The Ghost Train Departs REBA Dispute Resolution Welcomes Larry Dicara

WWW.REBA.NET THE NEWSPAPER OF THE REAL ESTATE BAR ASSOCIATION SEPTEMBER 2018 • Vol. 15, No. 4 Supplement of Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly REBA Dispute Resolution The ghost train departs welcomes Larry DiCara Lawrence S. DiCara, former chair of Quincy Market to Copley Place to the the real estate practice group in the Bos- Charlestown Navy Yard, and on. As an ton office of Nixon Peabody, has joined attorney in private practice, Larry repre- REBA/DR’s panel of neutrals, where he sented a wide array of clients with mat- will concentrate on mediation, arbitra- ters in cities and towns across the com- tion and case evaluations. monwealth. “With his involvement in so many Larry has extensive knowledge of major developments over the span of state and municipal law and an under- several decades, Larry standing of the reali- brings extraordinarily ties of developing real GABRIEL11 wide-ranging experi- estate in the current ence to our program,” era. BY EDWARD J. SMITH said REBA/DR Pres- Larry also is a in a manner that would make sense ident Joel Reck. “I’m published author and to him and his clients. confident that he will frequently lectures Since 1973, A mentor to generations of be among our most and writes about de- conveyancers REBA members, Henry also was sought-after neutrals.” velopment-related is- and their client a fan of railroads, and a student of “We are delighted sues. He has been an developers and their history. He told me that the to welcome my long- active citizen of the lenders have statute was passed in the wake of the time friend Larry Di- Greater Boston com- rued the enact- financial collapse of major railroads Cara to our REBA/ munity for almost ment of G.L.c. in the northeast in the 1960s. The DR family,” said Peter five decades, and he 40, §54A. That decade saw many railroads in finan- Wittenborg, executive LAWRENCE S. DICARA has been appointed statute has re- cial trouble, as well as a number of director of REBA and by mayors and gov- quired written consent, after a public mergers. This culminated in the 1970 treasurer of REBA/DR. “He will be a ernors to serve on a number of public hearing, by the then-Executive Of- collapse of the newly created Penn strong asset for our program, particularly boards. fice of Transportation and Construc- Central Railroad giant. in Boston. With his focus on large-scale Larry also has chaired A Better City, tion to the issuance of any municipal Realizing the severity of the real estate construction, and develop- the Boston Municipal Research Bureau building permit relative to land for- situation, the federal government ment, he will bring his unique strengths and other organizations and served as an merly used at any time by a railroad established the Consolidated Rail to our panel of mediators.” officer and member of the executive com- corporation as a right of way or on Corporation, which comprised the Larry served on the Boston City mittee of the Boston Bar Association. property appurtenant to a former rail- skeletons of several bankrupt North- Council for 10 years and has been inti- To schedule a mediation, arbitration road right of way. eastern carriers, to begin operations mately involved in the development pro- or case evaluation with Larry DiCara, Attorneys are often asked to in 1976. cess in Boston for many decades. While contact Jessica Trenouth at trenouth@ opine relative to the applicability of With federal backing, Con- on the City Council, he actively par- reba.net. For more information about this improvidently drafted statute. I rail began to slowly pull out of the ticipated in many of the decisions that REBA Dispute Resolution, visit www. remember well, 15 years ago, that my red ink, and by the late 1980s was made Boston the city it is today, from the disputesolution.net. late friend Henry Thayer proposed a profitable railroad after thou- legislation to limit the statute’s terms See page 14 Appeals Court ruling addresses condo ‘board-packing’ schemes BY DAVID M. ROGERS association — seeking to recover unpaid condominium fees — advanced claims Condominium against the record owners of four sepa- developers have rate condominium units. Trustees of the long employed cre- Washington West Condominium Trust v. ative measures for Ashkouri, 89 Mass. App. Ct. 1102 (2016) avoiding liability for (Rule 1:28). deficient construc- One individual, Hisham Ashkouri, tion — whether it’s essentially owned all four of these units baking self-serving through various realty trusts. After the anti-litigation pro- lawsuit was filed, two additional trustees visions into the condominium documents were appointed to the board of the con- or using single-purpose asset-less entities dominium association. These newly ap- to develop the condominium. pointed board members were trustees of One practice that developers have realty trusts that owned “Ashkouri units.” commonly employed — after they have At a special meeting — after Ashkouri In June, the Women’s Real Estate Networking Group hosted a been sued by the association — is to had essentially “packed” the board — the brunch in Hyannis. Justin Manning, president of J.J. Manning “pack” the condominium board with pro- majority of the board voted to dismiss the Auctioneers, was the guest speaker. He discussed the auction developer shills. A 2016 Appeals Court lawsuit and thereafter filed a stipulation business and regaled the brunch guests with stories and decision indicates, however, that courts of dismissal with the court on behalf of anecdotes from his 25 years as an auctioneer. Pictured with may not look favorably on a developer’s the condominium association. Manning is REBA President Diane R. Rubin. board-packing scheme. The defendants also filed a motion In Washington West, the condominium See page 12 PAGE 2 REBAnews SEPTEMBER 2018 Musings of a history nerd BY DIANE R. RUBIN President’s Message remind us as to what the future holds for conveyancers. They envisage a time An informal survey of lawyers at my when almost no one will be pushing a firm indicates that a sizable percentage pen in the Registry of Deeds and when 295 Devonshire Street, Sixth Floor, were history majors as undergrads. That all that will be necessary to obtain the Boston, MA 02110-1266 includes me. I was an American history pertinent facts respecting a title will www.reba.net major at Brandeis University. When Pe- be to a push a few buttons … and the ter Wittenborg suggested that a brief needed information will pop out on a history of the Land Court might be a broad tape or tube.” President: topic of interest for this message, I dove Payson did not regret this change Diane R. Rubin in. but saw “a rosier and more productive [email protected] Many of us can date ourselves by future,” when the task of conveyancers where the Land Court was located would be “limited to matters of law, in- President Elect: when we first practiced there. My first terpretation and draftsmanship.” Paula M. Devereaux appearance was before Judge Karyn F. More than a decade later, Mark [email protected] Scheier when the “old” Suffolk County Titlebaum forecast that the principal is- Immediate Past President: Courthouse was its home and had been cluding general enforcement of G.L.c. sues before the real estate bar would be so for decades, since 1911. At the time 40A and 41, specific performance of real Francis J. Nolan of my first appearance, there were only estate agreements, and partition cases Initially, Land Court [email protected] four judges of the court; today, there are concurrent with the Probate & Family Treasurer: seven. Court. decisions were Jennifer L. Markowski In recent years, the Land Court Today, we even have provisions to reviewable on appeal has spent time in both the Edward W. withdraw land from registration. Initial- [email protected] Brooke Courthouse on New Char- ly, Land Court decisions were review- to the Superior Court, Clerk: don Street (1999) and leased space on able on appeal to the Superior Court, Causeway Street (2003), before settling but today, of course, it is a full-fledged but today, of course, Neil D. Golden into its current digs in the “new” Suf- division, along with six other courts, of [email protected] folk County Courthouse in Pemberton the Trial Court. it is a full-fledged Square (2010). The commonwealth’s real estate division, along with Executive Director, Editor: Many of us take the Land Court bar has been a longtime friend, advo- Peter Wittenborg and its robust jurisdiction for granted, cate and supporter of the Land Court. six other courts, of the [email protected] but that jurisdiction has evolved over REBA — and its predecessor, the Mas- time, just as the practice of real estate sachusetts Conveyancers Association Trial Court. Managing Editor: law has done so. The Land Court came — and the Abstract Club have collabo- Nicole Cohen into being in 1898, when legislation rated with the court to maintain stan- [email protected] was enacted creating what was initially dards of excellence as our practices have those “dealing with the environment and known as the Court of Registration, evolved into the electronic age. land use, or dealing with financial instru- Legislative Counsel: with the limited purpose of providing a I was reminded of this close rela- ments used in real estate transactions.” system of land registration, based on the tionship when I recently read a short Both predictions have turned out to Edward J. Smith Torrens System of Land Registration, history of the Abstract Club. This jam- be true. Our law practices and the Land [email protected] which originated in Australia.

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