...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
...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
...When Should Eminent Domain be Used? When should a city or state use their eminent domain powers? Over the past few years there have been a couple of cases that raised the questions of when eminent domain should be used. One of the most controversial cases in the history of the United States was the Kelo v New London Supreme Court ruling. In order to generate tax revenue, add jobs, and to prevent bankruptcy, the government’s right to initiate eminent domain for public good is a necessary evil. Eminent domain in definition is “the right or power of public purposes without the owner’s consent on payment of just compensation” (“Eminent Domain History”). Eminent domain has been a part of the United States ever since the constitution was created. Eminent domain is not stated in the constitution. However, it is implied at the end if the Fifth Amendment, " [no person should] be deprived of life, liberty, or property be taken for public use, without just compensation" (U.S. Constitution). Eminent domain is not new to the United States. The first eminent domain case was “in 1879 the Supreme Court, in the case of Boom Co. v. Patterson, (98 U.S. 403) said that eminent domain appertains to every independent government. It requires no constitutional recognition; it is an attribute of sovereignty" (“Draw the Line”). After World War II, eminent domain was used on a regular basis. "In 1954, the Supreme Court ruled in Berman v Parker that private projects meet the definition if...
Words: 1214 - Pages: 5
...Ordinary People are allowed to be robbed from their private property by the government! On May 24, the City Council of Dallas discussed item #11 on its agenda. Item #11 involves a case of eminent domain in which the council wants to low-ball an individual landowner out of his property to construct a ‘much needed’ waterline. For years, the owner, Monty Bennett, a wealthy businessman who founded the Ashford Hospitality Trust, has sued the council. He urges the Council to construct said pipeline around his property instead of right through it. Bennett’s family purchased the land in 1955. In order to protect his land, Bennett has constructed a cemetery on his property for under Texas Law 711.035 cemeteries are exempt from "taxation, seizure by creditors and eminent domain."...
Words: 636 - 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
...Julia Lemon's versus Eminent Domain Devaira Welch Social Studies Mrs. Chidester March11, 2015 Abstract What would you do and how would you feel if someone stole your property and home. In most cases this would be unlawful theft. But the government and big companies uses lawful theft under the eminent domain law. Eminent Domain is a legal way for the government and big companies to steal your property and home. How would you feel if someone stole your property and home? In most cases this would be unlawful theft. But the government uses lawful theft to do just that. Eminent domain also known as the right for the government to take your property and home for the public good, it is the power of the state to snatch a person’s land for public...
Words: 760 - Pages: 4
...Professor Aragon Real Estate Law – FIR 4310 23 April 2015 Essay Assignment A State’s Right of Taking Under Eminent Domain or Police Powers Johnny Appleseed’s 356 acre fruit orchard was flooded and, as a result, he lost his crop for that year in addition to fruit trees that were damaged beyond repair. The government released water from a damaged dam to prevent it from catastrophically flooding a valley below. The question is was this a taking under the state’s right of eminent domain, therefore requiring compensation, or a taking under the state’s police powers, therefore no compensation is required. In my opinion, the damage to Johnny’s fruit orchard is a taking under the state’s police powers; therefore no compensation is required. A “taking” defines as “to acquire possession or control of something” (Herman). However, the practice of eminent domain do not provide a clear context of taking, thus American courts put it into three categories: per se takings, regulatory takings, and exactions. Johnny’s case could be under the regulatory takings category. “Regulatory takings demand a fact-intensive, multi-factored inquiry into whether the governmental action amounts to an unreasonable interference with one’s private land rights, as to trigger the takings clause” (Herman). But first, I want to define what police powers and eminent domain are. According to Encyclopedia Britannica, police power is “in U.S. constitutional law, the permissible scope of federal...
Words: 768 - Pages: 4
...Eminent Domain Under the Fifth Amendment of United States Constitution, the government is provided the power to enforce eminent domain and take private property for public use. This provision allows this provision as long as adequate compensation is being made for the property. Article 1, Section Seventeen under the Texas Constitution prohibits the taking, damaging or destruction of property for public use without adequate compensation. Generally, there are four elements of eminent domain but ultimately the actor must be the state or a private party authorized by the state to condemn the property. The power to condemn must be conferred by the legislature and only upon a two-thirds vote of both houses will it be granted. The primary private parties that are empowered to perform eminent domain are gas or electric corporations, groundwater conservation districts and common carrier pipelines. Once the property has been identified, the Condemner must provide plans for the public project and indicate the exact location of the private land needed for the project. Once this information is acquired, a declaration must be made that certain property rights must be obtained to complete the project and that all property owners involved must be notified. Element one consists of the property taken must be for public use and in 2009, voters approved a constitutional amendment further clarifying public use. To understand the purpose of public use, it is necessary to note it is statutorily...
Words: 965 - Pages: 4
...Counter Offer to Summary/Offer to Purchase Real Property Due to acquisition of right of way and damages Silver Bullet, Inc. William “Bill” I. Young 1116 Shoal Creek Road | Burnsville | NC 28714 Property Location: 4075 Hwy 19E | Burnsville T:828.208.0006 1|P a g e COUNTER OFFER TO SUMMARY/OFFER TO PURCHASE REAL PROPERTY Submitted to the State of North Carolina Department of Transportation OVERVIEW Retail gasoline businesses, such this gas station and convenience store, are single-purpose economic enterprises. Because of their specialty of design, they cannot be readily converted to other types of businesses without a significant loss in value. Gas station convenience stores are special-built properties designed to make money in only one way, and they are not easily adapted to other uses. These businesses derive a significant part of their gross sales, about 50 percent, from the sale of motor fuels (National Association of Convenience Stores, 2006). The Silver Bullet recorded at one time 77% of gross sales from the sale of gasoline. This business also sold propane and kerosene (2000 UST). This site has (1) 8,000, (2) 6,000, and (1) 2000 gallon warranted (40 yrs) USTs for fuel (installed by Southern Tank & Pump, NC). stations, and canopies, which are situated on-site but separate from the building. Design features create and significantly influence the property value. For example, the fuel service is so specially-designed that if it becomes no longer profitable...
Words: 7890 - Pages: 32
...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
...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
... | 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
...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
...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
