December 2020 - Volume 8, Issue 35 & 36 |
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FGMC'S Q3 & Q4 NEWS & UPDATES |
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Be. The. Whale.
Towards the end of the Tom Hanks movie “Castaway” we see his character, Chuck Noland, sitting lifelessly on the edge of a ramshackle raft he built that was falling apart due to the harsh conditions of his ocean voyage. He held the battered oars in his hands and in his last act of personal autonomy he surrenders by gently placing them into the ocean. Yielding to his fate. To die alone, lost, in the middle of the vast, unforgiving ocean. It is a heart-wrenching scene, especially since we have not stopped crying from moments earlier when his beloved friend Wilson, the loyal volleyball, falls off his broken perch and drifts away, unable to be rescued by Hanks. For a man who had endured unspeakable hardships for years on a deserted island it seemed like an unceremonious way to go out. And then suddenly we see his shot at being rescued, by a passing freighter ship, yet he is too weak and tired to notice. Alas, a friendly, curious whale who had been accompanying Hanks throughout his sea voyage notices the ship and shoots a geyser of water on Hanks to wake him up, alert him, just when he needed it the most. The whale helps save Tom Hanks by this simple act of being present and looking out for this person in dire straits.
As we enter the 10th month of this pandemic and so many have suffered physical, emotional, and financial hardships, now is the time to Be The Whale. As so many have tired of Zoom calls and socially distanced happy hours, we need to Be The Whale. As our political frustrations have caused us to attack our friends and neighbors with differing opinions, we need to Be The Whale. And as we struggle to maintain a sense of community, family, and friendship we need to be, we must, Be The Whale!
It is at this point in time when we seem to be at our lowest, and those around us seem to be at their lowest, ready to throw in the oars and say, “I’m done trying to save this business!”, “I’m done trying to save this relationship!”, “I’m done trying to find light in this darkness!” It is incumbent on us to look at our friends, children, neighbors and Be The Whale. We must help each other push through this incredibly challenging time because one day soon, we hope, there will be a freighter ship passing us, ready to save us, and we need to be present and alert, because as Hanks' character says at the end: “And tomorrow the sun will rise, and who knows what the tide will bring in.”
We at Foster, Graham, Milstein & Calisher are here for you and your families just as we have been for over 20 years. We pledge to Be The Whale and keep helping you through this tough time. We wish all of you a wonderful holiday season, a happy new year, and a 2021 that puts a smile on all our faces! We all deserve it!
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Foster Graham Milstein & Calisher, LLP Ranked in 2021 “Best Law Firms" |
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Foster Graham Milstein & Calisher, LLP has been ranked in the 2021 U.S. News – Best Lawyers® “Best Law Firms” list and regionally in 3 practice areas.
Firms included in the 2021 “Best Law Firms” list are recognized for professional excellence with persistently impressive ratings from clients and peers. Achieving a tiered ranking signals a unique combination of quality law practice and breadth of legal expertise.
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Three FGMC Partners named to 2021 Best Lawyers® list in Colorado |
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FGMC Welcomes Associate Nate Bartell |
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Nate is a Denver native whose practice will focus on corporate and real estate issues, to include mergers and acquisitions, debt and equity financing, contract drafting, entity formation, foreclosures, and more. He comes to us with background at Alterra Mountain Company as well as the Denver City Attorney’s office in their Municipal Operations division, with strong connections in Denver’s real estate community. Help us welcome Nate to the team!
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FGMC Leads Way to Invalidating Armed Teacher Policy |
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Our partner, Mike Rollin, was a Douglas County Sheriff’s deputy during the shooting at Columbine High School. While he was not dispatched to the shooting, he was always haunted by the tragedy.
Twenty years later, he was out of law enforcement but did respond to the tragic May 2019 shooting at STEM High School Highlands Ranch. This time as a parent—to pick up his son. “I’ve been a combat medic and I was a cop for 8 years, and I’ve never been more terrified,” Mike said. “I’m thankful every day that our son wasn’t physically harmed but I’m heartbroken for those who were.”
After STEM, Mike determined to use his law license to work on gun violence prevention and school safety issues. He reached out to the Giffords Law Center for the Prevention of Gun Violence and asked what he could do.
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FGMC Attorneys Represent Local Investor Group in Purchase of Tattered Cover, Historic Colorado Bookstore |
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FGMC is proud to represent Denver-based investor group, Bended Page, LLC, in its purchase of the Tattered Cover bookstore. The transaction includes Tattered Cover’s four existing locations, as well as the bookstore’s upcoming move to the much-anticipated McGregor Square development across the street from Coors Field.
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FGMC Supports Project Angel Heart’s Cookie In The Sky Program
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We are proud to give back to our community, and delighted to be a sponsor for Project Angel Heart! The firm's sponsorship provided 600 medically tailored meals to Coloradans in Denver and Colorado Springs battling life-threatening illnesses.
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FGMC Supports Denver Local Restaurant - Santos Cafe & Grill
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FGMC participated in the Shock and Claus event through the charitable organization - the Good Wood Club - to benefit the small business - Santos.. The partners donated a $1,000 tip to the wait staff!.
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Congratulations to Keirstin Beck on receiving a 2020 PACESetter Excellence Award! PACENation, the nonprofit organization that advocates for expanded access to PACE (Property Assessed Clean Energy) financing across the country, announced the recipients of the 2020 PACESetter Awards to recognize individuals and teams whose efforts have advanced PACE nationally as a critical public policy tool that strengthens communities and incentivizes commercial real estate owners to incorporate energy efficient, renewable energy and conservation measures into their properties. Congratulations, Keirstin!
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Believe it or not, fallout litigation from the mortgage crisis is alive and well
more than a decade on. Lehman Brothers declared bankruptcy more than 12 years ago, marking what most saw as the onset of the financial crisis—though Foster Graham lawyers led by Dan Calisher and Mike Rollin were already litigating the sale and securitization of defective mortgage loans years before. And we still are.
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What Employers Need to Know About the EEOC’s Revisions to its Compliance Manual on Religious Discrimination
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For the first time since 2008, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) revised its Compliance Manual on Religious Discrimination. The revisions were guided by opinions issued by the U.S. Supreme Court such as Burwell v. Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc., 573 U.S. 682 (2014), Masterpiece Cakeshop, Ltd. v. Colo. Civil Rights Comm’n, 138 S.Ct. 1719 (2018), and Our Lady of Guadalupe Sch. v. Morrissey-Berru, 140 S.Ct. 679 (2019).
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