The Appeals Court of Massachusetts recently reviewed a real estate dispute involving a business storage permit issued by the zoning board of appeals. In Fordham v. Butera (Mass. App. Ct. Jan. 27, 2016), the plaintiff sought to set aside business storage permits that allowed the defendants to store a limited…
In a recent opinion, the Appeals Court of Massachusetts considered how a mortgagee may show that it is acting as the authorized agent of the note holder for the purpose of surviving a motion for summary judgment. In Khalsa v. Sovereign Bank, N.A. (Mass. App. Ct. Jan. 11, 2016), the…
In a recent case, the Massachusetts Land Court was called on to decide a property dispute involving the use of a private way to access a parcel of land. In Pearson v. Bayview Associates, Inc. (Mass. Land Ct. Jan. 11, 2016), the plaintiffs sought to use a private way owned…
A Massachusetts Land Court recently decided an easement dispute involving deed restrictions and the overburdening of a right of way in the case of Stepanian v. Saraceno (Mass. Land Ct. Jan. 5, 2016). In 1985, the grantor subdivided his waterfront property and sold the resulting vacant lot (244) next to…
Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker recently signed into law “An Act Clearing Titles to Foreclosed Properties.” The Act, which went into effect on December 31, 2015 and is retroactive, limits the statutory time period that former owners will have to challenge a foreclosure sale of their homes. The purpose of the Act is to clear…
In a recent decision, the Appeals Court of Massachusetts addressed the issue of whether Pinti v. Emigrant Mort. Co., which held that the failure to comply strictly with mortgage provisions renders a foreclosure sale void, is extended to cases pending on appeal when that claim was raised and preserved. Resolving the…
In Cappelluzzo v. Rinkoo-Tei Realty, LLC, (Mass. Land Ct. Dec. 11, 2015), the Massachusetts Land Court was presented with a property dispute involving a parcel of land between the boundaries of the plaintiff and the defendant. The plaintiff lives next door to the defendant, which operates a restaurant and bar…
In a recent opinion, the Appeals Court of Massachusetts considered whether the law firm and auction company of a lender were immune from civil liability in an action brought by the borrower for violations of consumer protection statutes and the Massachusetts Civil Rights Act. In Mack v. Wells Fargo Bank,…
The Massachusetts Land Court decided a real estate dispute regarding the property merger of lots for building purposes in Kneer v. Luciano (Mass. Land Ct. Aug. 21, 2015). In Kneer, the plaintiff owned two lots of vacant land, which together failed to satisfy the current zoning requirement for the minimum…
The Massachusetts Land Court decided an easement dispute between two neighbors regarding a dirt driveway in Dunning v. Larsen (Mass. Land Ct. Oct. 8, 2015). The plaintiffs brought suit against their neighbors, seeking to establish rights in a path that leads from a private way to their property. The dirt…