In Town of Matthews v. Wright, No. COA14-943 (Apr. 21, 2015), the North Carolina Court of Appeals invalidated a taking, the stated purpose of which was to make a portion of a private road into a public street.
A taking to open a private road to the public? That sure does sound like a
The first sign that the opinion wasn’t going the way of the Golden State Water Company — a private utility that provides water to the City of Ojai, California — was right there in the first paragraphs, which contain the one-two punch of labeling the company both a monopolist, and one that price gouges about
In 2011, Missouri adopted a statute that looks to us like a slightly modified “right to farm” law:
The statute supplants the common law of private nuisance in actions in which the “alleged nuisance emanates from property primarily used for crop or animal production purposes.” Unlike a common law private nuisance action, section
To put on your to-buy, to-read list: lawprof Ilya Somin‘s forthcoming book about the Kelo case and the aftermath, available on June 5, 2015. (We’re in the process of organizing some book talk events with Prof Somin in the fall, and if you have suggestions for venues or want to host one, let us
Here’s one that just rolled in, from the Iowa Supreme Court. In Clarke County Reservoir Comm’n v. Edwin D. & Deloris A. Robins Revocable Trust, No. 14-0774 (Apr. 10, 2015), the court held that the Commission did not have the power of eminent domain because several of its members were private actors. The court
A few years ago, in Gallenthin Realty Development, Inc. v Borough of Paulsboro, 191 N.J. 344 (2007), the New Jersey Supreme Court held that in order to target property for redevelopment as “blighted,” the government must show that it is in such condition that it “negatively affects surrounding areas” by promoting conditions that can develop
It’s not often that we say a law review article is a “must-read.” But this one definitely is, especially for all you regulatory takings mavens: David L. Callies, Through a Glass Clearly: Predicting the Future in Land Use Takings Law, 54 Washburn L. Rev. 43 (2014). A pdf of the article is posted here
We can’t reproduce the entire interview, and the link to the online version is behind a partial paywall, but here are the highlights of a recent interview, where A. Kam Napier, the Editor-in- Chief of Pacific Business News, came by and chatted with us about eminent domain, property rights, and the Honolulu rail
A couple of noteworthy conferences upcoming, one in-person, the other a “webinar” format:
Frequent readers know that we just love the Australian comedy film “The Castle,” which tells the tale of one man’s legal fight to save his family’s home from the abusive exercise of eminent domain power. (See “Kelo Down Under,” our review.) The case is played for laughs and in the