2015

An interesting decision with an international flavor from the Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, Helmerich & Payne Int. Drilling Co. v. Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, No. 13-7169 (May 1, 2015).

We suppose that if you are a U.S. oil exploration company operating in Hugo Chavez’ Venezuela, you get used to entertaining

California law requires a condemnor to present to the property owner a final pre-trial settlement offer 20 days before trial, and for the property owner to make a final demand. If a court later determines that the condemnor’s final offer was unreasonable and the property owner’s final demand was reasonable, the property owner is entitled

Followers of the blog recognize that in addition to our regular menu of regulatory takings, eminent domain, inverse condemnation, and land use related items, our practice also includes voting rights and election law issues. So every now and then we post up interesting cases and decisions, especially where the issues involved are related to cases

As the Star-Advertiser reports here (“State pays newspaper for nominees battle“), Hawaii Governor David Ige has signed a bill which appropriates funds for the State to pay a portion of the legal fees and costs incurred by the Star-Advertiser during its lawsuit which compelled former Governor Neil Abercrombie to stop keeping secret the

In a case we’ve been following, the Kentucky Court of Appeals has affirmed a trial court ruling which held that a pipeline company could not exercise the power of eminent domain. 

The Bluegrass Pipeline is a 1,100+ mile private pipeline that would deliver natural gas from the Marcellus and Utica shale formations to the

Not much new in the Federal Circuit’s opinion in Resource Investments, Inc. v. United States, No. 14-5069 (May 12, 2015), which upheld the dismissal of a Court of Federal Claims takings complaint for lack of jurisdiction under of 28 U.S.C. § 1500

That statute, as federal takings mavens know (and as the Supreme Court

The powers-that-be planned on building a major freeway interchange, part of which was going to be on the property owned by Jefferson Street Ventures. Problem was, Jefferson Street also had plans for its property — a shopping center — and when it came time for it to apply to the City of Indio for permits

From the Iowa heartland, we offer the headline of the week: “Iowa landowner claims he was offered prostitute by oil pipeline company rep.

And you’re not going to beat this lede any time soon: “A southeast Iowa landowner claims he was offered the services of a prostitute in exchange for allowing a