You listened live. Or you missed that, and listened to the recording. Or, you preferred to review what others thought of the arguments. Now you can read it yourself.
Here's the transcript of Monday's oral arguments in Cedar Point Nursery v. Hassid, No. 20-107, the case in which the Supreme Court is considering whether California's forbidding of agricultural property owners from keeping union organizers off their land is a taking.
Some highlights, in our opinion:
- Several of the Justices wanted to know whether it was important that the property owners called the access required by the regulation an "easement," even though it is not formally an easement (you know, the thing where the dominant and servient estate owners agree that one can use the land of another, that is recorded, that runs with the land, and the like. Lawprof Josh Blackman writes about that here ("Actual Property Law in Cedar Point Nursery v. Hassid").
- Many of the question seemed designed to try and find the line, if any, between a compensable taking, and a government-authorized entry for some public purpose, such as a safety inspection.And the duration and extent of the invasion.
- Justice Breyer: what about spaceships? (p. 12-13).
- Justice Alito: whose law defines "property?"
- Justices Kavanaugh and Sotomayor: didn't we already resolve this question in earlier cases (one about federal labor law, the other about state-owned trees in Arkansas)?
Check it out.
You may also want to check out the Twitter thread posted by our Pacific Legal Foundation colleague Joshua Thompson (@JPTizzle), who argued the case for the property owners, with his insights on what it was like to argue (remotely), and where he thinks the case may be heading ("The commentary on the case all seems to think we are going to win. I agree. But how that looks could vary greatly. ... And of course, it's possible the Court affirms. The CA Solicitor did a great job, I just don't think his arguments make a whole lot of sense, and the Justices seemed skeptical. But they could always kick everything into Penn Central.").
Transcript, Cedar Point Nursery v. Hassid, No. 20-107 (U.S. Mar. 22, 2021)
