Over the past eight weeks, serving your legal needs while working remotely to maintain the health and safety of our clients and employees has been our firm’s main focus during COVID-19. As of June 1st, Dickinson Law will begin a phased approach to reopening our offices, with a portion of our attorneys and administrative staff resuming work at our headquarters in downtown Des Moines. This approach is consistent with current governmental recommendations and allows us…

Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business, an annual legal guide identifying the top attorneys and law firms in the United States, has ranked 5 practice areas and 13 individual attorneys from Dickinson Law in its 2020 edition. Firms were ranked in a limited number of categories and were evaluated by Chambers researchers through peer review and client interviews regarding their experiences with individual attorneys and practice areas. During the Chambers USA interviews, sources described Dickinson’s attorneys as…

The COVID-19 pandemic has caused severe financial losses for agricultural producers and commercial businesses, and lenders are left with uncertainty on how to respond. Our COVID-19 – Dealing with Agricultural and Commercial Loans Webinar that first aired on April 23, 2020 is now available as an on demand resource. It addresses the impact that the novel coronavirus has created for lenders, including recent state and federal regulatory changes and guidance to commercial and ag foreclosures, as well…

The COVID-19 pandemic was a shock to many corporate systems and has changed the reality under which many deals where negotiated and executed. A merger agreement or financing agreement may include a material adverse change (“MAC”) provision defining a substantial change in the target or the occurrence of an intervening event, either triggering a party’s right to terminate the agreement, releasing a party from certain obligations under the agreement or qualifying certain representations and warranties.…

On April 2, 2020, the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), released its final rules (Rules) applicable to the Payroll Protection Program (PPP), which is the $349 Billion Small Business forgivable loan program created in the Coronavirus, Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act (CARES Act). Under the PPP, Borrowers will seek loans from third party lenders (Lenders) who have been approved by the SBA to issue SBA 7(a) loans. Lenders may begin making application for these…

By now, all financial institutions should be aware that state and federal agencies are urging cooperation and flexibility with borrowers (residential and commercial) affected in some way by COVID-19. For instance, see the March 22nd Proclamation and the March 22nd Federal Guidance. A new law, enacted on March 12, 2020, makes it even easier for financial institutions to record modifications to loans secured by mortgages on real estate. Historically, in order to record a…

Currently, Iowa clerks of court have been directed to reject filings of actions for foreclosure. In her March 22, 2020 Proclamation, Governor Reynolds “suspend[ed] the regulatory provisions of Iowa Code chapters 646, 654, 655A, and 656 allowing for the commencement of foreclosure proceedings, or the prosecution of ongoing foreclosure proceedings, on residential, commercial, and agricultural real property located in the state of Iowa.” Governor Reynolds further directed the Iowa Division of Banking and the…