April 2009

A state law providing that airport boards may exercise the powers of the municipalities which appoint them, but which also requires a condemnation action by an airport board “be instituted in the names of the municipalities jointly,” prohibits an airport board from instituting an eminent domain suit in its own name. In Spokane Airports v. …

The Washington Examiner has published an op-ed about McClung v. City of Sumner, 548 F.3d 1219 (9th Cir. 2008), petition for cert. filed May 2, 2009, “When the Government Takes Your Money, It Takes Your Property,” by Cato Institute’s Ilya Shapiro and Pacific Legal Foundation’s Lauren Wiggins (who filed an amicus brief…

As we noted in this post, the recent U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit decision in Severance v. Patterson, No. 07-20409 (Apr. 23, 2009) is garnering a lot of commentary for the dissenting judge’s opening ad hominem and the majority’s terse response.  Earlier, we summarized the substantive issues in the case, …

A very interesting decision from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit in Severance v. Patterson, No. 07-20409 (Apr. 23, 2009). 

While much of the commentary about the case (see, e.g., here, here, and here) has focused on the dissenting opinion’s ad hominem on the plaintiff’s …

The Big Island’s West Hawaii Today reports “Both sides claim win in latest ruling” about the Hawaii Supreme Court’s recent opinion in the cases involving the County of Hawaii’s attempt to take the property of a Kona family to meet the County’s obligations under a development agreement with the developer of the Hokulia…

Economist Bill Wade offers his thoughts on the recent (and latest) Rose Acre decision by the Federal Circuit, a case we summarized here.
__________________________________

Of shoes and ships, eggs and farms; Or, Penn Central through the Looking Glass

by William W. Wade, Ph.D.

Fans of arcane takings decisions will not find a more economically…

In City of Jordan v. Church of St. John the Baptist of Jordan, No. CV-07-24976 (Apr. 14, 2009), the Minnesota Court of Appeals held that a state law requiring the consent of a church’s governing board before its land can be taken for road or street purposes requires consent before a city can take…