Sherrod Banks, CEO of The Banks Law Firm, was recently elected to serve as the 2014-15 Chair on the ABA Forum on Affordable Housing and Community Development Law.
The ABA Forum on Affordable Housing and Community Development Law is a great resource for up-to-date information on the latest developments in affordable housing and community development law. The Forum provides educational opportunities through conferences, teleconferences, journal articles, books and listserv participation.
The Forum will be offering a boot camp in Philadelphia, PA September 18 – 19 2014 that will focus on the needs of lawyers new to our area of practice. The boot camp will offer a housing track, community economic development track, and a combined track. The housing track will address LIHTC basics, RAD, and drafting and negotiating partnership agreements. The CED track will include CHDOs and HOME Funds, social enterprise financing, and a community development case study regarding the purchase of a grocery store in the midst of a food dessert in nearby Chester County. The combined track will feature panels on fair housing, tax exempt bonds, and a deeper look at certain provisions of Section 42.
Our publishing division has three new books for sale, all of which support the needs of lawyers new to our practice area, including: (i) Beginner’s Guide to New Markets Tax Credits; (ii) Beginner’s Guide to the Housing Credit Program; and (iii) Beginner’s Guide to Public Housing Conversion Under RAD. All of these books and others are available on our website.
Continuing with this theme of book for another year, we will publish the following books in 2015: (i) Beginner’s Guide to Project Based Vouchers; (ii) Beginner’s Guide to Historic Tax Credits; and (iii) Beginner’s Guide to Tax Exempt Bonds.
The Journal of Affordable Housing & Community Development Law will be published periodically during the year and contain in-depth articles related to our practice area. The editors of the Journal would welcome your input and submissions for publication.
Please look for notices of teleconferences and activity on our listserv providing time-sensitive information throughout the year.
Our annual conference will feature an advanced track as well as curriculum suitable for intermediate and inexperienced lawyers and associates. We will return to the Mandarin Oriental Hotel for our 2015 annual conference, where we will enjoy networking opportunities and share information with you, HUD officials and IRS personnel as well.
If you would like to participate in the Forum as a writer, speaker, moderator, or in some other capacity, we would welcome your input. We are looking forward to a great year and hope to see you soon at one of our events!
For more information about the Forum or to join a committee, please contact the Forum Manager, Dawn R. Holiday at dawn.holiday@americanbar.org.