judgment for damages when a commercial tenant defaults on lease obligations.   In representing a landlord, however, great care must be taken in determining the time frame and damages for which judgment is being sought. …

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In re LMcD, LLC, 405 B.R.555 (M.D. PA, 2009), is a good read for its analysis of several theories of liability, because it underscores the importance of being mindful of the capacity in which business dealings are conducted, and because it illustrates the consequences that flow from blurring the distinctions between actions by a member …

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    Attorneys hoping to minimize cost and increase efficiency for their clients will often engage in communications or joint defenses with their co-defendants. This is often done either informally or with the use of formal joint defense agreements. Although this practice is fairly common, there has been relatively little guidance from the court on …

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