Articles Posted in Uncategorized

Published on:

13 May 2014

Dear Friends,

We apologize for a confusing blog notification you may have received from us today that was in Mandarin Chinese. Here’s what this is all about.

We are launching a new Chinese Hotel Law Blog

  • By the end of May 2014, JMBM’s Global Hospitality Group® and Chinese Investment Group® expect to launch the Chinese Hotel Law Blog which will be in Mandarin Chinese to better serve our Chinese clients.
  • We have been busy translating the most important articles from Hotel Law Blog into Mandarin, and working on the web site structure for Hotel Lawyer and Hotel Law Blog to support this new feature for Chinese readers to access these articles in Mandarin Chinese.
  • We did not mean to send you the blog notification in Chinese today. That was a mistake. Someone hit the wrong button. But it was a real message and was from us . . . It is not malicious or spam . . . just a little premature and unintended.

CONTINUE READING →

Published on:

30 May 2012

Hotel ADA defense and compliance lawyer: ADA litigation over website accessibility is poised to explode.

How many lawsuits or claims have been filed by private plaintiffs and the Department of Justice (DOJ) against property owners under the Americans with Disabilities Act or ADA?

The latest figures show that more than 15,500 such ADA lawsuits or claims have been filed. And the pace is about to pick up in a big way.

My partner Marty Orlick, who heads JMBM’s ADA compliance and defense team, has defended more than 500 ADA claims all over the country. Marty warns that we may be about to see a tidal wave of Cyber Accessibility claims — lawsuits about reservation systems, hotel websites and related communications facilities.

Why could there be a big slug of these ADA lawsuits over websites? Marty says that there are several reasons:

  1. First, these lawsuits will be very easy for plaintiffs to work up. The plaintiffs do not need any site inspection, experts or research. They can just surf the web from the convenience of their homes or offices. Marty says the “surf by” complaints could dwarf the “drive by” ADA lawsuits that looked for missing accessible parking spaces and other readily visible shortcomings.
  2. Second, some owners and operators have not been paying enough attention to this issue. They have had their attention elsewhere, such as on operating fundamentals, labor costs and ADA pool lift requirements.
  3. Both the DOJ and private plaintiffs have had tremendous success with website accessibility lawsuits under the ADA (see the discussion below and related articles about the Hilton International consent decree and the Charles Schwab class action case), and they are growing impatient for compliance.
  4. In addition, a lack of clear industry standards and misinformed marketing staff have lulled some into thinking they are already in compliance when that is not so.
  5. Finally, some owners and operators have not recognized ADA compliance for the high priority it demands. They have not appreciated how costly ADA litigation and defense can be, and how compliance is so much cheaper than defense.

So here are some timely tips from Marty Orlick, a pro who really understands the ADA compliance and defense. . .

CONTINUE READING →

Published on:

Date: May 7-9, 2012
Venue: Sheraton Gateway Los Angeles Hotel
6101 W. Century Boulevard
Los Angeles, CA  90045
(310) 642-1111
Practices: Global Hospitality Group®
Industries: Hospitality
Registration Fees: $950.00

Gateway to Hospitality Finance

Meet the Money® is the gateway to hospitality finance, connecting consumers and providers of debt and equity capital for hotel deals.

Join the Industry Leaders

Meet the Money® 2012 will feature nearly 100 industry leaders in several highly focused presentations and panels, discussing topics such as:

  • State of the industry
  • EB-5 money to finance new development and construction
  • Who has financing now
  • Distressed assets and special servicers
  • New ADA Standards – how to avoid lawsuits and DOJ investigations
  • Profiting in troubled times
  • Insights about fast-emerging trends
  • and many more

Conference Agenda

Monday, May 7, 2012

  7:00 pm – Wine mixer for early arrivals

Tuesday, May 8, 2012

  7:45 am – Opening remarks
12:30 pm – Lunch
  5:30 pm –  Grand Welcome Reception

Wednesday, May 9, 2012

  9:00 am – Conference resumes
12:00 pm – Lunch
  2:00 pm – Adjourn

Register now for Meet the Money®

Registration for the conference is $950.

Accommodations

Meet the Money® will be held at the Sheraton Gateway Los Angeles hotel, 6101 W. Century Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90045. Make your hotel reservations by calling 310.642.1111.  A special room rate of $139 is available by mentioning Meet the Money.  The room block expires at
5:00 pm on April 16, 2012, so make your hotel reservation early.

Sponsorships

Sponsorship opportunities are available.  Click here for the sponsorship form which describes the many benefits of sponsorship.  For sponsorship inquiries, contact Jessica Hekmatjah at JH7@jmbm.com or call her at 310.201.3567.

Sponsors

For a continuously updated list of conference sponsors, click here.

Meet our Speakers

For a frequently updated list of speakers, click here.

Cancellation policy: Should you be unable to attend Meet the Money® 2012, a prompt refund less an administrative fee of $200 will be made for cancellations received in writing before April 1, 2012. No refunds will be made thereafter. Credit may be applied to the 2013 conference, which credit will expire on May 31, 2013. Substitutions may be made up to 72 hours in advance of the conference. The program and individual speakers are subject to change without notice.

Published on:

Alvarez & Marsal North America
Alvarez & Marsal North America
http://www.AlvarezandMarsal.com
Anderson Hospitality Consultants
Anderson Hospitality Consultants
Aries Capital, LLC
Aries Capital, LLC
http://www.AriesCapital.com
Atlas Hospitality Group

Atlas Hospitality Group
http://www.AtlasHospitality.com

 

Behringer Harvard
Behringer Harvard
http://www.BehringerHarvard.com
Broughton Hotels
Broughton Hotels
http://www.BroughtonHospitality.com
Cantor Fitzgerald
Cantor Fitzgerald
http://www.Cantor.com
Carlson Hotels

Carlson Hotels
http://www.Carlson.com

 

CB Richard Ellis
CB Richard Ellis
http://www.CBRE.com
Cushman & Wakefield

Cushman & Wakefield Sonnenblick Goldman
http://www.Cushwake.com

 

Farrow Commercial Construction
Farrow Commercial Construction
http://www.FarrowCommercial.com
Gallagher Real Estate & Hospitality Services

Gallagher Real Estate & Hospitality Services
http://www.ajgrms.com

 

Global Hotel Network
Global Hospitality Resources
http://www.GlobalHotelNetwork.com
Hostmark Hospitality Group
Hostmark Hospitality Group
http://www.Hostmark.com
Hotel Asset Value Enhancement, LLC
Hotel Asset Value Enhancement, LLC
http://www.HotelAVE.com
Hotel Business

Hotel Business
http://www.HotelBusiness.com

 

Hotel Management

Hotel Management
http://www.Questex.com

 

Hotel-Online

Hotel-Online
http://www.HotelOnline.com

 

HREC
Hospitality Real Estate Counselors (HREC)
http://www.HREC.com
HVS

HVS
http://www.HVS.com

 

HWE Hotels

HWE Hotels
http://www.HWEHotels.com

 

Jones Lang LaSalle
Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels
http://www.JonesLangLaSalleHotels.com
Latino Hotel & Restaurant Association
Latino Hotel & Restaurant Association
http://www.LatinoHotelAssociation.com
Lodging Industry Investment Council

Lodging Industry Investment Council
http://www.LIIC.ws

 

Luxe Hotel on Sunset

Luxe Hotel on Sunset
http://www.LuxeHotels.com

 

Manhattan Hospitality Advisors
Manhattan Hospitality Advisors
http://www.ManhattanHospitalityAdvisors.com
NABHOOD

NABHOOD
http://www.Nabhood.com

 

PKF Consulting USA

PKF Consulting USA
http://www.PKFC.com

 

Prism Hotels & Resorts
Prism Hotels & Resorts
http://www.PrismHotels.com
Pyramid Hotel Group
Pyramid Hotel Group
http://www.PyramidHotelGroup.com
Richfield Hospitality
Richfield Hospitality, Inc.
http://www.Richfield.com
Rim Hospitality

Rim Hospitality
http://www.RimHospitality.com

 

R.W. Kline Companies
R.W. Kline Companies
http://www.RWKline.com
Sceptre Hospitality, Inc.
Sceptre Hospitality, Inc.
http://www.SceptreHospitality.com
Starwood Hotels & Resorts
Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc.
http://www.StarwoodHotels.com
Stonebridge Companies
Stonebridge Companies
http://www.StonebridgeCompanies.com
The Hotel Group
The Hotel Group
http://www.TheHotelGroup.com
The Lodging Conference 2012

 

The Lodging Conference 2012
http://www.LodgingConference.com

 

Trigild, Inc.

Trigild, Inc.
http://www.Trigild.com

 

Twenty4Seven Hotels

Twenty4Seven Hotels
http://www.Twenty4SevenHotels.com

 

Warnick + Company

Warnick + Company
http://www.WarnickCo.com

 

Wyndham Hotel Group

Wyndham Hotel Group
http://www.WyndhamWorldwide.com

Published on:

20 September 2011

Hotel Lawyer at the Phoenix Lodging Conference: Where are we going from here?

The Lodging Conference kicks off tonight at the Arizona Biltmore as roughly 1,500 hotel industry leaders gather for the next 3 days. This is one of my favorite hotel finance conferences of the year, and JMBM’s Global Hospitality Group® will be well represented. Senior GHG members Guy Maisnik, Cathy Holmes, Bob Braun, David Sudeck and I will all be here.

Aside from the great connections and catching up, the one thing everyone at this conference will be looking for is some sense on what happens to the hospitality industry from here. The first part of the year was robust transactionally speaking, with lots of hotels changing hands and pretty good financing for established hotels with good cash flow. But it seems like everyone got spooked a little in late August about the time Congress was deadlocked on a budget. Then the U.S. credit rating was downgraded, and the European debt crisis has continued to foment trouble, initially focused on Greece, but now more on Italy with its credit rating decrease, with concerned looks toward Spain and elsewhere.

On the one hand, one can argue that all this should have no affect on the hotel industry, at least in the United States. But the markets are unsettled and everyone seems to be taking a second look before they continue with business as it was earlier this year. And of course, the lodging industry has a long-term direct correlation with the economy. So, if the increasing pessimism pointing to an impending recession wins the day, we are all in for a bumpy ride.

I will be very interested to measure the mood of The Lodging Conference this year, and see how everyone else is viewing the current situation. Do we catch our breath and continue from roughly where we were, or do we hold our breath and get ready for a roller coaster ride? I may have some more insights for you shortly.

CONTINUE READING →

Published on:

6 June 2010

Hotel Lawyer with the mood of the financial capital and the NYU Hotel Investment Conference.

This has been a very interesting week. JMBM’s Global Hospitality Group® has a lot of work in New York and throughout the East Coast, so I have had more than a dozen business meetings this past week with industry leaders at major banks, Wall Street firms and institutional owners of hotel properties. Then the 32nd NYU Hotel Conference kicked off tonight with the Grand Reception at the Marriott Marquis in Times Square.

Boy, has the tide turned! Here is my take on the situation.

CONTINUE READING →

Published on:

27 July 2009

Hospitality Lawyer with some insights on the “amazing relationship” between GDP and hotel room demand. What does it mean for the lodging industry when the “recovery” finally comes?

Going back to the 1920s, there has been approximately a 1 to 1 relationship between the demand for hotel rooms and the U.S. gross domestic product (and its predecessor, gross national product). The long-term trend line for the GDP and lodging industry demand have been parallel, even during the Great Depression and World War II. For some brief periods, this relationship was off a bit, but never as badly as with the current economic crisis. During the Great Recession of 2008-2009, the demand for hotel rooms has fallen FOUR times as fast as the GDP has declined.

This creates some very interesting speculation. For example, when the recovery finally does come, will the old 1 to 1 relationship be restored? Will the lodging industry start improvement from its then-current level on that 1 to 1 basis? Or will the lodging demand “snap back” to the GDP curve, making up for that historic 4 to 1 distortion we have just experienced on the downside?

CONTINUE READING →

Published on:

25 June 2009

This is one of many articles on the subject of “troubled hotel loans – workouts, bankruptcies & receiverships” in the rich library at www.HotelLawBlog.com.

Hospitality Lawyer with the latest Realpoint Research report on special servicing of CMBS loans. There are important implications of this data for all Commercial Real Estate or CRE loans

I have now had time to settle in and digest the latest June 2009, Realpoint Research report on CMBS loan delinquencies. The numbers paint a very serious and dramatic picture. A copy of the full report is attached, with my personal highlights to point out some facts I thought were particularly significant. Let me know if you would prefer a clean copy without my highlighting and lines, and I will email you a “clean” copy.

The Realpoint research is directed solely to CMBS delinquencies, but we think distress in this sector (roughly one third of all commercial real estate loans) is representative of stress that will be experienced in at least another third of the CRE loans made by commercial banks, if not all CRE loans.

So what does this all mean? Here are my thoughts.

CONTINUE READING →

Published on:

3 October 2008

Hotel Lawyer: $700 billion financial rescue bill is signed! Full text of the “Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008.”

In the coming days and weeks, we will have more thoughts to share on this landmark legislation and its implications for the hospitality industry, but here is the final text of the law signed today — October 3, 2008.

CONTINUE READING →

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