Eminent Domain Report

SB 1153 (Caballero) is now law, and it answers a key question for California water systems: are they liable when a catastrophic wildfire overwhelms their supply or pressure?

Join Brad Kuhn and Willis Hon as they participate in a discussion with CalMutuals JPRIMA, the Water Leadership group and the California Water Association on Wednesday, Oct. 28 at 1:00 p.m. PT for a 75-minute webinar on what the law means in practice. Speakers include Jennifer Capitolo, CWA and David W. Pedersen, Las Virgenes Municipal Water District.

We recently reported on the California Legislature’s passage of Senate Bill 1153, noting that the Bill was waiting for Governor Newsom’s approval.  That approval has now occurred, and the Bill is official. 

This is a huge legislative victory for water suppliers in California, as the Bill clarifies that public water systems have no duty to be designed, constructed, or maintained for wildfire defense or suppression—and that the inability to maintain water supply or pressure during a wildfire is not a substantial cause of wildfire damages. Together, these authorities provide an ...

Two articles in Nossaman’s California Water Views – 2026 Outlook highlight a shifting inverse condemnation liability landscape in California—one that carries important implications for eminent domain professionals, water suppliers, utilities, public agencies and infrastructure owners alike.

Recent case law suggests that inverse condemnation exposure for water suppliers may be expanding in meaningful ways. Courts are increasingly willing to entertain claims where property owners can show they were “singled out” or disproportionately impacted by public ...