Eminent Domain Report

On the first day of Christmas my client came to me and asked: “who holds title to the partridge in a pear tree that is within our new proposed right-of-way?” I replied that a partridge is a wild animal and not typically subject to private ownership, however if the landowner claims it is a “pet”, it would be considered personal property.

On the second day of Christmas, my client asked me “what do we do if we find two turtle doves on the property that we need to condemn for a new highway?” I said let’s get a right-of-entry from the landowner to do a survey and environmental testing and ...

While there are many benefits to owning property in a common interest community, most people love to hate them. Condemnors should be especially wary when seeking to acquire property owned by a homeowners association. Here are a few things to consider:

1. Are CC&Rs considered property or contracts in your state? The Declaration of Covenants, Conditions, and Restrictions, or CC&Rs, is a document recorded on the property that sets out rules for ownership in the community. The covenants are reciprocal, meaning the owner of each lot has obligations to every other lot, as well as a right of ...

When a municipality acquires private property in an eminent domain case, it must first pay just compensation to the property owner. The municipality must file a complaint—a lawsuit—asking the appropriate court to enter a final order of condemnation, vesting title to the property in the municipality. Litigation can take years as the amount that the municipality must pay to the property owner is generally determined by a jury trial—at the very end of the lawsuit’s life.

This can be challenging for municipalities with tight project timelines or an immediate need to put the land ...