Federal Circuit Holds That Houston-Flooded Homeowners Have Compensable Property Rights
Following the devastating flooding of hundreds of privately owned properties in an area on the western edge of Houston, Buffalo Bayou, caused by flood control actions of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in response to Hurricane/Tropical Storm Harvey, the flooded...
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...
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...
Government Inaction Can’t Give Rise to a Taking, Federal Circuit Holds
On August 30, 2019, Bench Creek Ranch, LLC, owned by Paul Plouviez, sued the United States in the U.S. Court of Federal Claims, seeking over $800,000 in just compensation for the taking of the Ranch’s water rights in federal land covered by Bench Creek’s grazing...
Constructive Notice of Claim Enough to Start the Statute of Limitations Running
One thing that any litigant in the U.S. Court of Federal Claims should always remember is that, unlike other courts including federal district courts, in this Court the statute of limitations is jurisdictional and can be raised any time in the litigation, even on...
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.