42 U.S.C. § 1983 | Civil Rights

The facts in D.A. Realestate Inv., LLC v. City of Norfolk, No. 23-1863 (Jan. 16, 2025), a recent decision from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, are fairly sympathetic. And the opinion starts off with a tantalizing quote:

In 1761, Massachusetts lawyer James Otis exclaimed “one of the most essential branches

We tend to avoid cases about insurance. Not because they are dull (as you might wrongly imagine). Indeed, there’s more excitement in insurance cases than you’d guess. But insurance law and the insurance regulation field needs a certain level of very niche expertise that we don’t possess. So normally, we would not have given the

Screenshot 2024-11-20 at 09-16-50 Lake Worth Lagoon - Google Maps
Lake Worth: the “lago” in Mar-a-Lago

You know his name. He’s taken on the City of Riviera Beach twice at the U.S. Supreme Court. And won both times. The houseboat that isn’t a boat. The government can’t shut you out from speaking your mind simply because you irritate them.

That’s right, it’s Fane

2025 San Diego

Get ready to join your colleagues and friends in San Diego for the 42d ALI-CLE Eminent Domain & Land Valuation Litigation Conference.

The 41st Conference was in New Orleans. Here’s a report of that event, and here are our reports from prior conferences in Austin and Scottsdale.

Here are some of the

In Turner v. Jordan, No. 22-13159 (Sep. 17, 2024), the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit held that even though the federal courts have jurisdiction over Turner’s takings claim, the court nonetheless has the discretion to choose to wash its hands of the case in order to protect a state’s administrative procedures.

The gunfight at the OK Corral is about all we know
about bearing arms in public places.

There’s a lot going on in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit’s opinion in Wolford v. Lopez, No. 23-4356 (Sep. 6, 2024), and none of it is about takings, at least directly. And the

Here’s the latest takings cert petition. This one seeks review of the Seventh Circuit’s affirming the district court’s sua sponte abstaining from considering a property owner’s challenge to a Wisconsin municipality’s exercise of eminent domain.

The court concluded that federal courts could — but shouldn’t — consider the owner’s public use challenge

PXL_20240819_120202700.MP
Yes, the mysterious ducks remain — and seem to have multiplied.

It’s that time of the year again. Fall’s-a-coming, and that means that starting today, we’re back at the William and Mary Law School in Williamsburg, Virginia to lead two courses:

  • Eminent Domain and Property Rights (W&M is one of the few law schools

Screenshot 2024-07-31 at 17-33-40 The End of Means-End Scrutiny by Francesca Procaccini SSRN

Here’s an article worth reading, just posted to SSRN, Procaccini, The End of Means-End Scrutiny (July 29, 2024).

For your takings and individual liberty nerds, please focus on pages 36-38 (showing how takings analysis is not accomplished by the usual means-ends scrutiny), pages 40-42 (social and economic liberties), and pages 43-44 (searches and seizure).

Why

Because the latest takings cert petition is one of ours (our colleagues Dave Breemer and Deb La Fetra are counsel for the petitioner), we won’t be commenting all that much on it.

Except to say that this is the latest in a series of cases where the obligation to provide just compensation for takings butts