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For virtually every federal constitutional right where you believe you have a claim, you can file a lawsuit in federal court. But under a 1985 ruling, any claim that your property was taken without just compensation required property owners to file their lawsuit at the state level. To make matters worse, a 2005 case held that if the state court decided again a property owner, the federal court could not overturn that decision. The two cases together meant that no federal court could decide whether the takings clause had been violated.

The Supreme Court recently corrected this in an important property rights case -Knick v. Township of Scott. This 2019 ruling restored the right of property owners to go directly to federal court once they have experienced the unconstitutional taking of their property. You must exhaust your administrative remedies first, but that has always been the case.

We take pride that we work small eminent domain/condemnation cases just as hard and carefully as we do large cases. The field of eminent domain/condemnation involves the Constitutional Right which requires that the owner be “fully compensated” for any property taken from them. Because this is a constitutional right, we take all cases without regard to the potential compensation at issue. In our view, it is a matter of constitutional right and not a matter of amount. Every owner deserves to be fully compensated. That is what we do in all cases small, medium or large.

The government has the power to take your property for a public purpose, but that power is limited by the requirement that it must pay full compensation.  Full compensation includes not only the value of the part of your property that is taken, but also any reduction in value to your remaining property caused by the taking.  It also includes your attorney’s fees and expert costs.

There can be a lot of disagreement about the value of your property and impacts to your remainder.  Our favorite part of practicing law is making sure our clients are treated fairly, and that they receive the “full compensation” they deserve.

The toll roads are coming, likely through a neighborhood near you. The Florida Department of Transportation (“FDOT”) and the M-Cores task force are working to advance plans pertaining to the Suncoast Connector, the Northern Turnpike Connector, and the Southwest-Central Florida Connector. Routes for these projects could be known as early as January 2020.

The Suncoast Connector study corridor covers the eastern portion of the panhandle, from Citrus County to Jefferson County. The Northern Turnpike Connector would extend from the northern terminus of Florida’s Turnpike to the Suncoast Parkway. And the Southwest-Central Florida Connector would then extend from Polk County to Collier County. Combined, the study areas include approximately 20,000 square miles, 77 cities and towns, and 21 Florida counties, approximately one third of all counties.

M-Cores is short for Multi-Use Corridors of Regional Economic Significance. According to FDOT, the M-Cores program is “intended to revitalize rural communities, encourage job creation and provide regional connectivity while leveraging technology, enhancing the quality of life and public safety, and protecting the environment and natural resources.”

If the M-Cores program succeeds with its objectives, Florida will have changed significantly. To the delight of some and the chagrin of others, major chunks of Florida will be much more accessible.

Of course, roads cannot be built without land. Many property owners will become subject to eminent domain if these roads are to be built. Eminent domain is the government’s power to take private property for public use. If the government has reasonable necessity and a public purpose for the taking, it will generally succeed in taking the property, even over the owner’s objection. Such an owner would then be due full compensation for the taking.

Pursuant to Florida law, attorneys and experts that work on behalf of property owners are paid for by the condemning authorities, which for these roads would be FDOT. Attorney compensation is typically based on how well they do for the owners.

While the government plows forward with ambitious infrastructure projects, owners don’t have to fend for themselves as they battle the state or if they just want someone on their side to walk them through the process and honestly let them know what to expect. Indeed, eminent domain attorneys are often happy to use their talent and resources even years ahead of a potential taking in order to keep owners up to date and monitor projects, such as those being considered by FDOT’s M-Cores task force. You may consider the attorney’s law firm your own task force; and it shouldn’t cost you a penny.