- Item# ED2
- ISBN: 0-923956-85-9
- Copyright (c) 2002
- Paperback
- Price: $50.00
Eminent Domain
A Step-by-Step Guide to the Acquisition of Real Property
By
A step-by-step guide through the process California public agencies must follow to acquire private property for public purposes through eminent domain. Includes case law, legal references, tips, a table of authorities, sample letters and forms, a glossary, and an index.
| ABOUT EMINENT DOMAIN (2002 EDITION) |
In addition to the information provided below you may also: See the
Front and Back Cover of the Book (Acrobat) |
| CHAPTERS
AT A GLANCE |
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ABOUT THE BOOK
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| For public sector attorneys, land acquisition
staff and appraisers, and others who need to know how the eminent domain
process works.
Eminent Domain is a thorough and precise step-by-step guide through the process California public agencies are required by law to follow in order to acquire private property for public purposes. This new 2002 edition includes updated recommendations and practice suggestions, the latest legal references, statutory and procedural requirements, and Rules of Court, along with all relevant California case law, a table of authorities, appendices with sample letters and forms, a glossary, and an index. The following topics are covered:
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
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Richard G. Rypinski is with the firm of McDonough, Holland & Allen with
offices in Sacramento and Oakland. He specializes in eminent domain and
inverse condemnation including trial and appellate practice.
Before entering private practice in 1987, Mr. Rypinski served as Chief Counsel, California Department of Transportation (Caltrans). Prior to heading the Caltrans Legal Division, he was attorney-in-charge of the state's San Diego office where he specialized in eminent domain and inverse condemnation litigation. In the San Diego area, he was also Mayor of the City of Del Mar, a member of the Regional Coastal Commission, chairman of the San Diego Association of Governments, and chairman of the Sierra Club's San Diego chapter. After leaving state service, Mr. Rypinski joined Walter & Pistole of Santa Rosa, serving as contract assistant City Attorney to four Northern California cities. He started his own practice in 1991. He has lectured on eminent domain before state and regional county counsel associations, city attorney associations, the City Attorney's Department of the League of California Cities, the Association of Bay Area Governments, the Appraisal Institute, and the International Right of Way Association. Mr. Rypinski is the author of a paper on the valuation of property contaminated with hazardous waste published in the Public Law Journal of the State Bar. He is a graduate of Boalt Hall School of Law at the University of California, Berkeley. |
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PREFACE
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The purpose of this book is to serve as a handbook for public sector
attorneys and land acquisition staff as well as appraisers. It is a
practical how-to-do-it manual that guides the reader, step-by-step, from
project inception until the eminent domain complaint has been filed and
served and possession of the property has been secured.
Public sector attorneys will find this handbook of procedures a helpful guide around the rocks and shoals of eminent domain practice that might otherwise defeat a public entity's right to take, delay acquisition, or make the acquisition unnecessarily costly. While written from the standpoint of public entity needs, attorneys who represent owners may find that they can better represent their clients if they understand the practices of their governmental counterparts. Appraisers, whether appraising for a public entity or a property owner whose property is being acquired by eminent domain, will find the portions of the book devoted to appraisal issues a highly useful and practical guide to meeting the strict evidentiary rules relating to the market value of property. Appendix E is a summary of the most common eminent domain legal rules associated with the valuation of real property. It is essential that any professional who appraises for an eminent domain purpose understand fundamental condemnation law, as well as what is admissible evidence in an eminent domain action. What an appraiser might otherwise rely on to support his or her opinion in a less formal appraisal practice might be inadmissible or even result in the exclusion of the appraiser's opinion in an eminent domain trial. Some of the recommendations directed at public entity attorneys are related to work that is actually performed by either acquisition or engineering staff in many public agencies. Acquisition staff will find the handbook helpful in working within what must seem to be an unduly costly and cumbersome legal process that is triggered when staff is unable to acquire a parcel by early negotiation. The book should also help public entity staff avoid pitfalls that could make the acquisition process unnecessarily costly. The goal of this handbook is to be a step-by-step, how-to-do-it eminent domain practice manual, and not a textbook on condemnation law. There already exist two useful California eminent domain law texts. For a textual treatment of the law of California eminent domain, see Matteoni and Veit, Condemnation Practice in California (Continuing Education of the Bar, revised second edition, 2002) and Dankert, Condemnation Practice Handbook, which is volume 14 of California Real Estate Law and Practice (Matthew Bender, 2002). Nichols on Eminent Domain (Matthew Bender, revised third edition, 2002) is an encyclopedic text that covers eminent domain law in all states as well as federal law. The recommendations and practice suggestions described in the book in many cases were learned from mistakes the author has either observed or made himself over many years of condemnation practice. This book necessarily deals with relatively common eminent domain issues. It cannot be a substitute for the guidance and advice of eminent domain legal counsel to respond to issues raised by special cases, ambiguous case law, and complex matters. |