Environmental Risks in Real Estate Transactions

Redcliffe's Environmental Issues in Real Estate Transactions is delivered by a solicitor with 30 years’ experience as a solicitor in private practice. She was an Associate at Pinsent Masons, dealing with general commercial property work for English Partnerships for several years, including joint ventures, auctions, development agreements, overage, etc and dealing with other general commercial property matters for a variety of large corporate clients such as Lex, British Coal, Onyx Waste Management companies, etc.

On the Environmental side, advising on both contaminated land and waste management issues on national and multinational matters, negotiating environmental aspects of corporate acquisitions and disposals. Co-authored a book on Environmental Law and was a member of the National Council of UKELA.

In 1995, she obtained a Master’s Degree in Environmental Law and specialised in the area of contaminated land issues and Waste Management.

She was also Partner at Shoosmiths Solicitors. Initially, in development finance, working on large residential development acquisitions financed by Nationwide Building Society. Then latterly general commercial and residential development work, plus dealing with all the property work of a PLC conglomerate, as well as landlord and tenant work for a recruitment chain (joint ventures, building contracts, development agreements, overage arrangements, etc.). Clients included British Waterways, Nene Valley Waste, Daventry District Council house builders, etc. Environmental advice in relation to contaminated land and waste management.

The trainer was also a partner at Putsman WLC, where she dealt in property development, as well as general commercial and environmental law. She worked on development site acquisitions for a Barratt Homes subsidiary and other developers. Dealing with complex disposal arrangements for Crest Nicholson in relation to their brownfield development site in the centre of Birmingham (£2-8M) plus ancillary site assembly work. She also conducted general commercial property, landlord and tenant work, as well as provided environmental law advice in relation to brownfield and waste issues.

She was a member of the National Council of the UK Environmental Law Association, and was listed in the Legal 500 as number 2 in the Midlands for Environmental Law issues.

• This environmental issues in real estate transactions course helps you understand the totality of environmental considerations that affect property transactions, and land contamination risk management (LCRM), not just the 'contaminated land regime'.
• Interpret environmental reports and spot possible issues.
• Help clients understand and manage risks through dedicated environmental risk management training.
• Understand how to apportion some environmental risks between parties to transactions and which ones cannot be apportioned or indemnified.

Environmental issues in real estate transactions training is a ‘must know’ for anyone closely involved in real estate asset or share acquisitions, including:

• Commercial real estate solicitors, trainees and paralegals dealing with brownfield land development. Particularly those buying real estate property with environmental issues, along with corporate support or acquisitions of industrial or investment property

This course is also a ‘nice to know’ for:

• Real estate lawyers who commission environmental searches and reports

Far too often, real estate lawyers commission environmental reports without fully understanding one main thing. Search companies often confine their assessment to the risk of land falling within the limited scope of the contaminated land regime, and miss out on or do not draw attention to other significant environmental contamination in real estate or real estate environmental issues.

Thus, a 'clear search' or 'pass' may hide significant issues, leading to litigation and even negligence claims against firms - the result of 'false negatives'. Search companies are often not proactive in drawing attention to the shortcomings of their reports. In some cases, consultants can cause problems with their ground investigations, which could result in aborted deals and liabilities for a seller.

Redcliffe’s environmental issues in real estate transactions course will expose the full breadth of environmental risks that should be considered and taken into account. Especially when dealing with any land that could have been used for purposes that could have left many forms of harm on the site. It will outline where these risks are going to fall and the extent to which this can be managed or apportioned in the documentation and other ways.

Environmental issues in real estate transactions training will also outline a methodology for presenting and assessing such risks to clients, what risks cannot be changed but have to be accepted as part of the deal risk, and the role of insurance in risk management.

Case studies and sample reports are included, as are practical exercises involving problem areas in environmental risk. Standard precedents are discussed and critiqued.