Catastrophic events (CAT) include hurricanes, floods, landslides, tsunamis, volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, tornados, and wildfires (See Figures 1-4 below). “CAT season” is the phrase experts commonly use to describe the...more
A rash of recent natural disasters, from hurricanes to earthquakes to wildfires, serves as a timely reminder to employers of the potential for natural disasters to disrupt their operations and cause imminent hazards in the...more
On January 17, 1994, a 6.7 magnitude earthquake struck Northridge, California, resulting in thousands of casualties and approximately $60 billion in damages and economic loss. Hospitals within the impacted area suffered...more
During K2 Integrity’s 14 March webinar, panelists Chip Poncy and Mohammed Alaa Ghanem discussed the assistance required in Syria and Türkiye in the wake of the 6 February earthquakes; gave an overview of sanctions imposed on...more
On 6 February 2023, a magnitude 7.8 earthquake hit southern Turkiye and northern Syria. The earthquake and subsequent aftershocks devasted a region already destabilized by one of the world’s largest humanitarian crises. This...more
On February 21, the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) issued sanctions compliance guidance for authorized transactions related to Syrian earthquake disaster relief. The OFAC Compliance...more
In rapid succession during the morning of February 6, Eastern Turkey and its environs were hit by first, a magnitude 7.8 earthquake and, then, a magnitude 7.5 quake. Horrific images showing high rise buildings collapsing,...more
On February 9, the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) issued Syria General License (GL) 23 to authorize, for 180 days, all transactions related to earthquake relief efforts that would...more
The EF4 tornado that roared through Mayfield, Kentucky, in the late hours of Dec. 10, 2021, left catastrophic damage in its wake. It almost completely leveled Mayfield Consumer Products LLC’s candle factory. Sadly,...more
Our July Insurance Update is here. This is what we discuss. “Hoosier” daddy? When a Little Daddy’s bouncer chased a drunk patron from Big Daddy’s parking lot, who knew it would lead to the Indiana Supreme Court...more
Consider the things you rely on during a normal day that support your routines and well-being—lifelines such as electricity, water, gas, roadways, public transportation, bridges, and others commonly thought of as essentials...more
If you dispose of produced water you are no-doubt aware of the intensive earthquakes being observed across the Midland and Delaware Basins. In West Texas Earthquake Observations, Implications for the Oil and Gas Industry,...more
Perception becomes reality. Whether alarmist or denier, believer or skeptic, those responsible for making decisions in response to the perceived threat of climate change have taken the side of caution over indecision and...more
S.F.’s Embarcadero could be devastated by earthquakes and rising seas, study warns - SFGate – September 19 - The Embarcadero in San Francisco faces severe threats from both earthquakes that could undermine the city’s...more
In response to the earthquakes that since January 6, 2020, have shaken Puerto Rico, on February 18, 2020, the Puerto Rico Department of the Treasury (known by its Spanish name as “Hacienda”) issued Circular Letter of Internal...more
On February 20, 2020, the Puerto Rico Treasury Department (PR Treasury) issued Internal Revenue Circular Letter No. 20-08 (CC RI 20-08) granting employers temporary income tax exemptions over payments and certain benefits...more
On February 20, 2020, the Puerto Rico Treasury Department (PR Treasury) issued Internal Revenue Circular Letter Number 20-09 (CC RI 20-09) to provide special rules and procedures applicable to distributions from qualified...more
The Real Estate Law (Reinforcement of Condominiums against Earthquakes) 5768-2008 (the “Reinforcement Law”) provides that in order to perform a TAMA 38 plan on a building under the “demolish and build” track, a majority of...more
The location exception to CEQA’s categorical exemptions does not apply to earthquake and landslide hazard zones, as they are not “environmental resources” that would be affected by a project. Berkeley Hills Watershed...more
It can be difficult for business leaders to assess how climate change will impact commercial real estate finance. The sheer volume of climate information in the public domain is beset with politically charged debate,...more
In Berkeley Hills Watershed Coalition v. City of Berkeley (2019) 31 Cal.App.5th 880 [certified for partial publication], the Court of the Appeal for the First District affirmed that the construction of three new single-family...more
The 2018 deadline to record affidavits of labor and pay rental on State of Alaska mining claims was disrupted by a 7.0 earthquake near Anchorage at 8:29 a.m. on Friday, November 30. As a result of the earthquake, the...more
About 90% of the world’s earthquakes take place in the Ring of Fire, an area surrounding the Pacific Ocean laced with volcanoes. Though the name might conjure images of earthquakes spouting fire through cracks in the ground...more
We’ve previously noted the risk of a major earthquake in the Cascadia Subduction Zone, which runs from Vancouver, Canada to Northern California. This week, our friends at Temblor.net cited additional recent studies providing...more
In Cities v. Fossil Fuels, Exxon's Allies Want the Accusers Investigated - "Now two industry-friendly groups are turning the tables and asking the SEC to investigate the cities and counties for possible fraud." Why this...more