Going up against the full and awesome power of the government can often seem as futile as tilting at windmills. When it comes to issues of eminent domain, the government can and will seize homeowners’ property to facilitate projects or maintain existing infrastructure.
But that doesn’t mean that someone from a government agency can just show up and take your property for their own purposes. There is a process to actions of eminent domain, and property owners do have recourse in such matters. Below is some important information to help you understand what is at stake when eminent domain is invoked.
Homeowners must be properly notified
Giving property owners sufficient time to seek legal redress and formally object to the seizure. Notification typically involves serving the property owner with a notice of intent to seize the property. It usually lists the legal description of the property to be seized under eminent domain, what they propose to do with it post-seizure and a fairly valued purchase price for the property they wish to seize.
Mediation precedes litigation
Most people in this position resist the first low-ball offer to buy them out. That’s understandable and negotiation is available to reach the right number that will ease the pain of the property seizure. Should negotiations fail, the next likely scenario would be to engage in the formal process of mediation to get the parties to agree on a purchase price.
Will litigation stop the seizure?
Property owners could win temporary stays (called injunctions) on the seizures, but those may not be sufficient to stop the seizures. Once the eminent domain takes effect, the property owners’ only recourse is a larger financial settlement for the seizure of their land.