Commercial Lease Considerations in the Wake of Hurricane Laura

Following disasters such as Hurricane Laura, business owners have a variety of concerns when beginning the recovery process. Chief among those concerns: what to do when your place of business has been damaged or destroyed? If you lease your place of business, or if you lease out land or buildings to other people for their businesses, this concern becomes especially important when you consider the different parties with a potential interest in the recovery—the lessor (landlord), the lessor’s insurer, the lessor’s lender, the lessee (tenant), the lessee’s insurer, and the lessee’s lender. Being familiar with your lease agreement is the key to understanding the extent of your rights and responsibilities, especially as they pertain to repair obligations, obligations regarding the payment or reimbursement of insurance deductibles, insurance recovery, and rights to termination and reduction (abatement) of rent. As an initial matter, the first question you should ask yourself is: What kind of lease agreement do I have?
Continue Reading Commercial Lease Considerations in the Wake of Hurricane Laura

Updated July 8, 2020

On March 27, 2020, President Trump signed into law the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, also known as the CARES Act, which established, in relevant part, the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), a loan program that offers eligible borrowers the potential for loan forgiveness. For more information on the PPP and other CARES Act lending programs, click here, and for information about applying for PPP loans, click here.
Continue Reading Changes to PPP Loans by the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) Flexibility Act of 2020

Updated August 31, 2020

On March 27, 2020, President Trump signed into law the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, also known as the CARES Act, which established, in relevant part, the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), a loan program that offers eligible borrowers the potential for loan forgiveness. For more information on the PPP and other CARES Act lending programs, click here, and for information about applying for PPP loans, click here.

On June 5, 2020, President Trump signed into law the Paycheck Protection Program Flexibility Act of 2020 (the Flexibility Act), which amends the CARES Act to make certain changes to PPP loans and to provide more flexibility to borrowers. For an overview of the changes made by the Flexibility Act, click here. To the extent available, this blog post has been updated to incorporate the changes made by the Flexibility Act.


Continue Reading Applying for Loan Forgiveness under the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP)

In addition to the SBA’s Payment Protection Program (PPP) and Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL), on April 9, 2020, the Federal Reserve announced that it was going to provide up to $2.3 trillion in loans to support the economy through various programs, including the Main Street Lending Program (“MSLP”).  The MSLP will support credit flow to small and mid-sized businesses by providing support to businesses that were in good financial standing prior to the COVID-19 crisis.  This is a new loan program authorized by the CARES Act.  We will continue to update this summary as more information becomes available.


Continue Reading Main Street Lending Programs

Updated August 31, 2020

On March 27, 2020, President Trump signed into law the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, also known as the CARES Act, which provides for various economic stimulus measures, including a new loan program regulated by the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) called the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). You can read more about the PPP and the other stimulus programs here.

On June 5, 2020, President Trump signed into law the Paycheck Protection Program Flexibility Act of 2020 (the Flexibility Act), which amends the CARES Act to make certain changes to PPP loans and to provide more flexibility to borrowers. For an overview of the changes made by the Flexibility Act, click here. This blog post has been updated to incorporate the changes made by the Flexibility Act.

On July 4, 2020, President Trump signed into law a bill that extends the application period for PPP loans from June 30, 2020, to August 8, 2020, which provides eligible borrowers additional time to contact participating lenders to facilitate a PPP application.


Continue Reading Applying for a Loan under the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP)

Day-to-day life has been dramatically impacted by the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), and many businesses have been forced to close or limit their service to slow the spread of COVID-19. In response, Congress has passed several pieces of legislation to assist individuals and businesses affected by the virus.


Continue Reading COVID-19 Federal Legislative Response