California Eminent Domain Frequently Asked Questions

It is the power of a public agency to acquire private property for a public use, provided the owner receives just compensation. In California the proceedings run under Title 7 of the Code of Civil Procedure, beginning at section 1230.010.

Yes, where the acquisition serves a public use and just compensation is paid. The agency must adopt a resolution of necessity at a public hearing before it may file a case.

Condemnation is the legal proceeding through which the power of eminent domain is exercised. The terms are often used interchangeably.

Approved by California voters in June 2008, it limits the taking of an owner occupied residence for conveyance to a private party. It does not restrict acquisitions for traditional public projects.

It varies. Precondemnation study and appraisal can run for months or years. Once an offer is made, negotiation commonly runs several months. Where a case is filed and tried, a resolution one to two years later is not unusual.

A resolution adopted at a public hearing making the findings that allow an agency to file. Code of Civil Procedure section 1245.235 requires at least fifteen days written notice and gives owners the right to appear and be heard.

After filing and depositing probable compensation, the agency may move for an order for possession before judgment under section 1255.410. Possession can pass well before the amount is decided.

An amount the agency deposits with the court under sections 1255.010 to 1255.080. An owner can usually withdraw it without giving up the right to argue for more, though withdrawal has consequences worth understanding first.

By fair market value: the price a willing buyer and a willing seller would agree on, neither under compulsion, both fully informed, for the highest and best use the property could lawfully be put to.

Compensation covers the value of the part taken plus damages to the remainder, less any benefit the project confers on the remainder. Section 1263.410 governs the remainder analysis.

Yes, where the elements of Code of Civil Procedure section 1263.510 are met. California is one of the few states that allows this claim.

Section 1263.025 provides for reimbursement of an independent appraisal up to a statutory cap, currently 5,000 dollars. Confirm the current figure before commissioning one.

No. The California Relocation Assistance Act, Government Code sections 7260 to 7277, provides separate payments and services to displaced owners and tenants.

No. Government Code sections 7267.1 and 7267.2 require the agency to offer its full appraised value in writing, with a written summary of the basis, before negotiations begin. That offer opens the negotiation.

You may appear at the resolution of necessity hearing and address the findings, including whether the project is planned in the manner most compatible with the least private injury.

Sometimes. Section 1250.410 allows litigation expenses where the agency final offer was unreasonable and the owner final demand reasonable in light of the verdict.

Not in every case. Complex partial takings, business goodwill claims and contested valuations are where representation most often changes the outcome.

A claim brought by a property owner when a public improvement damages or takes property without a formal condemnation proceeding.

In eminent domain the agency starts the case. In inverse condemnation the owner does, because the agency has not filed.

Claims against a public entity are subject to the six month presentation deadline in Government Code section 911.2. Deadlines in this area are unforgiving, so check them early.

California courts have applied inverse condemnation to investor owned utilities on a strict liability basis, following Barham v Southern California Edison (1999) 74 Cal.App.4th 744. This is the basis of many wildfire claims.