Commercial Real Estate

Expert legal counsel for commercial real estate lease negotiations and disputes.

Experienced legal representation for lease disputes and real estate litigation.

If you’re facing contract issues due to fraud or misrepresentation, our experienced legal team can help you identify the appropriate responses and remedies. Contact us today for thorough legal advice on these particular cases.

Commercial Real Estate

When fraud and misrepresentation create contract problems, we identify the appropriate responses and remedies. Whether the issue is non-disclosure or inaccurate disclosure of financial information (or other critical business information), negotiation of terms in bad faith or breach of lease, purchase or sale agreements, we pursue the full range of remedies available – from resolution under the UCC to pursuit of contract and tort claims through litigation. In addition to resolving lease disputes, we are experienced in representing our clients’ interests in a range of disputes in federal and state courts relating to real estate.

  • Commercial contract and lease disputes
  • Fraud and negligent misrepresentation
  • Purchase and sale litigation

  • Partnership disputes
  • Claims involving breach of fiduciary duty by real estate professionals
  • Insurance disputes

  • Transactions that constitute financial elder abuse
  • Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) defense
  • Easement rights

Representative Cases

Notable cases we’ve taken at Gates Eisenhart Dawson

Successfully represented one of the partners in a real estate partnership throughout the course of vigorously-contested partnership dissolution proceedings.

Defended the seller of commercial condominiums against a lawsuit brought by a disgruntled purchaser, ultimately securing a complete dismissal of the lawsuit at the time of trial.

Obtained a verdict after trial for the plaintiff in a dispute over the title to a single family home. Even though the plaintiff had previously signed a deed purporting to grant the defendant an ownership interest in the property, the court found in favor of our client and awarded her full title to the house.

Represented the buyer in multi-million dollar buy-sell transaction in which, before the close of escrow, the seller tendered notice of cancellation of sale. Within just seven days, we filed and served a lawsuit for specific performance, recorded a lis pendens, obtained a temporary restraining order preventing sale of property, and settled the matter with seller, enforcing the buy-sell agreement and receiving reimbursement for the buyer for every cent of attorneys’ fees and costs incurred.

Represented a residential buyer in non-disclosure claim against seller in binding arbitration arising out of failure to disclose problems with the property’s expansive soil. The buyer won an arbitral award.

Represented a defendant in intra-familial dispute over title and ownership to residential dwelling. After leveraging our client’s position with a pending summary judgment motion, and before final adjudication, the matter settled with agreed-upon sale of the home and a significant portion of the sale proceeds going to our client.

Represented the plaintiff, an owner, in intra-familial dispute over title and ownership of the client’s family residence. The matter proceeded to trial with judgment entered in favor of the client, awarding full title and ownership of the home.

Represented the owner of commercial property in a dispute with a neighbor over easements. The matter settled after discovery, with our client retaining a significant portion of the use of the property.

Represented the owner of foreclosed home sued by the holder of a second mortgage. We obtained dismissal of the action against the bank, based upon California’s anti-deficiency statutes.

Represented the defendant builder and seller of a custom home against the buyer — a lawyer — who claimed fraud and other wrongs in connection with the sale. In a jury trial, we defended against the fraud claims and neutralized the remaining claims by succeeding in client’s cross-claims against the buyer for fraud. The buyer received nothing.

Commercial Leases

Our attorneys have experience litigating commercial leases representing the full spectrum of those involved in commercial leases including tenants, landlords, lenders, and others. This wide-ranging representation gives us insight into all sides of the negotiating process and informs our litigation strategies.

We are experienced in litigating leasing issues in a wide range of commercial real estate asset classes including:

  • Retail and shopping centers
  • Hospitality, including hotel and restaurant
  • Office
  • Agricultural properties
  • Mixed-use properties

COVID-19 Lease

In the current environment, we are litigating COVID-19 lease termination disputes, including cases involving force majeure, business interruption insurance, material adverse change clauses, co-tenancy provisions, and common-law issues.

Successes

Contact us today to protect your rights and interests.

Successfully represented one of the partners in a real estate partnership throughout the course of vigorously-contested partnership dissolution proceedings.

Defended the seller of commercial condominiums against a lawsuit brought by a disgruntled purchaser, ultimately securing a complete dismissal of the lawsuit at the time of trial.

Obtained a verdict after trial for the plaintiff in a dispute over the title to a single family home. Even though the plaintiff had previously signed a deed purporting to grant the defendant an ownership interest in the property, the court found in favor of our client and awarded her full title to the house.

Represented the buyer in multi-million dollar buy-sell transaction in which, before the close of escrow, the seller tendered notice of cancellation of sale. Within just seven days, we filed and served a lawsuit for specific performance, recorded a lis pendens, obtained a temporary restraining order preventing sale of property, and settled the matter with seller, enforcing the buy-sell agreement and receiving reimbursement for the buyer for every cent of attorneys’ fees and costs incurred.

Represented a residential buyer in non-disclosure claim against seller in binding arbitration arising out of failure to disclose problems with the property’s expansive soil. The buyer won an arbitral award.

Represented a defendant in intra-familial dispute over title and ownership to residential dwelling. After leveraging our client’s position with a pending summary judgment motion, and before final adjudication, the matter settled with agreed-upon sale of the home and a significant portion of the sale proceeds going to our client.

Represented the plaintiff, an owner, in intra-familial dispute over title and ownership of the client’s family residence. The matter proceeded to trial with judgment entered in favor of the client, awarding full title and ownership of the home.

Represented the owner of commercial property in a dispute with a neighbor over easements. The matter settled after discovery, with our client retaining a significant portion of the use of the property.

Represented the owner of foreclosed home sued by the holder of a second mortgage. We obtained dismissal of the action against the bank, based upon California’s anti-deficiency statutes.

Represented the defendant builder and seller of a custom home against the buyer — a lawyer — who claimed fraud and other wrongs in connection with the sale. In a jury trial, we defended against the fraud claims and neutralized the remaining claims by succeeding in client’s cross-claims against the buyer for fraud. The buyer received nothing.

In Pecoraro v. GBR Magic Sands MHP LLC (2016, Sixth District Court of Appeal, Case No. H040008), our attorneys were part of a team that won affirmance of a judgment following a bench trial cancelling a 98-year ground lease entered into in 1963. Like the trial court, the Court of Appeal rejected all of the respondents’ defenses including statute of limitations, res judicata, and contractual estoppel. The Court also rejected the respondents’ attacks on the remedy of lease cancellation as opposed to damages. Read the opinions here.

This appeal followed a trial involving complex, real property disputes over co-ownership and mesne profits (profits earned from a person possessing land to the wrongful exclusion of others). After prevailing at trial, the Los Angeles appellate court affirmed most of the judgment while remanding the case to the trial court to retry only the damages portion of the case. The powerful outcome of this appeal was to affirm GED’s clients’ right to both possess a significant piece of commercial real property, and to enjoy 50% of the profits therefrom. Read the opinions here.

In Swift v. Superior Court (2009) 172 Cal.App.4th 878, our attorneys won a published reversal of the trial court’s order striking the tenant plaintiffs’ peremptory disqualification of the judge as untimely. The Court of Appeal held that the tenants’ disqualification of the trial judge was timely, even though that judge had presided over earlier discovery motions, since such motions do not involve the determination of fact issues as to the merits of the case. Read the opinions here.

In Crediford v. Oliver (2000, Sixth District Court of Appeal, Case No. H021709), we staved off a petition for coram vobis relief, collaterally attacking a nearly half-million dollar judgment in favor of a pair of residential tenants who won the largest known retaliatory eviction verdict in Santa Clara County. Read the opinions here.

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