New York Eminent Domain

Brody v. Village of Port Chester
New York Property Owners File Federal Lawsuit To Stop Abuse of Eminent Domain

	IJ client Bill Brody.

The abuse of eminent domain—where government takes private property against the owner’s will—is a nationwide problem. But New York property owners face a particularly outrageous system not only fraught with abuse, but set up to prevent property owners from challenging such abuse under state procedures. On Wednesday, October 4, 2000, the Washington, D.C.-based Institute for Justice filed a federal lawsuit to change that. The suit was filed in Manhattan in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.

"New York’s eminent domain law defies both common sense and the Constitution," said Dana Berliner, a senior attorney for the Institute for Justice, which is representing the property owners for free. "In New York, there are only 30 days when you can object to the government taking your property to give it to another private party. Those 30 days come and go without any individual notice to the owner, a proper hearing, or notice of the right to appeal, all of which are required by the Constitution. Those who face the loss of a home, business or church receive less due process than a kid being suspended from school."

Essential Background		Images
Backgrounder: Hopelessly Rigged: New Yorkers Try to Save Their Property		Client Photo
Latest Release: Federal Court Vindicates Brody:Constitution Requires Real Notice of Eminent Domain (July 19, 2007)		Client Video - none available
		Legal Briefs and Decisions
Latest Release: His Fight Changed New York’s Eminent Domain Law; Monday’s Trial Will Decide If Bill Brody Finally Gets Justice (March 16, 2007)		Decision: Southern District of New York (July 18, 2007)
		Decision: Second Circuit Ruling (December 5, 2005)
Launch Release: New York Property Owners File Federal Lawsuit To Stop Abuse of Eminent Domain (October 4, 2000)
Case Timeline
Filed Lawsuit:		October 4, 2000
Court Filed:		U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York
Decision(s):		January 4, 2005: U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York upholds New York’s Eminent Domain Procedure Law
		DATE: Minnichs have dismissed their appeal; Gargano dismissed attorneys’ fees appeal
		September 24, 2003:  U.S. 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals allows case to continue, dismissing City’s procedural claims and sending case back to district court for a decision on the merits
		October 19, 2001:  IJ appeals decision against property owners
		September 20, 2001:  Summary judgment granted for defendants
		August 2001:  U.S. 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals vacates injunction
		January 2001:  Trial court grants preliminary injunction motion for Brody
Current Court:		Southern District of New York
Status:		Brody and the Institute for Justice began trial on March 19th
Next Key Date:		To Be Determined
Additional Releases		Maps, Charts and Facts
Latest Release: 2nd Circuit Victory Against N.Y. Eminent Domain Abuse (December 5, 2005)		Chart: "Gone in a NY Minute" How the Government takes PRIVATE PROPERTY right out from under the noses of New York property owners
Release: New York Makes ED Law More Fair; State Now Requires Property Owners Be Notified of Possible Takings and Right to Object (September 17, 2004)		MAP: State Supreme Court Rulings On Eminent Domain for Private Development
Release: Small Business Owner Beats City Hall In Eminent Domain Abuse Battle (September 24, 2003)		IJ’s first-ever nationwide census of eminent domain abuse:  Public Power, Private Gain
Release: New York Property Owners Lose On Legal Technicality, Appeal May Be Forthcoming (September 21, 2001)
Release: Court Dissolves Injunction in Eminent Domain Case, Property Owner Fights On (August 9, 2001)		Op-eds, News Articles and Links
		Article: In It For the Long Haul: Bill Brody’s Seven-Year Struggle Against Eminent Domain, Liberty & Law (April 2007)
Release: Property Owners Score First-Round Victory In Case Against New York's Abuse of Eminent Domain (January 18, 2001)		Article: Overcoming New York's Stacked Deck: Victory and Vindication for Property Owner, Liberty & Law (February 2006)
Release: Judge Grants Temporary Restraining Order Against Government (October 4, 2000)		Article: 7 Days and 60 Minutes; Institute Earns Property Rights Triumphs In Rapid Succession (December 2003)
Media Advisory: Media Conference: Federal Lawsuit Seeks To Stop Widespread Abuse of Eminent Domain (October 4, 2000)		Article: Breaking Down the Walls of Economic Protectionism (December 2003)
		Article: Wine Litigation is Supreme Court Bound (October 2003)
		Article: Brody Fights On (September 25, 2003)
		Article: How the eminent domain bulldozer created a private-property backlash (July 2, 2000)
		Article: New York State’s ‘Legal’ Land Grabs (July 2, 2000)