Real Estate & Construction News Roundup (4/1/26) – President Trump’s EO Affects Federal Funding, Fannie Mae Accepts Crypto-Backed Mortgages, Private Sector Construction Weakness Offsets Public Sector Gains
April 08, 2026 —
Pillsbury's Construction & Real Estate Law Team - Gravel2Gavel Construction & Real Estate Law BlogIn our latest roundup, California to pursue office-to-housing conversions, hoteliers to increase investment in artificial intelligence, private credit exodus to boost commercial real estate capital, and more!
- President Donald Trump’s executive order to remove regulatory barriers to affordable home construction could affect federal funding for cities and states that don’t follow what the order calls “regulatory best practices,” including faster permitting, fewer green building mandates and relaxed limits on exurban development. (Robyn Griggs Lawrence, Multifamily Dive)
- California state policymakers have been pursuing policy changes that remove barriers to converting older commercial buildings into housing. (Keith Loria, Construction Dive)
- Private sector weakness largely offset modest gains in public construction spending, despite data center gains. (Sebastian Obando, Construction Dive)
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Pillsbury's Construction & Real Estate Law Team
Traub Lieberman Attorneys Recognized as 2025 New York – Metro Super Lawyers® and Rising Stars
January 06, 2026 —
Traub LiebermanTraub Lieberman is pleased to announce that seven Partners from the New York office have been selected to the 2025 New York - Metro Super Lawyers list and one associate has been listed in the 2025 New York – Metro Rising Stars.
2025 New York – Metro Super Lawyers
- Copernicus Gaza – Insurance Coverage
- Jonathan Harwood – Professional Liability
- Lisa Rolle – Construction Litigation
- Hillary Raimondi – Employment Litigation
- Christopher Russo – Professional Liability
- Lisa Shrewsberry – Professional Liability
- Stephen Straus – Insurance Coverage
2025 New York – Metro Rising Stars
- James Wise – Insurance Coverage
Lisa Shrewsberry was also selected to the Top 25: 2025 Westchester County Super Lawyers® list.
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Traub Lieberman
Traub Lieberman Attorneys Recognized in Hudson Valley Magazine’s 2026 Top Lawyers List
March 24, 2026 —
Copernicus T. Gaza, Jonathan R. Harwood, Lisa M. Rolle, Lisa L. Shrewsberry, Christopher Russo & Hillary J. Raimondi - Traub LiebermanTraub Lieberman is pleased to announce that six Partners from the White Plains, NY office have been included in the 2026 edition of the Hudson Valley Magazine’s Top Lawyers in the Hudson Valley list. This annual guide recognizes more than 270 of the region's leading attorneys.
Insurance:
- Copernicus Gaza
- Jonathan Harwood
- Lisa Rolle
- Lisa Shrewsberry
Reprinted courtesy of
Copernicus T. Gaza, Traub Lieberman,
Jonathan R. Harwood, Traub Lieberman,
Lisa M. Rolle, Traub Lieberman,
Lisa L. Shrewsberry, Traub Lieberman,
Christopher Russo, Traub Lieberman and
Hillary J. Raimondi, Traub Lieberman
Mr. Gaza may be contacted at cgaza@tlsslaw.com
Mr. Harwood may be contacted at jharwood@tlsslaw.com
Ms. Rolle may be contacted at lrolle@tlsslaw.com
Ms. Shrewsberry may be contacted at lshrewsberry@tlsslaw.com
Mr. Russo may be contacted at crusso@tlsslaw.com
Ms. Raimondi may be contacted at hraimondi@tlsslaw.com
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Real Estate & Construction News Roundup (11/5/25) – Apartment Conversion Projects Surge, Targeted AI in Real Estate Increases and Hotel Lobby Urge End of Government Shutdown
December 02, 2025 —
Pillsbury's Construction & Real Estate Law Team - Gravel2Gavel Construction & Real Estate Law BlogIn our latest roundup, government shutdown affects contractors, hotel construction stays flat, and more!
- The total U.S. hotel construction pipeline stayed relatively flat year over year in the third quarter of 2025, while brand conversions saw record-high project totals. (Lara Ewen, Construction Dive)
- Construction attorneys say some federal jobs during the government shutdown may require contractors to keep working, even if they’re not getting paid. (Sebastian Obando, Construction Dive)
- The government shutdown has resulted in an estimated $650 million in lost hotel business, with each day of the shutdown costing the economy $31 million “in activity that would’ve been generated by hotel stays.” (Lara Ewen, Hotel Dive)
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Pillsbury's Real Estate & Construction Law Team
Indiana District Court Finds Crane Inspection Services Do Not Trigger “Professional Services” Exclusion in Liability Policy
February 17, 2026 —
Jason Taylor - Traub Lieberman Insurance Law BlogIn Crane 1 Holdco, Inc. et al. v. Continental Ins. Co., 23-cv-205 (N.D. Ind. Jan 12, 2026), the District Court for the Northern District of Indiana had occasion to interpret the scope and meaning of the term “professional services” in an excess liability policy exclusion. By way of background, Robert Coppage was crushed by a crane while at work. He was seriously injured and later received a significant settlement in a state court civil action against the company that inspected the crane, Crane1. Crane1 sought coverage for the settlement under a first layer excess policy issued by Continental Insurance Company, which included an exclusion for any “liability arising out of the actual or alleged rendering of, or failure to render, any professional services by the Insured or any other person for whose acts the Insured is legally responsible.” The underlying complaint alleged that Crane1 was negligent in its modification, services, maintenance, inspection, and/or repair of the crane.
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Jason Taylor, Traub LiebermanMr. Taylor may be contacted at
jtaylor@tlsslaw.com
Structuring Water Resilience for Data Center Development: Water Rights, Reuse Incentives, and Emerging Disclosure Risk
March 10, 2026 —
Ashleigh Myers, Jillian Marullo & Jason Drogin Atwood - Gravel2Gavel Construction & Real Estate Law BlogAs AI-driven data center development accelerates, developers, communities and regulators are increasingly focused on water demand—both the volume required and the sources from which that water will be drawn. While industry attention has largely centered on electricity procurement and grid impacts, the availability and legal entitlement to a firm water supply has become equally material to siting, permitting and community acceptance. Particularly as surface and groundwater supplies become increasingly constrained and new projects are sited in regions experiencing tighter hydrologic conditions or growth-related supply constraints, project teams are increasingly integrating water supply analysis into early-stage development to address issues that can materially affect schedule, financing and long-term operations.
Reprinted courtesy of
Ashleigh Myers, Pillsbury,
Jillian Marullo, Pillsbury and
Jason Drogin Atwood, Pillsbury
Ms. Myers may be contacted at ashleigh.myers@pillsburylaw.com
Ms. Marullo may be contacted at jillian.marullo@pillsburylaw.com
Mr. Atwood may be contacted at jason.atwood@pillsburylaw.com
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Spain’s Sagrada Familia: Contemporary Construction Methods Speed Iconic Basilica to Completion
March 24, 2026 —
Pam McFarland - Engineering News-RecordIn 2014, the entity behind construction of one of the world’s most iconic churches—the wildly imaginative Sagrada Familia basilica in Barcelona, Spain—contacted global consultant Arup with a challenge: Could the firm help the project team update designs developed more than a century earlier, to ensure that a critical project component was built to be structurally sound?
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Pam McFarland, Engineering News-RecordMs. McFarland may be contacted at
mcfarlandp@enr.com
IRMI Expert Commentary: NY Highest Court Confronts Downstream Risk Transfer for Subcontractor Bodily Injury Claims
March 17, 2026 —
Gregory D. Podolak & Alexander G. Hopkins - Saxe Doernberger & Vita, P.C.Originally published on IRMI.com, copyright 2026 International Risk Management Institute, Inc.
Subcontractor employee bodily injury claims (so-called action over claims) are a staple of construction risk management in the Empire State—so much so that the phrase “labor law” instinctively invites a shudder among the most experienced general contractors. The savvy among them intensely monitor case law developments and the evolution of the insurance market to ensure a cutting-edge, meticulously developed downstream risk transfer plan. And when guidance arrives from an appellate-level court, it’s a moment to take note.
This is one of those moments.
In late 2025, New York’s highest court—the NY Court of Appeals—had the rare opportunity to examine an all-too-routine bodily injury fact pattern and took the opportunity to closely examine the scope of contractual indemnity and its interplay with additional insured coverage in Dibrino v. Rockefeller Center N., Inc., 2025 N.Y. Slip Op. 07077, 2025 WL 3670593 (Ct. App. Dec. 18, 2025).
Reprinted courtesy of
Gregory D. Podolak, Saxe Doernberger & Vita, P.C. and
Alexander G. Hopkins, Saxe Doernberger & Vita, P.C.
Mr. Podolak may be contacted at GPodolak@sdvlaw.com
Mr. Hopkins may be contacted at AHopkins@sdvlaw.com
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