Eminent Domain Report

The demise of redevelopment world tour continues!  Gale's been speaking away up north at the IRWA, the Appraisal Institute, and various other organizations, and Rick and I have been trying to do our part to keep up down here in Southern California.  So, here we go again -- this time down in San Diego, and we hope you'll join us.  We promise to use some new materials and give some updates on the status of pending clean-up legislation and how the redevelopment agency winding up process is playing out in California. 

The details:  we'll be speaking to the San Diego Chapter of the International ...

A few months ago, I had a property owner call me and explain he had recently sold his property to a utility company under threat of eminent domain.  He took the sale proceeds and invested the money in a comparable replacement property.  When he applied to transfer his Proposition 13 base year value to the replacement property, the County assessor denied his request.  The assessor explained that because the sale under threat of eminent domain was not to a public entity, it did not fall within the exception that allows for a transfer of the base year value.

I was a bit surprised by the assessor's ...

By now, loyal followers of this blog are well versed in the whys and wherefores of redevelopment's demise.  You know all about the 30+ year struggle between the state and cities over allocation of property tax revenues.  The impact on the State's budget caused by Proposition 98, the creation of ERAFs and Propositions 1A and 22 in the new millennium are by now old hat.  You can recount by heart the story of the rise and fall of the alternative voluntary redevelopment program that was ABx1 27 and the Supreme Court’s decision in California Redevelopment Assn v. Matosantos.

But what does all of ...

 Here's some news making headlines this week in the eminent domain community:

• The Base Year Transfer Rule Under Threat of Eminent Domain:  A new published California Court of Appeal decision -- Duea v. County of San Diego -- came out yesterday addressing whether a property owner can transfer their base year value to a replacement property when the owner sells its property to a private developer under threat of eminent domain.  The Court held that the owner had some procedural missteps which doomed the case, but also went on to hold that this type of transfer does not qualify for a base year ...

Last year I saw Win Win, a movie starring Paul Giamatti, Amy Ryan and Jeffrey Tambor.  The movie, besides receiving critical acclaim, had two hooks for me.  One, the protagonist in the movie is an attorney.  I am a sucker for almost any lawyer movie.  (I still say My Cousin Vinny is one of the best 50 movies of the past 50 years.)  And two, the movie included wrestling.  No, not the Hulk Hogan and Macho Man Randy Savage stuff.  I mean the real folkstyle wrestling that occurs every 4 years at the Olympics and at the collegiate level. 

My dad was a college wrestler, which is probably why ...

In case you didn't have a chance to attend the event my partner, Gale Connor, spoke at earlier today, there's still time to learn about appraising in a litigation context. 

On Wednesday, March 21, I'll be speaking with three of my colleagues, Brad Kuhn, David Graeler, and Bernadette Duran-Brown at a half-day event sponsored by the American Society of Appraisers.  We're presenting Everything You Need to Know About Appraisals for Litigation at Scott's Restaurant and Bar in Costa Mesa.  The seminar runs from 2:00 to 5:00, with a dinner and networking event to follow. 

There may still be some ...

How is an eminent domain appraisal different from other forms of appraisals?  What is the difference between a deposit appraisal and an exchange appraisal and why do condemners usually hire separate appraisers for each?  If I am an appraiser, how do I develop a practice as an expert witness?

These and other questions will be answered in a panel discussion at the Northern California Chapter of the Appraisal Institute's "2012 Annual Spring Conference" to be held at the Doubletree Hotel, in Modesto, CA., on March 19, 2012.  I, along with Norm Hulberg of Hulberg & Associates and Larry ...

California provides a special procedural remedy whenever a lawsuit implicates a defendant's First Amendment right to petition or free speech.  The procedure is commonly referred to as the "anti-SLAPP."  (SLAPP is an acronym for Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation.)  Under this procedure, the trial court evaluates the merits of the lawsuit using a summary judgment like process, often at an early stage of the litigation.  In a recent unpublished decision, the California Court  of Appeal affirmed the propriety of applying this procedure when a plaintiff is ...

Shortly before an eminent domain trial, a government agency and a property owner exchange a statutory final offer and final demand. The statute’s sole purpose is to encourage settlement before trial, providing a carrot (to the property owner) and a stick (to the condemning agency). 

If the matter fails to settle before trial, the owner can seek an award of litigation expenses (i.e., attorneys’ fees and expert costs) if the court ultimately determines that, in light of the outcome, the agency’s final offer was unreasonable and the owner’s final demand was reasonable. (See ...

Over the past few years, we've seen California courts go in several different directions when it comes to admitting opinions on the value of a business' loss of goodwill in the context of an eminent domain action.  As a result, eminent domain attorneys, public agencies, and appraisers have been left shooting at somewhat of a moving target as to whether courts will be flexible on the admission of unique or unconventional goodwill opinions.  This week, the California Court of Appeal issued an unpublished decision, City of South Gate v. S&M Auto Sales, which, although not ...