Eminent Domain: Identifying Issues in Damages for the General Practitioner

The government has the power to take private property for public use, but the owner must be fully compensated. There are three types of compensation: the value of the property being taken, damages when only part of the property is taken, and relocation expenses for mobile home owners. The government can take either a partial or full interest in the property. When only part of the property is taken, the owner may be entitled to additional compensation for the impact on the remaining property. When the government takes a part of your property, you can claim for damages. There are three categories of damages, but the second category, which includes severance and business damages, is a bit more complicated. Severance damages are awarded when a part of your property is taken, and it causes a decrease in the value of the rest of your property. Business damages are only available if there has been a partial taking of your property and it has damaged or destroyed an established business you own. These damages are not the same, and there are differences in how they are awarded. In the Ness Trailer Park trial, the Department of Transportation contested whether the owner should get compensation for their business being affected by the land taken. The issue was whether the owner could get both money for the land taken and money for the business being hurt. The court said the owner could get both, and that business damages are meant to help businesses that are hurt when the government takes land. But the law says the business has to have been there for at least five years to get business damages. And there are limits on how much money the owner can get for both the land and the business being hurt. The next sections talk about the limits on how much money you can get for severance damages and business damages. It’s important to know these limits when you’re getting ready to negotiate or go to trial. This article doesn’t cover all the limits, but it’s still important to understand them. When the government takes part of a property for public use through eminent domain, the owner of the property may be entitled to compensation for the value of the land taken, as well as for any damages to the remaining property and the business that might result from the taking. These damages can include severance damages (the decrease in value of the remaining property) and business damages (losses suffered by a business as a result of the taking). However, a property owner cannot receive a double recovery for the same damages. It is important for property owners and their lawyers to understand what damages they can claim and how to prove them in a condemnation case. The Tampa-Hillsborough County Expressway Authority sued K. E. Morris Alignment Serv., Inc. for something, and the court cited a section of the Florida Constitution and a Florida Statute in making its decision. This law says that if the government takes part of your property for things like roads, they have to pay you for any damage to the rest of your property and for any established business that gets hurt. If the taking of the property requires you to move your mobile home, they have to pay for that too. The government has to specify exactly what they’re taking before they can take it. This has been mentioned in different court cases too. This is a compilation of legal cases in Florida about property rights and compensation for businesses affected by government actions. The courts have ruled that businesses are entitled to compensation for damages caused by government actions, and that this compensation is called “severance damages.” The courts have also ruled that tenants, not just property owners, are entitled to this type of compensation. This article was written by a lawyer named Carlos A. Kelly. He works at a law firm in Ft. Myers and his job involves handling legal disputes and property issues. The article was reviewed by other lawyers before it was published. It was submitted by the Real Property, Probate and Trust Law Section. The main goal of this article is to teach lawyers about their responsibilities and how to better serve the public.

Source: https://www.floridabar.org/the-florida-bar-journal/eminent-domain-identifying-issues-in-damages-for-the-general-practitioner/