You remember when in grade school you learned that your teacher was out for the day, and you were getting a substitute? It could be a very good day, or a very not-so-good day. Maybe the sub was cool, and you end up watching filmstrips. But if you drew the short straw, the
Maine: Seller Of Land Has No Duty To Disclose Govt Plans To Condemn
A and B entered into a purchase and sale agreement for A to sell a commercial property (let’s call it “Blackacre”) to B, a commercial real estate developer.
A knew that the city planned to redevelop the area for a roundabout, “that would require the City to take over a portion of the property by…
Show Me The Money: Reg Takings Claim Ripe Because City Made Its Decision Even If Owner Could Have Administratively Appealed
Nothing to do with the case, beyond the owner’s name.
But c’mon, its ABBA.
Ms. Money and her spouse own a home in San Marcos, Texas. That home is in a historic district.
But it turns out that some of that history isn’t pretty: one of the previous owners was “notoriously associated with the…
What Lingle Missed: Short Circuit Covers Eminent Domain Pretext
We’ve long been fans of the Short Circuit podcast, a production of the Institute for Justice’s Judicial Engagement project. If you are not subscribed, you should be. It’s a great way to keep up on what is going on in the federal courts of appeals (ha, ha, now I get “short circuit”), with keen…
No Plan? No Problem! Condemnation Statute Does Not Require A “Carefully Developed Plan”
Check out In re Condemnation of Property in Rem (Appeal of Clemens), No. 1101CD23 (Feb. 4, 2025), one from the Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court.
The Town exercised eminent domain to take property, stating it was taking the land for public recreational purposes. That can’t be the Town’s true purpose, argued the landowner, because the Town…
New Article: Ethan Blevins, “Penn Central in the States,” 15 Wake Forest J.L. & Policy 105 (2025)
Our Pacific Legal Foundation colleague Ethan Blevins has published the lead article in the latest edition of the Wake Forest Journal of Law and Policy, and it is on a subject that makes it a must-read for you takings mavens.
The title says it all: “Penn Central in the States.” How do…
Fla Ct App (en banc) In Takings Case: “failing to vindicate a right expressly stated in the Constitution is not judicial restraint but judicial abnegation. That we must not do.”

Shands Key, with the City of Marathon in the background
This just in: in Shands v. City of Marathon, No. 3D21-1987 (Fed. 5, 2025), Florida’s Third District Court of Appeals sitting en banc held that the city’s downzoning of property (Shands Key, shown above in an exhibit from the Key West trial we participated…
Canada Supreme Court Hears Arguments: Is Govt Land Subject To Adverse Possession?
You know that from time to time — mostly thanks to our friend and colleague Shane Rayman and his firm — we cover property goings-on north of the border when a good property rights case comes before the Supreme Court of Canada (see here and here for past examples).
Well, here’s another one, this time…
Eminent Domain Podcast ep. 139: “Live From San Diego! ALI-CLE 2025 Conference Coverage”
That was quick: no sooner are we all headed home from the just-wrapped 2025 ALI-CLE Eminent Domain & Land Valuation Litigation Conference in San Diego (report to follow soon), than Bobby Debelak posts up his report in the latest episode of the Eminent Domain Podcast –
Featuring Chris Clough, Angela Misch, Clint Schumacher, and Elizabeth…
Join Us: “Property Rights and The Roberts Court: 2005-2025” (Feb. 27, 2025, UC Berkeley Law School)
Register now and plan on joining us on Thursday, February 27, 2025 at the U.C. Berkeley Law School for a one-day conference: “Property Rights and the Roberts Court: 2005-2025.”
Here’s the agenda. Here’s a description of the program:
For much of the past century, property rights were relegated to second-class status compared…



