A Man's Home Is…Another Guy's Parking Lot

The Supreme Court has agreed to hear a challenge to eminent domain abuse in New London, Connecticut. The Institute for Justice, which represents the property owners, says the case squarely poses the question of whether taking land from one private party and giving it to another constitutes a "public use" simply because the transfer will result in higher tax revenue and more jobs. "If jobs and taxes can be a justification for taking someone's home or business," notes I.J. litigator Dana Berliner, "then no property in America is safe because anyone's home can create more jobs if it is replaced by a business and any small business can generate greater taxes if replaced by a bigger one."