PropertyProf Blog

Property Programs at AALS Annual Meeting

The early bird registration deadline for the AALS Annual Meeting is tomorrow, November 17th.  For those on the fence about attending, I thought I'd post the sessions that appeared to be of particular interest to property profs.  If I missed a session, please reference it in the comments.

Thursday, January 5

2:00 - 5:00 p.m.

[4220] Sections on Property Law and Real Estate Transactions Joint Program: Rethinking Urban Development

    Moderators:  Carol Brown (UNC) and Steven Eagle (George Mason)

2:30 - 3:40 p.m.

[4100L] What Property Professors Need to Know About the Mortgage Crisis: De Soto and the Title Security in the U.S.

    Speakers:  June Rose Carbone (UMKC); Nestor Davidson (Fordham); Rashmi Dyal-Chand (Northeastern); James Kelly, Jr. (Notre Dame)

[Note:  I am very sad that these two programs overlap.]

Continue reading

Payments in Lieu of Taxes by Nonprofit Organizations

If you are in New York City on October 4, 2011, consider attending a CLE sponsored by the Center for Real Estate Studies at New York Law School, entitled "Payments in Lieu of Taxes (PILOTs) by Nonprofit Organizations."  Here's the brief synopsis:

Other cities (such as Boston) are adopting policies to "encourage" and "compel" nonprofits that are exempt from property taxes to make payments to the city to defray costs of city services (fire protection, police, streets, etc.) attributable to those exempt properties.  This is a growing trend as municipalities face budget crunches with decreased tax revenues and increased costs.  The October 4th program will present different perspectives on whether New York should consider nonprofit PILOTs.  This program will be of interest to lawyers, the nonprofit sector, policy makers, professional services providers, and the public.

Event Speakers Daphne A. Kenyon and Adam H. Langley are also co-authors of Payments in Lieu of Taxes : Balancing  Municipal and Nonprofit Interests, a report published in November 2010 by Lincoln Institute of Land Policy.  This report will be discussed during the program and is available for download at http://www.lincolninst.edu/pubs/1853_Payments-in-Lieu-of-Taxes.

The program is free, but registration is required.  You can register here. 

This looks like a fascinating program -- I wish New York was a little closer to Winston-Salem!

Tanya Marsh

ALPS Call for Papers

ALPS 3rd Annual Meeting
March  2-3, 2012, to be held at
Georgetown Law School in Washington, D.C.

Co-sponsored by Syracuse University College of Law
and Georgetown Law Center

www.alps.syr.edu

 

Registration Opens September 1, 2011
and Closes January 20, 2012

Early Bird Registration fee is $145 for registration prior to November 15.  After November 15 registration is $175.

Registration will be available on our web pages by September 1, 2011

JOIN OUR MAILING LIST at: www.alps.syr.edu/join

CALL FOR PAPERS  (Paper/Abstract submissions can be done with registration).

ALPS, third Annual Meeting (supported by Syracuse University, College of Law and Georgetown University Law Center) to be held at Georgetown Law School, March 2-3, 2012.   Our first two meetings included 150 participants each; of which approximately 1/3 were from outside of North America.  The discussions on all areas of property were exciting and benefited from the diverse mix of viewpoints presented.  We are looking forward to an equally good meeting this coming March.

This year registration will include an option to register to attend without presenting a paper.  For those wishing to present a paper any topic on property law and policy is of interest and may be on any of a number of topic areas including:

Real, Personal, and Intangible Property

Cultural Property

Intellectual Property

Real Estate Transactions and Finance

Land Use and Zoning

Urban Planning and Development

Environmental Law

Climate Change

Housing

Home

Green Development

Mortgages and Foreclosure

Land Titles

Indigenous Populations and Sovereignty

Human Rights and Property

Entrepreneurship and Property

Takings and Eminent Domain

Property Theory

Property History

The Economics of Property

 

[Comments are held for approval, so there will be some delay in posting]

11th Australasian Property Law Teachers Conference – 'Teaching and Researching Property Law in the Twenty First Century'

The 11th Australasian Property Law Teachers Conference will be held at the Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore on 12-13 July 2012.  The theme of the conference is “Teaching and Researching Property Law in the Twenty First Century”.  The theme is intended to encompass new approaches and challenges in the teaching and researching of property law.  Research topics may include those dealing specifically with the way Property Law is developing to meet the challenges of the twenty first century including issues relating to: the management of resources; the environment and climate change; new technologies and human rights.  However, as in previous conferences, the theme of the conference is intended to be interpreted broadly and abstracts of papers on any Property Law topic are welcome.  As this conference is taking place in Asia, Asian scholars working in the field of property law are encouraged to submit proposals. Abstracts of papers will be selected on the basis of quality and originality of ideas.
 
Presenters whose offers of papers are accepted will be expected to meet their own travel and accommodation costs and to pay their registration fees.  Unfortunately, the conference organizers do not have any funding to help meet travel and accommodation costs or grant a waiver of the registration fees.
 
If you would like to offer a paper, please submit a working title and an abstract (of no more than 350 words) by email to Tang Hang Wu at [email protected]<mailto:[email protected]>  before 1 February 2012.

[Comments are held for approval, so there will be some delay in posting]

Conference News: Coastal Climate Change Adaptation at UConn

The University of Connecticut School of Law is hosting a symposium on  "Legal Solutions to Coastal Climate Change Adaptation in Connecticut."  The conference is scheduled for February 10, 2012.  The organizers write, "we invite papers that lay out the existing legal and regulatory structure in Connecticut as well as in other states, identify gaps and obstacles in these approaches, present innovative and environmentally sound approaches to climate change adaptation and stimulate legal thinking on legal and policy remedies to this issue of international importance. All submitted papers must contain a legal, policy or regulatory approach, solution or tool designed to facilitate climate change adaptation in Connecticut."

Here's a link to the important info: http://seagrant.uconn.edu/whatwedo/climate/legal/

Steve Clowney

Modern Studies in Property Law 2012 - Call for Papers

The 9th Biennial Conference takes place at the University of Southampton from Wednesday 21st - Friday 23rd March 2012.  The conference series has its origins in the biennial conference first held by the University of Reading in 1996.  Those conferences gave rise to the book, Modern Studies in Property Law which, since 2001, has been the medium for refereed publication of the conference papers.  Modern Studies in Property Law 2012 will again be closely tied to publication of a volume of the book.

The opening keynote address on Wednesday 21st March will be delivered by Simon Gardner.  On Thursday 22nd March the conference keynote address will be given by Lord Walker of Gestingthorpe.

Further details can be found on the conference website.

Call for Papers

Proposals for papers should be sent to [email protected]<mailto:MSP[email protected]> by 31 July 2011. Proposals should include:

1.      A short abstract (300 words)
2.      A very brief CV (just a few lines)

A few points to bear in mind

1.      All papers will be considered for publication in a volume of the book Modern Studies in Property Law.  This is subject to a refereeing process and acceptance of the paper for the conference does not necessarily mean that the paper will be published in the book.
2.      Historically, lots of papers are offered for the conference and it is hoped that this will continue.  This does mean that not all papers can be accepted.  The decision as to which papers to accept will be made by a panel of property lawyers.
3.      All speakers will be asked to write a short synopsis of their paper six weeks before the conference so that this can be circulated to delegates in advance of the conference.  The full version of the conference paper must be available three weeks before the start of the conference and will be circulated at the conference.
4.      The refereeing process will take place immediately after the conference and will operate to a strict timescale to ensure timely publication of the book.
5.      Chapters in the book should be in the region of 8,000-10,000 words.
6.      Unfortunately, it is not possible to offer any funding towards the travel coasts or the costs of attending the conference, even for speakers.

Conference News

The ABA Section of Real Property, Trust and Estate Law will hold its 22nd Annual Spring Symposia on April 28-29, 2011 at the Grand Hyatt in Washington.  Panels that might interest law profs include:

* Origination Changes that are Transforming the Mortgage Industry

* Revisiting Commercial Real Estate Remedies

* Condominium and Resort Rental Management Agreements

* The Current State and Future Development of Natural Gas Production

* Alternative Structures for Real Estate Joint Ventures

* Understand Lease Economics and Tenant Improvements

Here's the brochure (pdf).

Steve Clowney

Buffalo Law Conference on Hydrofracking

Save The Date and Call for Presentations

Hydrofracking: Exploring the Legal Issues in the Context of Politics, Science, and the Economy

March 28-29, 2011 at University at Buffalo School of Law

Buffalo, New York

On March 28-29, 2011 the University at Buffalo Environmental Law Program and the Baldy Center for Law and Social Policy will host the conference: Hydrofracking: Exploring the Legal Issues in the Context of Politics, Science and the Economy. Horizontal-gas drilling involving hydraulic fracturing, also known as hydrofracking or fracking, and its potential effects is an important environmental and energy concern for the nation. This conference provides an opportunity for a scholarly exchange of ideas regarding the issue as well as a forum for community discussion.

We welcome submissions on any related topic, including the following:

·         Hydrofracking and Nuisance Law
·         Impacts on Tribal Lands
·         Administrative law and the EPA Rulemakings
·         Environmental Review Processes    
·         Application of federal environmental laws, including the Clean Water Act and Clean Air Act
·         Energy issues, in including the Energy Policy Act and DOE policy
·         Endocrine Disruption and Human Health Impacts

Authors will have an opportunity to publish their work in the Buffalo Environmental Law Journal. You are invited to submit a paper or presentation proposal for of no more than 250 words by Monday, February 21st to [email protected].

For more information, contact Jessica Owley [[email protected] or 716-645-8182] or Kim Diana Connolly [[email protected] or 716-645-2092]

 

[Comments are held for approval, so there will be some delay in posting]

Early Registration for ALPS Extended to Dec. 20

The early registration discount for the ALPS conference has been extended to December 20.  This is a great conference - register now, if you haven't already!

Ben Barros

[Comments are held for approval, so there will be some delay in posting]

International Academic Association on Planning, Law and Property Rights Conference

The fifth conference of the International Academic Association on Planning, Law and Property Rights (PLPR) will be held between 26–28 May 2011 at the Faculty of Law, University of Alberta, in Edmonton, Canada. The program and call for papers may be found at http://www.law.ualberta.ca/plpr/2011/call_for_papers.php

Professor Jill Grant of Dalhousie University and Professor William Fischel of Dartmouth College are this year's keynote speakers.

We invite papers on all topics related to law and planning, including:

- legal aspects of urban, regional, and rural planning;
- land use controls;
- property rights, expropriation and compensation;
- housing;
- land policy, land management, and land readjustment;
- heritage preservation;
- environmental protection;
- land use and aboriginal rights;

Abstracts may be submitted by December 15, 2010 to [email protected]
For further information, contact Eran Kaplinsky at [email protected].

Property Symposia

It seems to me that there is a relative lack of law review symposia on property-related issues.  I don't have any solid data to go on, but it seems to me that there should be more property symposia given that (a) there are lots of property profs out there and (b) there are so many amazingly cool property issues that would benefit from consideration in a symposium.

This leads me to two questions.  First, do you agree that property symposia seem scarce?  Second, what specific subjects do you think would make good symposium topics?  Off the top of my head, I'd like to see symposia on (1) the judicial takings issue; (2) home and the law; (3) statutory reform of property law; (4) the future of estates, future interests, and the RAP in light of the proposed Restatement (Third); (5) the future of adverse possession; (6) common interest communities; (7) critical evaluations of the new "progressive" property; (8) the relationship between property and liberty.

Organizing symposia, of course, can be a bit of a pain.  But if there is enough interest out there, it might be possible to come up with a plan to coordinate symposia, perhaps under the auspices of ALPS.

Ben Barros

[Comments are held for approval, so there will be some delay in posting]

 

Litigating Takings Conference at UC Berkeley

From John Echeverria (Vermont)

On November 5, 2010, the 13th Annual Conference on Litigating Takings Challenges to Land Use and Environmental Regulations will be held at Berkeley Law in Berkeley, California.  This year’s conference, sponsored by Vermont Law School, Georgetown University Law Center, Berkeley Law and others, will feature a discussion of constitutional review of property rulings in the aftermath of Stop the Beach Renourishment, takings claims in the era of climate change, eminent domain practice five years after Kelo, takings claims arising from water regulation, and other issues.

The program brochure and registration information are available at:

http://www.vermontlaw.edu/x11644.xml

CDs of the program materials and conference proceedings also will be available.

[Comments are held for approval, so there will be some delay in posting]

ALPS Meeting Registration is Open

This year's Association for Law, Property, and Society annual meeting will be held on March 4-5, 2011, at Georgetown Law School.  Registration is now open at the ALPS website.  Last year's meeting was great, and I hope that many of you can make it.

Ben Barros

[Comments are held for approval, so there will be some delay in posting]

Off to AALS

I'm off to New York for the AALS mid-year Property meeting.  I hope to see many of you there.

Ben Barros

[Comments are held for approval, so there will be some delay in posting]

Save the Date - ALPS 2011

The first-annual Association for Law, Property, and Society conference held last week was fantastic.  If you didn't go, you should strongly consider going next year.  The next annual meeting will be held on Friday, March 4, and Saturday, March 5, 2011, at Georgetown University Law Center.  Block those dates on your calendar now!

Ben Barros

[Comments are held for approval, so there will be some delay in posting]

AALS Program on Water Law for Next Annual Meeting

Professor Kali Murray of the Marquette University Law School and Chair of the 2010 AALS Section on Property Law is pleased to announce that the Section will be doing a joint program with the Agricultural Section (where Professor David Myers of Valparaiso University School of Law is the current chair) for the annual meeting next year (January 2011) in San Francisco.

The joint program will focus on "Changing Conceptions of Water in Law."

If you would like to submit a paper, we would love to hear from you by March 30, 2010. Please send us a working title and a brief description of your paper.  The paper will be published in a law review so we can only consider unpublished articles for possible inclusion in the AALS panel. If interested, please contact us at [email protected], or [email protected]. Please be sure to include both of us on your email submissions.

[Comments are held for approval, so there will be some delay in posting]

Houston Symposium on Climate Change, Water, and Adaptive Law

The University of Houston Law Center and the Environmental & Energy Law & Policy Journal are pleased to announce a Symposium on Climate Change, Water, and Adaptive Law to be held on Friday, February 26, 2010, from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. at the Czech Center Museum, 4920 San Jacinto, Houston, Texas 77004.  Leading experts from diverse universities, disciplines, professional backgrounds, and policy making roles will address how law and the legal system need to adapt to address the impacts of climate change on water resources and regimes, and the extent to which it can.

Speakers include:

Panel on State and Local Adaptation to Climate Change’s Impacts on Water:

1. Robin Kundis Craig, Attorneys’ Title Professor and Associate Dean for Environmental Programs, Florida State University College of Law (Opening Presentation of the Symposium)

2. Noah Hall, Assistant Professor of Law, Wayne State University Law School; Visiting Professor, University of Michigan Law School; Executive Director, Great Lakes Environmental Law Center

3. Craig Anthony (Tony) Arnold, Boehl Chair in Property & Land Use, Professor of Law, Affiliated Professor of Urban Planning, Chair of the Center for Land Use & Environmental Responsibility, University of Louisville; Symposium Visiting Professor, University of Houston Law Center

4. Kathleen Miller, Scientist III, Institute for the Study of Society and the Environment, National Center for Atmospheric Research

5. Daniella Landers, Shareholder, The Sutherland Law Firm, Houston, TX

Luncheon Keynote Speech:  The Hon. Eliot Shapleigh (D-El Paso), Texas State Senate

Panel on Energy, Climate Change, and Water: The Complex Intersection

1. A. Dan Tarlock, Distinguished Professor of Law and Director of the Program in Environmental and Energy Law, Chicago-Kent College of Law, Illinois Institute of Technology

2. Lea-Rachel Kosnik, Assistant Professor of Economics, University of Missouri-St. Louis; Dispute Resolution Panel Member for Federal Hydropower Dam Relicenses, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

3. Amy Hardberger, Attorney, Environmental Defense Fund, Austin, TX

4. Elizabeth Burleson, Assistant Professor of Law, University of South Dakota School of Law; Consultant, United Nations

5. Scott Deatherage, Partner, Environmental Law Section, & Practice Group Leader, Climate Change & Renewable Energy Practice Group, Thomspon & Knight, LLP, Dallas, TX

Symposium Description: "Water use and climate change share a complex, dynamic, multiscalar interdependence.  Water use contributes to climate change in the energy used to transfer water substantial distances, the destruction of carbon-sequestering vegetation and erosion of soils (and the subsequent release of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere) from too much or too little water, and the facilitation of sprawling (and arguably unsustainable) development, among other relationships. Hydropower has been suggested as an alternative energy source that reduces emission of greenhouse gases, but poses a variety of other ecological and social concerns.  Perhaps most importantly, climate change will affect water supplies and watersheds, contributing to water scarcity, rising sea levels, saltwater intrusion into groundwater, more severe storm-event cycles that alter watershed hydrology, and changes to riparian vegetation and stream structures that similarly alter watershed functioning and composition.  This symposium will address the capacity of water law to adapt to the changing, uncertain, and potentially extreme demands and stresses that climate change -- and our responses to climate change -- will put on water resources."

For more inhttp://www.law.uh.edu/eelpj/symposium.html, or contact Chief Symposium Editor/Director - Lisa Baiocchi-Mooney, [email protected].  The Symposium will offer 8 hours of CLE credit for the State of Texas.

Call For Proposals - Emory Transactional Law Conference

UPDATE 1/15/10 -- There was a technical problem with the submission form that has now been fixed.  If you have already submitted a proposal, please resubmit it.  The new proposal form can be found here:  http://www.law.emory.edu/centers-clinics/center-for-transactional-law-practice/2010-conference/call-for-proposal-form.html  .  The link below has also been fixed.

 

 

Emory University School of Law’s Center for Transactional Law and Practice is delighted to announce its second biennial conference on the teaching of transactional law and skills, Transactional Education:  What’s Next?  The conference will be held at Emory Law on Friday, June 4 and Saturday, June 5, 2010. 

 

CALL FOR PROPOSALS

 

We are accepting proposals immediately, but in no event later than 5:00 p.m., February 1, 2010. We welcome proposals on any subject of interest to current or potential teachers of transactional law and skills. Among the topics we hope to receive proposals on are the following: 

 

PANELS

 

Each panel will be 90 minutes long.

 

1. Contract drafting – the “building block” for all transactional lawyering

·            The five basic contract concepts as the foundation of contract drafting (representations and warranties, covenants, conditions, discretionary authority, and declarations)

·            How to draft the different parts of a contract (introductory provisions, definitions, etc.)

·            Writing clearly and without ambiguity

·            Advanced contract drafting issues (syllabus, teaching methods, etc.)

2. Teaching transactions in an international setting

·            The basic framework of contract law in civil law jurisdictions

·            The drafting of contracts in civil law jurisdictions

·            Business transactions in accordance with Islamic law

·            Simulations as a mode of teaching

·            Integration of international issues into transactional skills courses

·            Cultural issues affecting the negotiation of international transactions

·            The use of clinics to teach international transactions

·            How non-U.S. law schools are teaching transactional skills

·            Teaching foreign LLM students about drafting in a common law country

3. Teaching contract drafting for the first time from a legal writing professor’s perspective

4. Teaching transactional skills in a doctrinal course

·            Business Associations

·            Contracts

·            Corporate Finance

·            Employment Law

·            Intellectual Property

·            Property

·            Other courses

5.  Teaching accounting from a transactional perspective

 

6.  Teaching ethics from a transactional perspective

 

7. Teaching transactional skills other than contract drafting

·            Problem solving

·            Negotiation

·            Interviewing and counseling

·            Written communication:  memoranda to superiors and clients

·            Judgment

·            How, if at all, does pedagogy differ from that used when teaching these skills in the litigation context

8. Teaching transaction-related tasks

·            Project management

·            Due diligence

·            Third party opinion letters

·            Drafting of resolutions

 

9. Transactional training techniques (including technology such as clickers and Google Docs)

 

10. Curricular Issues

• Field placements/externship programs
• The role of adjuncts in a transactional skills curriculum
• Interdisciplinary courses, including JD/MBA courses

11. Transactional Centers and Certificates

·            Why have a center

·            How to start and then run a center

·            What is a transactional certificate program

 

EXERCISE SHOWCASES

 

We will also reserve several panels as “Exercise Showcases.”  Each will be 90 minutes long. At each of these panels, professors will each take approximately 15 minutes to demonstrate an exercise he or she uses to teach a transactional skill or task or a principle of doctrinal law.  In addition, we hope that each of the other panels, when appropriate, will take the opportunity to showcase an exercise. 

 

LUNCH ROUNDTABLES

 

At this conference, we will introduce Lunch Roundtables. They will be 40 minutes long.  These will be informal group discussions of topical issues. If you would like to lead a Roundtable, please submit a proposal as you would if you were proposing a panel. 

 

ONLINE DATABANK OF TEACHING MATERIALS

 

As transactional education has expanded, the need for high quality training materials has continued to grow. Unfortunately, we do not yet have enough textbooks that adequately address our needs. As a result, professors labor to create materials for their courses. Currently, gaining access to these terrific teaching materials is generally by word of mouth or a request on a listserv. One goal of this conference, therefore, is to create a databank of teaching materials available to professors and practitioners. The databank will be known as The Emory Exchange for Transactional Training Materials. It will store (for eligible users) syllabi, PowerPoint slides, exercises and other transactional teaching materials that professors and practitioners submit. Our hope is that the Exchange will facilitate the growth of transactional education by being a source of high quality teaching materials.  If you would like to submit materials separately from submitting a proposal for the conference, please click here.

 

REGISTRATION AND HOTEL INFORMATION

 

Information on registration and hotel reservations will be distributed in early 2010. To keep the costs for registrants as modest as possible, speakers must pay the registration fee and for their own travel expenses.

 

PROPOSAL SUBMISSIONS

 

To submit a proposal, please click here.  Once again, the deadline is 5:00 p.m., February 1, 2010.

Emory is delighted to once again host this Conference, and we look forward to seeing you in Atlanta June 4th and June 5th.

 

Cordially,

 

The Steering Committee

 

Tina L. Stark, Chair, Emory University School of Law

Danny Bogart, Chapman University School of Law

Deborah Burand, University of Michigan Law School

Joan MacLeod Heminway, The University of Tennessee College of Law

Jeffrey Lipshaw, Suffolk University Law School

Jane Scott, St. John’s University School of Law

[Posted by Ben Barros]

Vermont Takings Conference

I'm back from the Regulatory Takings conference that was held at Vermont Law School last Friday.  I had a great time and learned a lot.  Thanks to John Echeverria and everyone at VLS for organizing the event.

Ben Barros

[Comments are held for approval, so there will be some delay in posting]

Attention Junior PropertyProfs

AALS Property Law Section Junior Scholars Works in Progess Call For Papers

The AALS Property Law Section invites junior property scholars to submit works-in-progress for a junior scholars panel at the upcoming AALS Annual Meeting in New Orleans. The panel will take place on Sunday, January 10, 2010 from 9:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.. At the panel, paper au-thors will have the opportunity to present their papers and receive commentary from senior scholars knowledgeable about their paper topics.

Eligibility: The panel is open to scholars who (a) currently have a permanent or visiting ap-pointment at an AALS member or fee-paid school; (b) have been teaching for six or fewer years; and (c) do not yet have tenure. Papers that have been accepted for publication may be submitted for consideration, but only if they are early enough in the production process for the author to fully incorporate comments provided at the panel.

Submissions: Two papers and an alternate will be selected for the panel by blind peer review. Papers should be submitted by e-mail to both Carol Brown ([email protected]) and Steven Eagle ([email protected]), with the subject line “Property Junior Scholars Panel.”

To facilitate blind review, authors should place their names and other identifying information on a separate cover page only. Authors also should alter or delete references within the text that would reveal their identities to a referee. During the selection process, papers will be judged by how successfully they establish their contributions in a scholarly manner and by how substan-tially those contributions add to current property law scholarship.

Deadline: Papers must be submitted by Noon, October 26, 2010 (EDT).

Please direct any questions to the panel organizers, Steven Eagle ([email protected]) and Carol Brown ([email protected]).