Understanding Interim Title Insurance Documents (With Forms)

• Published in: The Practical Real Estate Lawyer Vol. 27; no. 2; p. 41
• Main Authors: Earley, Justin Lischak, Jordan, James B
• Format: Trade Publication Article
• Language: English
• Published: Philadelphia American Law Institute 01.03.2011
• Subjects: Attorneys; Commercial real estate; Insurance coverage; Insurance policies; Jurisdiction; Liens; Risk management; Title insurance; United States > US
• ISSN: 8756-0372

Title insurance is central to almost every commercial real estate transaction, and ensuring that buyers and/or lenders will have effective title coverage is usually a condition to closing. Buyers and lenders thus have an incentive to make the moment of coverage as late in time as possible so as to pass the risk of a harmful event to the title company. Title insurance is essential to almost every modern-day real estate transaction. Given the present state of the real estate markets - in which distress sales without warranties of title are common, and special-purpose entities who are de facto judgment proof are often the sellers, making warranties of title ring hollow anyway - effective title coverage is more important than ever. Before walking down the aisle of a closing, counsel for all parties to any commercial real estate transaction can benefit by keeping the often unstated legal principles underlying interim title coverage documents in mind.