BUYING AND SELLING CONTAMINATED COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE: RISKS AND OPPORTUNITIES

June 2, 2004; 11:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. M.T.

Acquisitions of contaminated properties, sometimes known as “brownfields,” offer great opportunities, but also substantial risks for the acquirer and its creditors, developers, and lessors and lessees.  That liability has shuttered many parcels of real property over the years.  Recently, however, there has been renewed interest in acquiring and developing those formerly idle or underutilized properties.  For business, real estate and general practitioners, this program will review how to determinate whether a property is contaminated, conduct proper due diligence, identify sources or liability and provide practical tips for drafting acquisition or development agreements to maximize value and limit liability. 

From the convenience of your office, you will learn more about: 

- What a constitutes a “brownfield” and the consequences that flow from the characterization
- The commonplace instances where these issues arise in real estate transactions
- Review of joint and several liability for all owners and operators under CERCLA
- Practical tips for conducting due diligence before acquiring contaminated property
- New defenses against liability for real property acquirers and developers under the Small Business Liability Relief and Brownfields Revitalization Act
- Structuring acquisition and development agreements to minimize liability

Speakers:

Barry J. Trilling is a partner in the Stamford, Connecticut office of Wiggin & Dana.  His practice embraces a wide variety of environmental matters, including business and real estate transactions, due diligence investigations, site remediation, brownfields development, regulatory compliance and litigation.  Mr. Trilling formerly served as an attorney in the United States Justice Department, where he supervised the federal government's team of lawyers in the litigation concerning cleanup of the infamous “Love Canal” hazardous waste site in Western New York State.  He recently served as chair of the Environmental Subcommittee of the Public Affairs Committee of the 10,000-member National Association of Industrial and Office Properties.  Mr. Trilling graduated from the University of California, Los Angeles, where he received his A.B., and the University of California, Berkeley, where he received his J.D. 

Keith M. Allen-Niesen is a partner in the Los Angeles office of Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP, where his practice embraces all aspects of transactional real estate law.  He has extensive experience in the acquisition and sale of developed and undeveloped properties, including transactions involving contaminated real property.  Mr. Allen-Niesen has lectured extensively on real estate matters, including for the University of Southern California's Lusk Institute. He was appointed by Los Angeles Mayor Hahn to the City's Industrial Development Authority.  He is a graduate of the University of California, San Diego, where he received his B.A with honors, the University of London, where he received his M.A. in Chinese law, and the University of California, Davis, where he received his J.D.