Recently, a Chinese government delegation visited Jeffer Mangels Butler & Mitchell LLP. The delegation included some of the highest-ranking officials from a top Chinese government agency – “China State Administration of Foreign Exchange” – an agency that directly oversees the investment of $3 trillion of China’s foreign reserve. CONTINUE READING →
A hotel lawyer brings together numerous legal disciplines, depending on the hospitality project. That’s why the Global Hospitality Group® is part of a full-service law firm. My partners at Jeffer Mangels Butler & Mitchell LLP (JMBM) provide first-rate services to our hospitality clients and I am pleased that their efforts were recognized today in U.S. News & World Report’s list of Best Law Firms.
– Jim
U.S. News & World – Best Law Firms® Recognizes JMBM as 2019 “Best Law Firm”
Jeffer Mangels Butler & Mitchell LLP (JMBM) is pleased to announce it has been recognized as a 2019 “Best Law Firm” by U.S. News & World Best Lawyers®, which recognizes the top law firms in the country for professional excellence. This is the ninth year for JMBM’s inclusion as a Best Law Firm.
“This recognition is especially important to us as it is based on the views of our clients and peers,” said Bruce P. Jeffer, JMBM’s Managing Partner. “We are committed to focusing on our clients’ objectives and providing outstanding service.”
JMBM’s Trusts & Estates Group achieved National Tier 1 – the highest ranking possible – in Trusts & Estates Law, underscoring the Group’s unique combination of exemplary service and breadth of knowledge in trusts and estates law.
The Firm also earned Metropolitan Tier 1 rankings in the following areas: CONTINUE READING →
Jeffer Mangels Butler & Mitchell LLP (JMBM) has announced the formation of its Legal Cannabis Group, which provides clients with all the resources and benefits of a full-service law firm on business matters involving legal marijuana and cannabis-related substances. The lawyers comprising JMBM’s Legal Cannabis Group focus on the needs of business and property owners, developers, investors, lenders, commercial landlords and tenants, growers and producers, processors, dispensaries and sellers, and creators of new cannabis products.
“Although medical and recreational cannabis has been legalized in more than half of the nation’s 50 states, including California, businesses still have trouble finding experienced lawyers with mainstream law firms to represent them,” said Benjamin M. Reznik, Chair of JMBM’s Government, Land Use, Environment & Energy Group. “In addition to critical government approvals, compliance and permits, we assist marijuana and cannabis-related businesses with virtually all of the legal issues faced by any thriving business.”
For example, JMBM’s lawyers assist clients with corporate and real estate transactions, as well as on “bread and butter” business structures, contracts, securities offerings, leases, financings and intellectual property matters. JMBM’s lawyers also handle all kinds of labor and employment, tax and litigation (from routine disputes to bet-the-company matters).
Contacts:
Benjamin M. Reznik
BMR@jmbm.com
(310) 201-3572
Jim Butler
jbutler@jmbm.com
(310) 201-3526
About JMBM’s Legal Cannabis Group
JMBM’s Legal Cannabis Group advises marijuana and cannabis-related businesses in the full range of business issues including regulatory compliance and permitting, business transactions, and litigation in California. Our practice focuses on the needs of property owners, developers, investors, lenders, commercial landlords, growers and producers, processors, dispensaries and sellers, and creators of new cannabis products.
About JMBM
JMBM is a full service law firm with offices in Los Angeles, Orange County and San Francisco. For more information go to www.jmbm.com.
19 June, 2018
Meet the Money® is a productive conference with a casual atmosphere; the executives and other hotel industry representatives who attend often speak candidly about their expectations for hotel finance, development and investment throughout the upcoming year.
The short video below highlights how some of our attendees feel about 2018—watch and find out what some of the industry’s most well-known brands, banks, consultants, mangers and developers have to say about what’s on the horizon.
25 May 2018
Click here for the latest articles on Data Technology, Privacy & Security.
The European Union’s General Data Privacy Regulation, rules protecting the privacy of personal information, has gone into effect and impacts every company that does business in the EU. This will impact hotel owners, developers, brands, operators and managers–any company with a hotel property in the EU or that collects information from EU citizens must adhere to the new regulations.
What does that mean for your business, and where should you start the process of compliance? Senior member of JMBM’s Global Hospitality Group® and Co-Chair of the Firm’s Cybersecurity & Privacy Group Bob Braun summarizes the issues, below.
Why should I Care About GDPR?
by
Bob Braun
The importance of May 25, 2018. If you are reading this, you have probably been inundated with emails from companies announcing that they have adopted new and better privacy and security policies and procedures. This isn’t a coincidence – as of May 25, 2018, the EU’s General Data Privacy Regulation (GDPR), requires every organization that does business in the EU, or that collects information from EU citizens, to guarantee the privacy and accuracy of personal information. While the purpose of the GDPR is to strengthen and unify data protection for all individuals within the EU, its effect is worldwide; every organization that does business in the European Union or collects personal information from individuals in the European Union is subject to this regulation. CONTINUE READING →
07 May 2018
LOS ANGELES—Jeffer Mangels Butler & Mitchell LLP (JMBM) is pleased to announce that hospitality lawyer Jeffrey T. Myers has joined the Firm as a Partner in JMBM’s Global Hospitality Group® and Real Estate Department.
Myers’ practice focuses on the development, financing, acquisition, and operation of hotels, resorts and other hospitality properties. His clients include developers, capital providers, commercial lessors, and tenants. He has assisted clients in a full range of hospitality projects including hotels, resorts, casinos, restaurants, nightclubs, condo hotels, and mixed-use properties.
“We are thrilled to have Jeff join our team. He is a talented lawyer who further strengthens our capabilities and brings natural synergies to our group,” said Jim Butler, Chair of JMBM’s Global Hospitality Group. “Now Jeff can offer his clients assistance with important specialties such as ADA defense, cybersecurity, labor & employment (including union contract negotiations and union avoidance), land use, and litigation.”
Myers’ experience includes representing a national developer in the negotiation of a series of agreements for the development, management and licensing of a to-be-developed ultraluxury resort and spa in the Papagayo Peninsula region of Costa Rica; representing one of the largest hospitality REITs in the country from its inception through the acquisition, financing and management of a $1 billion portfolio of hotel assets; representing a major institutional developer in its collection of celebrity-chef curated restaurants for the Hudson Yards project in New York; and representing a sovereign investment company in connection with its investment and ownership of the largest privately funded mixed-use development in U.S. history, including all casino and gaming related structuring and licensing, and the negotiation of management and development agreements for each of the hotel and casino components.
5 March 2018
On Saturday, March 3, 2018, the hospitality industry gathered at the JW Marriott LA LIVE to honor industry icon Larry Shupnick, senior vice president of development & acquisitions at Interstate Hotels & Resorts. The sold-out event was the annual fund raiser organized by Cal Poly to benefit The Collins College of Hospitality Management.
Larry Shupnick
Not to miss an opportunity to share life with his friends, the evening before at a private dinner party, Shupnick celebrated his birthday (it is really May 5, but why be picky), and as guests were getting ready to leave, Larry asked them to stay for a “surprise” wedding to Jo Frank!
Larry Shupnick and Jo Frank
“I love this industry, and the opportunities are unlimited in hospitality,” said Shupnick of his time in the industry. “I do not measure my wealth in dollars. My wealth is really my family and friends. That is what is important in life.”
Jim Butler, Jo (Frank) Shupnick and Larry Shupnick
Not a bad weekend! Larry celebrated a birthday, wedding, the Robert Mondavi Wine & Food Award, and honoree at Hospitality Uncorked.
Larry Shupnick and the live auctioneer
JMBM’s Global Hospitality Group® was a Leadership Patron for the event, and all join in warmest congratulations to Larry and Jo.
This is Jim Butler, author of www.HotelLawBlog.com and hotel lawyer, signing off. Please contact us if you would like to discuss any issues that affect your hotel interests or see how our experience might help you create value and avoid unnecessary pitfalls. Who’s your hotel lawyer?
Jim Butler is a founder of the JMBM law firm and chairman of its Real Estate Department. He founded and chairs the Firm’s Global Hospitality Group® and its EB-5 Finance Group which provide business and legal advice to owners, developers and investors of commercial real estate, particularly hotels, resorts, restaurants, spas and senior living. This advice covers purchase, sale, development, financing, franchise, management, labor & employment, litigation, ADA, IP, and EB-5 matters for such properties.
Jim is recognized as one of the top hotel lawyers in the world and has led the Global Hospitality Group® in more than $125 billion of hotel transactions and more than 4,700 hotel properties located around the globe.
Jim’s group has advised on more than 100 EB-5 projects, closed more than $1.5 billion of EB-5 financing, and sourced more than half of that for our clients.
Contact Jim at +1-310.201-3526 or JButler@jmbm.com
Hotels we have worked on over the years. Visit our hotel photo gallery to see some of the more than 3,900 properties around the globe that the hotel lawyers of the Global Hospitality Group® have been involved with, on behalf of our clients. For a more comprehensive list of hotels properties and projects we have worked on, see our Credentials.
26 January 2018
If you are a hotel executive or other highly compensated individual in the hospitality industry, you need to be aware of how the new Tax Act (H.R. 1 – Tax Cuts and Jobs Act) might affect your estate plan. In some cases, the impact will be significant. In the brief article below, JMBM’s tax attorneys recommend that you review your existing estate plan to ensure that the Tax Act does not alter your plan’s original intentions. They also point to substantial new planning opportunities provided by the Tax Act, and you will want to be advised of those, as well. What better way to start the new year than by making sure your assets, and your family’s future, are protected?
How the New Tax Act Could Affect Your Estate Plan
President Trump signed into law H.R. 1, which has a major impact on estate planning. The new law doubled the federal exemption for estate tax, gift tax and the tax on generation-skipping transfers (GST), starting January 1, 2018; the lifetime exemption for each of these taxes is now $11.2 million per taxpayer. Married couples together have a total of $22.4 million of lifetime exemption. The exemptions are reduced by lifetime transfers prior to 2018 and are indexed for future inflation. The annual gift tax exclusion amount also increased to $15,000 per donee per year.
The increased gift, estate and GST tax exemptions are not permanent. This part of the Tax Act is scheduled to expire in 2026 and return to the prior exemption amounts ($5.6 million plus inflation after 2018). Changes in control of Congress and the Presidency could also terminate the increased exemptions. While it may make sense for some clients to take advantage of the increased exemptions to engage in additional estate planning, there is also a potential risk that the new exemptions will unintentionally alter existing estate plans, requiring important immediate changes.
As the increased exemptions may significantly skew a client’s existing estate plan, it is important for all clients to review their estate planning documents to make sure they continue to reflect their intentions. Many estate plans for married couples use a formula to divide assets at the first death between a “marital” portion passing to or held in a trust for the surviving spouse and a “bypass” portion intended to bypass the estate of the surviving spouse. The bypass portion may be allocated to a trust for the surviving spouse and/or descendants. It may also be allocated directly to descendants, skipping the surviving spouse entirely, or may provide fewer benefits to the surviving spouse than the marital trust. Similarly, at the second death, the estate plan may have a formula dividing assets, based on the GST exemption, between children and grandchildren.
Depending on the exact language of the document, these divisions may be very different now because of the larger exemptions. For some clients, the new division will be acceptable. For others, it will be important to update the language of their estate planning documents to avoid a sharp reduction in what the surviving spouse receives and what the children and grandchildren receive.
Clients may also want to take advantage of the opportunity to pass larger portions of their wealth to younger family members at minimal tax cost, through lifetime gifts and other traditional wealth transfer techniques.
The estate, gift and GST provisions of the new Tax Act present substantial new planning opportunities. They also have a potentially significant impact on existing estate plans. Clients need to review their existing documents to determine this impact. We are ready to help you with all aspects of this analysis and to advise you on the various available alternatives.
About JMBM’s Taxation, Trusts & Estates Group
JMBM’s Taxation, Trusts & Estates Group is one of the largest and most active groups of its kind within a full-service law firm. Recognized by U.S. News & World Report / Best Law Firms® with a First-Tier ranking in the Los Angeles metropolitan area, our practice focuses on the needs of individuals and families, and their business interests. Our attorneys provide estate planning, wealth transfer planning, trust administration and the resolution of trust disputes. Our tax lawyers understand business concerns, and work closely with colleagues in the Firm’s corporate and real estate groups to ensure the tax efficiency of organizational and transactional decisions.
This is Jim Butler, author of www.HotelLawBlog.com and hotel lawyer, signing off. Please contact us if you would like to discuss any issues that affect your hotel interests or see how our experience might help you create value and avoid unnecessary pitfalls. Who’s your hotel lawyer?
Jim Butler is a founder of the JMBM law firm and chairman of its Real Estate Department. He founded and chairs the Firm’s Global Hospitality Group® and its EB-5 Finance Group which provide business and legal advice to owners, developers and investors of commercial real estate, particularly hotels, resorts, restaurants, spas and senior living. This advice covers purchase, sale, development, financing, franchise, management, labor & employment, litigation, ADA, IP, and EB-5 matters for such properties.
Jim is recognized as one of the top hotel lawyers in the world and has led the Global Hospitality Group® in more than $87 billion of hotel transactions and more than 3,900 hotel properties located around the globe. They have helped clients with more than 1,000 hotel management agreements, 1,000 hotel franchise agreements and more than 100 hotel mixed-use projects.
JMBM’s EB-5 Finance Group has advised on more than 100 EB-5 projects, closed more than $1.5 billion of EB-5 financing, and sourced more than half of that for our clients. EB-5 Investors Magazine named Jim one of the top 25 EB-5 lawyers in the United States, and Jim serves on the Public Policy Committee of the IIUSA, the EB-5 industry’s trade group for regional centers.
Contact Jim at +1-310-201-3526 or JButler@jmbm.com
Hotels we have worked on over the years. Visit our hotel photo gallery to see some of the more than 3,900 properties around the globe that the hotel lawyers of the Global Hospitality Group® have been involved with, on behalf of our clients. For a more comprehensive list of hotels properties and projects we have worked on, see our Credentials.
17 November 2017
We are saddened to learn of the death of Jerry Merkin, former publisher of Hotel Management and a well-known and admired industry leader. Jerry’s long career in hospitality helped shaped the industry and the careers of those who had the good fortune to get to know him. We will miss him.
The Merkin family is in our thoughts and prayers.
Information about Jerry’s life, career, and donations are available in the news release, below.
Hotel Industry Icon Publisher, Jerry Merkin, Passes Away at 85
New York, NY, November 17, 2017—Hotel industry publisher Jerry Merkin, an industry icon for more than four decades, passed away at 85 earlier this week following an extended illness. He is survived by his children, Joan and David.
Merkin spent his entire career in publishing, most of which was covering the hotel industry, first as publisher of Hotel & Motel Management, now Hotel Management, and in 1992 as founder/publisher of Hotel Business. Both publications continue to be industry leaders. He is a recipient of the Lodging Conference Above and Beyond Award.
“In 1989, Jerry was one of the first to join the newly formed board of directors of AAHOA,” said Mike Leven, retired president of Las Vegas Sands and founding father of AAHOA. “He was a champion of human rights and contributed mightily to the successful effort to free so many from discrimination and injustice. His life was a model to be admired and honored.”
“I am deeply saddened by the loss of my dear friend and colleague Jerry Merkin,” said Steven Belmonte, CEO, Vimana Franchise Systems, LLC. “Our industry has truly lost one of the good ones. I can sum up Jerry in three simple words… kind, gentle, and honorable. I will always remember Jerry walking around the various hotel conference floors with a giant stack of Hotel Business magazines under his arm. I remember I advertised in his very first issue. I don’t believe that magazine would be here today if it weren’t for Jerry, his passion, and his love of the industry. I have known him for over 25 years and I never saw him do anything that wasn’t good, helpful and meaningful.”
“After his family, hotels were Jerry’s life,” said Stacy Silver, president of Silver Hospitality Group and former publisher of Hotel Business. “He was a true mentor to me and shared his passion for the industry and news on a daily basis. He taught me that selling is not a business, but an art and our job was to understand a client’s needs and help them be successful. If you were able to do that, then they will want to do business with you and that is true success. He will be greatly missed.”
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made by check payable to New York University, indicating that the donation is in Mr. Merkin’s honor. Please mail checks to:
Reshma Persaud
In honor of Jerry Merkin
New York University
Office of University Development
25 West Fourth Street, Room 334
New York, NY 10012
Jim Butler is a founder of the JMBM law firm and chairman of its Real Estate Department. He founded and chairs the Firm’s Global Hospitality Group® and its EB-5 Finance Group which provide business and legal advice to owners, developers and investors of commercial real estate, particularly hotels, resorts, restaurants, spas and senior living. This advice covers purchase, sale, development, financing, franchise, management, labor & employment, litigation, ADA, IP, and EB-5 matters for such properties.
Jim is recognized as one of the top hotel lawyers in the world and has led the Global Hospitality Group® in more than $87 billion of hotel transactions and more than 3,900 hotel properties located around the globe. They have helped clients with more than 1,000 hotel management agreements, 1,000 hotel franchise agreements and more than 100 hotel mixed-use projects.
JMBM’s EB-5 Finance Group has advised on more than 100 EB-5 projects, closed more than $1.5 billion of EB-5 financing, and sourced more than half of that for our clients. EB-5 Investors Magazine named Jim one of the top 25 EB-5 lawyers in the United States, and Jim serves on the Public Policy Committee of the IIUSA, the EB-5 industry’s trade group for regional centers.
Contact Jim at +1-310-201-3526 or JButler@jmbm.com
29 September 2017
Click here for the latest articles on Resort Fee Litigation.
Note: If you are a consumer with a Resort Fee issue, please do NOT contact us! We do not represent consumers with complaints against hotels. We are part of the fabric of the hotel industry and are committed to informing, educating and assisting players in the hotel industry.
Impending eruption of government and private litigation over Resort Fees (mandatory service fees). Big shaking again. Is this the big one?
Two significant developments may signal an eruption of government and private claims over Resort Fees — (1) publication of the FTC 2017 Report and (2) commencement of proceedings regarding Resort Fees by a national task force of Attorneys General for 46 states plus the District of Columbia. This article focuses on the FTC Report. The next article will discuss the national task force.
The FTC issues its 2017 Report on Resort Fees
In January 2017, the FTC’s Bureau of Economics published a 44-page report entitled “Economic Analysis of Hotel Resort Fees” (the “FTC 2017 Report” or the “Report”).
The Report sets forth an aggressive regulatory position suggesting that it is a deceptive and misleading practice to advertise hotel rates without including Resort Fees, unless the total price (with Resort Fees) is the first and most prominently displayed price (in position and font characteristics) so consumers can easily comparison shop. It is not enough to disclose Resort Fees after the “room only” price even if this disclosure is made prior to booking a room. However, once the all-inclusive price has been disclosed, it is permissible to give a breakout of the total price into Resort Fee and other components.
The Report finds that “separating mandatory resort fees from posted room rates without first disclosing the total price is likely to harm consumers by increasing the search costs and cognitive costs of finding and choosing hotel accommodations.” The Report also finds that this drip pricing approach is unlikely to result in any benefits to offset the harm to consumers. Apparently, the Report’s authors find that the harm to consumers who may incur greater search costs and/or make incompletely informed decisions (and pay more for a room) justifies damages or enforcement actions under section 5 of the FTC Act.
Some highlights from the FTC 2017 Report
Here are some bullet point highlights extracted from the Report. CONTINUE READING →