Here’s the amicus brief we filed today on behalf of our Owners’ Counsel of America colleagues in Livingston v. Frank, No. 15-470 (cert. petition filed Oct. 9, 2015). That’s the case in which the Florida District Court of Appeal held that the interest generated by quick-take deposits is not the private property of
Valuation And “The Area 51” Taking
As we noted here, the government is taking the property belonging to a Nevada family which is immediate adjacent to the infamous super-secret “Area 51” site.
For more details on the story, read “The Unlikely Struggle of The Family Whose Neighbor is Area 51.” It tells the history of the property…
Florida: When Govt Excessively Litigates An Eminent Domain Case, “Full Compensation” Requires Payment Of Attorneys Fees
Those of you who represent property owners on the business end of eminent domain who practice in Florida and the few other states which allow recovery of attorneys’ fees, consider yourselves lucky: the rest of us poor slobs who practice in places where they are not permitted — either as a component of a constitutional…
What Does “Waikiki” Mean? – Variances, Safety Valves, And A “Hawaiian Sense Of Place”
“Waikiki” means a lot of things to a lot of people. With its wall-to-wall high rises, it could be Las Vegas-by-the-Sea. Or the site of the most famous beach in Hawaii, if not the world. A place where impossibly tony shops and kitsch exist side-by-side. Where the “Hawaiian” bric-a-brac is imported from the Phillipines and…
Thursday, November 5, 2015, U.H. Law School: Lawprof Thomas Merrill To Speak About Property And Public Trust
By Robert H. Thomas on
Mark your calendars for next Thursday, November 5, 2015, at 4:30pm at the University of Hawaii Law School Moot Courtroom for the annual Gifford Lecture in Real Property, sponsored by our colleagues at Carlsmith Ball.
This year, the lecture is by Columbia Lawprof Thomas W. Merrill (also a recent Brigham-Kanner Property Rights prizewinner…
Just Sayin: No Taking For FDA Salmonella Warning Which Killed Tomato Sales
In Dimare Fresh, Inc. v. United States, No. 15-5006 (Oct. 28, 2015), the Federal Circuit held that the FDA wasn’t liable for a taking when it issued an incorrect food safety warning that hurt the tomato market, because it was just a warning and didn’t come with coercive action like a quarantine or a…
Kansas: We’re Pretty Much Not Going To Second-Guess The Jury When It Comes To Compensation
By Robert H. Thomas on
We’ve had the Kansas Supreme Court’s opinion in Kansas City Power & Light Co. v. Strong, No. 110573 (Aug. 28, 2015) in the hopper for a while, but never quite got around to posting it. Something else always seemed to take precedence, and it’s just one of those decisions that doesn’t really reach out…
Tips From An Election Lawyer For Setting Up Private Racially-Exclusive Elections, er … “Opinion Polls”
By Robert H. Thomas on
Posted in Voting rights | election law
1. Don’t repeatedly refer to your private poll as an “election” and limit it to “voters” of only a certain race. Real “voters” who are excluded from your election .. I mean poll might get the wrong idea, like it’s an election or something.
2. Don’t use public money to fund said…
Intent Matters: DOT Offering Someone Else’s Property To The Corps of Engineers So DOT Can Get A Permit May Be A Taking, Even If Temporary
By Robert H. Thomas on
Posted in Regulatory takings
The Mississippi Highway Commission wanted to build a road. That road was on wetlands, so it needed a permit from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. In order to convince the Corps to issue the permit, the Commission offered up 1,300 acres of land as wetlands mitigation. Problem was, these 1,300 acres didn’t belong to…
New Cert Petition: Interest Earned On Quick-Take Deposit Is Property, Gov’t Can’t Keep 90%
By Robert H. Thomas on
We all know the old rule that “interest follows principal,” which means that when a deposit on account is private property, so is the interest which that deposit earns.
Not according to the Florida Court of Appeals, however. In a 2014 decision, that court held that interest earned on quick-take deposits was not…