February 2010

Co-ops accused of racial bias

Two Bronx communities organized as co-ops require references from three co-op members in order to buy units. After using testers, the Fair Housing Justice Center has filed a lawsuit arguing that this requirement has a discriminatory effect when existing co-op members are overwhelmingly white and when the requirement was not consistently applied. Read article.

Court reaffirms that appurtenant easements cannot be severed from the dominant estate

A court reaffirmed a traditional rule of property law in a little litigated issue, holding that an appurtenant easement attached to a dominant estate and intended to benefit the owner of that land cannot be severed and transfered to someone who is not an owner of property intended to be benefited by the easement. Rosen v. Keeler, 2010 WL 288997  (N.J. Super. Ct. App. Div. 2010). The case is significant because recent changes in real property law have increased the powers of owners to invent...

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