...Student name Institution name Date Introduction Question: Is the policy of eminent domain providing for the public welfare, through the taking of privately owned property, using a rightful procedure involving due process and just compensation as it was intended to do when the policy was founded? Eminent domain is the inherent power of the government to take over a citizen's property for public use without the owner's consent. Initially, this public policy originated in the Middle Ages throughout the world. It became part of the British common law before reaching the United States where it was then illustrated in the US Constitution in 1791 (Britannica: eminent domain). The Fifth Amendment granted the federal government the right to exercise eminent domain, provided protection to individuals, and protected the property rights of citizens. Shortly after the due process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment made the federal guarantee of “just compensation” applicable to the states. The use of eminent domain power to promote economic development, particularly in urban centers of the United States, has become the focus of significant controversy in this present day. This is commonly done when the acquisition of property is needed for the completion of certain project. Projects intended for the public good such as highways, bridges, schools, and government buildings have been created from Eminent Domain. The policy pertains to every independent government. It requires very little...
Words: 3810 - Pages: 16
...Research Paper April 27, 2001 House Bill No. 197 – Business Damages House Bill 197 is a bill that amends Idaho Code Section 7-711 in regards to business damages in eminent domain or condemnation proceedings. The article, “Valuing Business Goodwill Loss in Eminent Domain Cases” by Robert Trout defines a condemnation as: The process of taking private property for public use through the power of eminent domain (government). Trout states, The loss of property causes economic damages consisting of lost tangible asset values and, when appropriate, lost intangible asset values, primarily business goodwill. Tangible assets are those that show up on a balance sheet, including real property. Examples include land, buildings, and equipment. Intangible assets are other assets of a business that can be individually identified and valued. Examples include trademarks, patents, copyrights, trade secrets, customer lists, and goodwill. (Trout) Business damages are new just last year (2000) to Idaho law. Prior to that there were no laws stating that a condemnor had to pay a condemnee for their business loss due to the acquisition of new property. Being so new, Idaho does not have a definition of goodwill. California does however, and the lawmakers there identify it as: [B]enefits that accrue to a business as a result of its location, reputation for dependability, skill, or quality, and any other circumstances resulting in probable retention of old...
Words: 1161 - Pages: 5
...The primary focus of lawsuits, such as that brought on behalf of WTC workers, and compensation schemes such as workers’ compensation is on paying those who have injured or made ill. The OSH Act created a general duty on the part of every covered employer to maintain a work environment free from “recognized hazards causing or likely to cause death or serious physical harm to employee.” It also created a federal agency, the Occupational safety and Health Administration (OSHA), empowered to oversee safety and health standards, by enforcing the general duty clause and by writing and enforcing detailed health and safety standards for each industry, and the National Institute of Occupational safety and Health(NIOSH), to provide research, information, education, and training. On-the-job risk:1 many dangers, such as falls from roofs or amputations form unguarded machinery.2 forceful exertions, repetitive movements and awkward posture. 3 dactyl and the food flavorings that cause bronchiolitis obliterans or modern metalworking fluid.4 workers compensation: Firms contribute to a workers’ compensation fund that is used to pay benefits to employees accidentally injured in the workplace. Instead of suing ,an employee’s legal task is simplified . she need not prove the company was negligent, nor can the company raise any of traditional defenses to negligence to defeat her claim. Employers are willing to accept this approach because there is a trade-off: if workers compensation covers...
Words: 545 - Pages: 3
...legislation will benefit both industry and those whose livelihood is dependent on land. It provides two times more compensation in urban areas and four times more compensation in rural areas than the circle price. The circle rates are decided by the local government on the basis of average sale price for the last 3 years or last 3 months whichever is higher. The bill establishes regulations for land acquisition as a part of India's massive industrialization drive driven by public-private partnership. The bill will be central legislation in India for the rehabilitation and resettlement of families affected by land acquisitions. In addition the bill has a provision by which states can add some more benefits to it. The bill will eclipse the eminent domain criteria and introduce voting criteria in which 80% of the people should say yes only then land will be acquired. The Bill will replace the decade old Land Acquisition Act of 1894, which was enacted during British rule. However there is still some confusion whether the bill is boon or a bane. Many people say it is a boon, others say that it is just a move to increase the vote bank in the forthcoming elections. DISADVANTAGES OF THE BILL The Industry has serious concerns on some of the provisions of the Land Acquisition Bill. 1. The CII say that the cost of land...
Words: 611 - Pages: 3
... | Eminent Domain: Being Abused? July 4, 2004 [pic] |[pic]The City of Lakewood, Ohio was trying to use | | |eminent domain to force Jim and Joanne Saleet out of | | |their house in order to make way for expensive | | |condominiums. (AP) | | |Quote | | |[pic] | | |"For them to come in and tell me how much my | | |property's worth and for me to get out because they're| | |bringing in somebody else when I own the land is | | |unfounded to me.” | | |Shop owner Randy Bailey of Mesa, Ariz. | | |[pic] | | (CBS) Just about everyone knows that under a process called eminent domain, the government can (and does) seize private property for public use - to build a road, a school or a courthouse. But did you know the government can also seize your land for private use if they can prove that doing it will serve what's called "the public good"? Cities across the country have been using eminent domain to force people off their land, so private developers can build more expensive homes and offices that will pay more in property taxes than the buildings they're replacing. Under eminent domain, the government buys your property, paying you what's determined...
Words: 1946 - Pages: 8
...ownership right in all land. This right is known as eminent domain. Eminent domain is the power of the government to take private property from a citizen, even when that citizen refuses to voluntarily sell the property. In the United States, use of the eminent domain power is limited by a clause in the Fifth Amendment of the constitution, which states “nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation”. Long established purposes for the eminent domain power have been for the building of roads and public buildings, but it has become increasingly common for state or local governments to use the power for redevelopment projects. The city of New London, Connecticut established a private development corporation to redevelop a neighborhood near the shore of Long Island Sound with the goal of revitalizing the depressed area. A group of home owners, who lived on the targeted land, including Susette Kelo, decided to fight the issue rather than allow their homes to be destroyed. The Supreme Court case of Kelo v. City of New London established that eminent domain can be used for economic redevelopment projects. The U.S. Supreme Court's 5-4 ruling against the homeowners established that the Fifth Amendment's "public use" requirement is merely a "public purpose" requirement. The City of New London only needed to anticipate that the public will benefit in some way in order to justify a given use of eminent domain. New London anticipated that its redevelopment...
Words: 279 - Pages: 2
...could suffer a catastrophic flood. The engineers acknowledged that releasing the water in the recommended manner would cause some limited flooding. As a result, Mr. Appleseed’s fruit orchard was flooded and he lost his crop for that year and many trees on his property were permanently destroyed. I will present my argument that this temporary flooding was a taking as defined by our text and was done so under eminent domain. When a property is taken in this manner the owner is justly compensated for the loss according to the Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution. Keywords: eminent domain, taking, temporary flooding The practice of taking by eminent domain is deeply rooted in history long before it was written about in the Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution. The term itself was taken from the legal treatise De Jure Belli et Pacis, which was written by Hugo Grotius in 1625. Grotius, whose various texts are considered the foundations for international law, defined the power as follows: The property of subjects is under the eminent domain of the state, so that the state or he who acts for it may use and even alienate and destroy such property, not only in the case of extreme necessity, in which even private persons have a right over the property of others, but for ends of public utility, to which ends those who founded civil society must be supposed to have intended that private ends should give way. But it is to be added...
Words: 1221 - Pages: 5
...Eminent domain is described as the power of the government to take private property for public use. The “Taking’s Clause” is described in the United States Constitution as “..Nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation”. In the case of Kelo v. City of New London, Connecticut, the city of New London did not violate the Taking’s Clause. It is stated in the case that the city purchased the property of 15 of the 24 owners. They were taking the property to build a research facility, a hotel and also stores and private residences. These are all for public use. Of course I can see how the homeowners would think that it was more for private use, the city of New London would be making profits from the sale of residential property and also from the building of the businesses. However they are for public use. Since the government had to take the landowners to court the government had to file suit to seek “condemnation” of the land. This is just stating that they are offering a just price for the land and awarding the title to the government. This was the case a few years back in the county I live in. I live in Crawford County, Ohio and the State of Ohio was working to rebuild a public highway. While they were offering large amounts of money to the land owners, a few of them tried to stand strong and not sell. Unfortunately they were forced to sell and then received less than the other landowners. I understand why they didn’t want to...
Words: 393 - Pages: 2
...of the Naval Undersea Warfare Center, reactivated the New London Development Corporation (NLDC), a non-profit entity for land development in the city, specifically the Fort Trumbull area vacated by the U.S. Navy. Pfizer Pharmaceuticals, Inc. expressed an interest in locating a research and production facility in the area. The city advised the NLDC to move forward with its plans. Over 90 acres of property were purchased and acquired through eminent domain for the development of residential housing, recreational, marina, retail and industrial parcels. Of the 90 acres, thirty-two of the acres came from Fort Trumbull and the remainder from private owners. All private owners, except 15, sold to the city for the project. The remaining 15 held out not for money, but for emotional and sentimental reasons. The Supreme Court of Connecticut ruled in favor of the taking of the private property under eminent domain. The United States Supreme Court granted certiorari and grouped all 15 cases in one appeal. IV. LEGAL ISSUES: Is the use of eminent domain to acquire property by the government and redirect for private use repugnant to the Fifth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution which reads “…nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation”? Is the taking of property from A and giving it to B for economic development a “public use” under the Fifth Amendment? V. COURT DECISION: In a 5 to 4 decision, the Supreme Court upheld the decision of the Connecticut Supreme...
Words: 1569 - Pages: 7
...[Type the company name] | Unit 4: Case Study | You be the Judge: Carvin v. Arkansas Power and Light | | | 5/29/2012 | | Easement is when one person is given the right to enter land belonging to another and make a limited use of it, without taking anything away (Beatty & Samuelson, 2010). There are two ways easements can be created by property managers and one is by a grant while the other one is by a reservation. By Arkansas Power and Light obtaining “flood easements” on the property adjoining the lakes it permitted them to clear of trees, brush, and other obstructions and to submerge by water certain acreage. Judging the fact that Arkansas Power and Light obtained the flooding easements between 1923 and 1947 and this documentation was properly recorded on file when the new landowners purchased the lakeside property, I definitely do believe that those easements relieve them from liability for flooding. These are types of interests that never involve possession. The reservation and grant occurred when Arkansas Power and Light sold the lakeside property but kept some right to enter the property. The seller of a home must disclose facts that a buyer does not know and cannot readily observe if they materially affect the property’s value (Beatty & Samuelson, 2010). When Arkansas Power and Light sold the property to the current landowners they made sure they were informed and aware of the documents recorded of the easement. The main purpose...
Words: 382 - Pages: 2
...LAND ACQUISITION IN INDIA A REPORT SUBMITTED FOR THE COURSE “THE INDIAN ECONOMY” SUBMITTED BY: BISWAPRIYA SAHA DEEPSHIKHA GOVLI HIMANI KABRA ITISHREE DASH MRITYUNJAY BASAK PGP/17/076 PGP/17/077 PGP/17/080 PGP/17/083 PGP/17/094 Page 2 of 13 Table of Content ACKNOWLEDGEMENT ............................................................................................................................ 3 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY .......................................................................................................................... 4 INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................................................................ 5 BENEFITS OF LAND ACQUISITION ....................................................................................................... 6 NEGATIVE IMPACT ON FARMERS ........................................................................................................ 6 NEGATIVE IMPACT ON TRIBALS .......................................................................................................... 6 NEGATIVE IMPACT ON SOCIETY.......................................................................................................... 6 NEGATIVE IMPACT ON ENVIRONMENT ............................................................................................. 6 CRITICISM OF LAND ACQUISITION POLICY ...................................................................................... 7 LAND...
Words: 3341 - Pages: 14
...This policy behind this case is based on two principles: (1) property rights do not mean anything until we make them mean something (Metropolitan Opera), and (2) the right to property is essentially the right to exclude others. Whenever property rights are discussed, the central inquiry is one of the relationship between people with respect to property. In examining the case at bar, the court was confronted with that issue: the relationship between Wiggins (“the libellants”) and Beavers and Burchard (“the claimants”) with respect to the salvage marble. The case is premised on an understanding that “to whom the marble belongs” means little until these two parties seek the court to declare the right. Each party is then seeking to exclude the other from using it. The claimants want to exclude others from using the marble based on a letter government granting them title, while the libellants want to exclude the claimants based on the libellants exercising control, dominion, and occupancy over the marble itself. The problem is one of comparative ownership. The Court determined the property to be abandoned since 60 years had passed since any individual had possessed meaningful title to the property. The claimants seek to base their title on the government granting it to them in a letter. The government having title in the first place is premised on the statutory condition where such abandoned property, like the shipwreck, escheats to the state since abandoned property has no relationship...
Words: 647 - Pages: 3
...In this case, the parties asked the court to focus on the legitimacy of a local government’s exercise of its power of eminent domain. Eminent domain is a power of the government to take land for public use. Under an agreement with the town of Monroe, North Carolina, the town of Midland began to acquire the rights of way to local land for the installation of a natural gas pipeline. Under the agreement, Midland could—if it chose—tap the line at a discounted price. Midland used its eminent domain authority to condemn the property. Fifteen property owners challenged the action in a North Carolina state court. The court ruled in Midland’s favor. The owners appealed, claiming that Midland's condemnation was not for public use or benefit, because the town had no concrete plan to tap the line. Therefore, the main issue was...
Words: 554 - Pages: 3
...Question 12 Page 170 On July 5, 1884, four sailors were cast away from their ship in a storm 1,600 miles from the Cape of Good Hope. Their lifeboat contained neither water nor much food. On the 20th day of their ordeal, Dudley and Stevens, without the assistance or agreement of Brooks, cut the throat of the fourth sailor, a 17- or 18-year-old boy. They had not eaten since day 12. Water had been available only occasionally. At the time of the death, the men were probably about 1,000 miles from land. Prior to his death, the boy was lying helplessly in the bottom of the boat. The three surviving sailors ate the boy’s remains for four days, at which point they were rescued by a passing boat. They were in a seriously weakened condition. a. Were Dudley and Stevens guilty of murder? Explain. b. Should Brooks have been charged with a crime for eating the boy’s flesh? Explain. See The Queen v. Dudley and Stephens, 14 Queen’s Bench Division 273 (1884). a. “The facts found on the special verdict shew that the prisoners were not guilty of murder, at the time when they killed Parker but killed him under the pressure of necessity. Necessity will excuse an act which would otherwise be a crime.”(justiceharvard) After reading this I believe that they did what they had to do in order to survive. They said the boy was weak and wouldn’t have made it anyway. They will have to live with the decision they made but they got to live because of it. b. No, he used it as a means to survive...
Words: 665 - Pages: 3
...it would move to Palmdale if it could not expand. Lancaster tried to buy 99 Cents' lease, but the company refused. Lancaster then used its power to emenent domain to condemn the 99 Cents property for the purpose of making city contrasted 99 Cents property for the purpose of making it available to Costco. the city noted that blight might follow if Costco left, and the city contrasted 99Cents' under $40,000 per year in sales taxes generated with costco's more then $400,000. 99 Cents then sued the city seeking an order blocking the effort to take the 99 Cents property Eminent domain allows states the right to take over private property, at fair market value, for public use. Due the declining economy of Lancaster, I would rule in favor of the state to take over 99 Cent Only Stores Property thereby allowing Costco to move in. The additional sales tax generated by allowing Costco to take over the property of 99 Cent Only Store would allow Lancaster to continue independently as a productive county. The present negative of eminent domain, in this case, wieghs far less than the positive outcome of ruling in favor of Costco. B. Would the result be any differnet today after the Supreme Court's 2005 decision in the New London, connecticut case? Explain According the to Supreme Courts ruling, the city can file for eminent domain even if the economy is not blighted. The result would be the same today; however, prior to ruling in favor of the state, I would require Costco's development...
Words: 343 - Pages: 2
