Marzulla Law Blog
Court Agrees with Marzulla Law: Forest Service’s Appraisal Process Flawed
In 2015 Hahnenkamm, LLC agreed to sell a 39.25-acre tract of land overlooking Lake Tahoe in Nevada to the U.S. Forest Service for $5.03 million. Soon after the sale, Hahnenkamm began to suspect that the sale price, which was supposed to be based on an independent,...
How to Prove You Have a Compensable Property Right
There are two elements to the taking test employed by the U.S. Court of Federal Claims: (1) whether the plaintiff has a cognizable Fifth Amendment property interest and (2) whether that property interest has been taken. The Court recently examined the first prong...
How to Prove That Your Fees and Litigation Costs Are Reasonable
At some point, every lawsuit ends. If the plaintiff prevails in a taking case, under the Uniform Relocation Assistance and Real Property Act, plaintiffs can recover “reasonable attorney, appraisal, and engineering fees, actually incurred because of such proceeding.”...
When Should You File a Class Certification Motion?
Class actions are often considered a favored way of improving judicial economy and efficiency where there are many plaintiffs with similar claims arising out of a single event. But those benefits can be offset by failing to move to certify the class early enough. The...
The Doctrine of Justifiable Uncertainty and Sovereign Immunity
What role do a property owner’s subjective expectations play in determining whether a taking claim has accrued in a gradual taking? Plaintiffs in a taking case brought by landowners in Louisiana, Biloxi Marsh Lands Corporation et. al, recently asked that the Court of...
No “Patch of Heaven” for This Flooded Plaintiff
Whether the flooding of private land results in a judgment of Fifth Amendment taking in the United States Court of Federal Claims depends on what evidence the Plaintiff offers to prove that the Government caused the flooding. The taking case brought by Ministerio Roca...
A Case of Mistaken Identity in a Rails-to-Trails Case
William C. Hardy and Bertie Ann Hardy own eleven of 156 parcels included in a request to abandon a rail line in Newton County, Georgia submitted by the Central of Georgia Railroad to the Surface Transportation Board. Unfortunately, the Railroad had mistakenly...
Taking Claim Dismissed for Property Owner’s Misconduct
Paul and Ann Nix own real property next to a railroad line in Marion and Hamilton Counties, Indiana. Following the conversion of the railroad line into a recreational trail under the National Trail Systems Act, they brought a rails-to-trails taking suit against the...
Bankruptcy Trustee Allowed to Sue State for a Taking in Bankruptcy Proceeding
Venoco, LLC operated a drilling rig off the coast of Santa Barbara, California. Following a pipeline rupture in 2015, Venoco could not get its oil and gas to the market, and ultimately was forced to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2017. At first, the California...
Federal Circuit Rejects Taking Claim on Nature of Property Right— Not Police Power Theory
The Federal Circuit recently issued a decision in a taking case involving bump-stock-devices. This decision warrants close attention because in it the Federal Circuit did not adopt the police power argument advanced by the Government and used by the trial court to...
Your Guide on How to Protect Your Rights in Federal Takings and Inverse Condemnation Actions
Are you facing a taking from the government? Need to understand what a taking is and what you can do about it? Read our Takings Law Guide.