Footprints in the Shifting Sands of the Isle of Palms: A Practical Analysis of Regulatory Takings Cases
51 Pages Posted: 23 Feb 2009
Date Written: 1992
Abstract
The U.S. Supreme Court granted certiorari during its 1991 term to review three decisions that riveted the attention of the land use bar. Practitioners hoped that decisions in these cases would yield reliable definitions as to when a public regulation constitutes a taking of private property compensable under the Fifth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. The stakes were high as evidenced by more than fifty amicus curiae briefs filed in the most closely watched of the three cases: Lucas v. South Carolina Coastal Council. Groups as diverse as the National Cattlemen's Association, the Property Rights Preservation Association, and the Pacific Legal Foundation urged the Court to decide for the property owner. Entities ranging from the Municipal Art Society of New York, the Sierra Club, and the American Planning Association argued in favor of the State of South Carolina.
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