October 2009

As I mentioned here, in August, I became the Chair of the Committee on Condemnation Law, a part of the ABA’s State and Local Government Law Section. The Committee includes some very experienced practitioners and scholars, private and government attorneys, and newer lawyers and law students looking to gain experience and a collegial network. The topics we follow are not limited strictly to “condemnation” or “eminent domain,” and include regulatory takings and inverse condemnation, and pretty much anything that can be of interest to condemnation attorneys.

We’re looking for ways to communicate better with committee members and disseminate information about upcoming CLE teleconferences (some low cost, and some free of charge), new decisions and developments in our area of law, publications, and so forth.

One of the ways is to revive the committee listserv (e-mail distribution list), which has lapsed into semi-dormancy in the last few…

Continue Reading Condemnation Law Committee – Come Join The Conversation

Here are the respondents’ merits briefs in the beachfront taking case, Stop the Beachfront Renourishment, Inc. v. Florida Dep’t of Environmental Protection, No. 08-11 (cert. granted. June 15, 2009):

In Walton County v. Stop the Beach Renourishment, Inc.,998So.2d 1102 (Fla. Sep. 29, 2008), the Florida Supreme Court heldthat a state statute which prohibits “beach renourishment” without apermit did not effect a taking of littoral (beachfront) property, eventhough it altered the long-standing rights of the owners to accretionon their land and direct access to the ocean. The U.S. Supreme Court isconsidering whether the Florida court’s reversal of more than 100 yearsof Florida law was a judicial taking, and whether the Florida court’sdecision violated due process.

We filed an amicus brief supporting the…

Continue Reading Government Merits Briefs In Florida Beach Takings Case aka The Judicial Takings Case

The District Court has denied cross-motions for summary judgment on the due process claims in the case challenging Maui County’s 40-50% affordable housing exaction, Kamaole Pointe Development LP v. County of Maui, No. 07-00447 DAE (D. Haw.). The court’s order is available here.

The court’s denial focused mostly on procedural issues and the fact that most of the issues raised in the motions were already decided by the court in prior motions for summary judgment. The court concluded that there are facts at issue regarding plaintiffs’ bias claim, and rejected the County’s motion for a number of reasons as explained beginning at page 15 of the order.

Jury trial will begin on March 2, 2010.Continue Reading Cross-Motions On Due Process Issue Denied In Maui Affordable Housing Exaction Case – Next Up, Jury Trial