Property Rights
Lawsuit Challenges Chicago Towing Racket After City Destroyed Disabled Woman's Van
The lawsuit is the second filed this year challenging Chicago's punitive and corrupt towing program.
No Take-Backs, No Do-Overs, No Data Replevin
A lawyer caught on tape criticizing his client (a judge), in the making of a documentary about the prosecution of rapper Meek Mill.
Asset Forfeiture Funding Has Little Impact on Solving Crimes, Says New Study
A new study by the Institute for Justice says federal asset forfeiture funds have little to no impact on solving crimes, suggesting police are more interested in the revenue it generates
Justice Stevens Admits Error in the Kelo Case—but Also Doubles Down on the Bottom Line
In his recent memoir, he admits he seriously misinterpreted precedent in one of his most controversial decisions, but maintains he still got the result right.
The Supreme Court Should Take the Love Terminal Takings Case
A lower court decision the Supreme Court is currently considering reviewing has important - and dangerous - implications for property rights.
Are Democrats an Anti-Immigrant Party Too?
Recent articles by Tyler Cowen and Farhad Manjoo highlight anti-immigrant effects of many Democrats' policies on zoning and other issues. The party is not quite as bad as the Republicans. But that's damning with faint praise.
Bill de Blasio Is the Worst 2020 Candidate on Property Rights
The mayor of America's largest city is openly contemptuous of private property rights.
A Vivid Description of the Needless Suffering Caused by Laws Banning Organ Markets
A recent Canadian Broadcasting Corporation article describes the travails of a man and his family who have waited eight years for a kidney transplant. Such needless pain could be eliminated by legalizing organ markets.
Will Connecticut Finally Enact Meaningful Eminent Domain Reform?
Fourteen years after the notorious Kelo case, the state where the case originated still has one of the nation's weakest eminent domain reform laws. A bill currently before the state legislature could change that.
They Said This Law Would Fix Blighted Neighborhoods. Instead It's Being Used to Steal People's Homes
And the Pennsylvania state lawmaker who wrote the law is now the judge who hears a lot of the cases.
Testimony on Asset Forfeiture Before the Arkansas State Advisory Committee to the US Commission on Civil Rights
My testimony addressed the general problem of asset forfeiture, the potential impact of the Supreme Court's recent decision in Timbs v. Indiana, and Arkansas' recent reform law.
Baltimore Tries to Use Eminent Domain to Condemn the Preakness Stakes Horse Race
The condemnation is legally dubious. And even if the city prevails in court, it is likely to come out a loser. Baltimore should listen to naysayers who advise letting the neighsayers move to another location.
The Zoning Code Banned His Tall Fence, but Not the Naked Mannequin Party Behind It
California man highlights the absurdity of dumb regulations.
Implications of Today's Senate Vote Against Trump's Border Wall "Emergency" Declaration
How the overwhelming vote against Trump's position could potentially affect the lawsuits challenging the legality of the declaration.
Democrat Senator on Trump's Enthusiasm for Eminent Domain: 'Language You'd Expect Out of Some Autocrat'
"What a betrayal of conservative principles this is," Sen. Michael Bennet says.
Supreme Court Rules that Excessive Fines Clause Applies to States and Constrains Civil Asset Forfeiture
The decision in Timbs v. Indiana is a significant step forward for property rights and civil liberties, though a key issue remains to be resolved by lower courts.
State Can't Bulldoze Man's Atlantic City Home for Undefined 'Mixed Use Project,' N.J. Court Rules
A win for private property rights, and a defeat for proponents of eminent domain.
New Jersey Court Strikes Down Use of Eminent Domain to Take Property to "Bank" it for Possible Future Use
The court concluded that property may only be condemned for projects that will proceed in "the reasonably foreseeable future."
My USA Today Op Ed on Using Emergency Powers to Build Trump's Wall
The op ed explains why this option is not legal - and why it would set a dangerous precedent if the president succeeded in doing it.
My New "Washington Post" Op Ed on Eminent Domain and the Border Wall
The op ed describes the extensive harm likely to be caused by condemning the large amounts of private property that would need to be seized to build the wall.
Anti-Wall GOP Rep. Will Hurd: 'There's a Thing We Care About in Texas Called Private Property Rights'
Some members of Congress still care about private property.
Thoughts on the Second Oral Argument in Knick v. Township of Scott
The much-anticipated reargument of this important property rights case did not make clear what the Court will do, but overall did not go as well for the property rights side as the first argument did. It is still unclear, however, which way potentially crucial swing voter Justice Kavanaugh will lean.
Rep. Justin Amash Takes on Eminent Domain with 'Just Compensation' Bill
The bill would likely stop Trump from using the "military version of eminent domain."
Bill de Blasio: 'We Will Seize Their Buildings, and We Will Put Them in the Hands of a Community Nonprofit'
NYC's mayor takes on private property (again).
Eminent Domain, Emergency Powers, and Trump's Wall
Can Trump really exploit emergency powers to use eminent domain to build his wall without additional congressional authorization? If he succeeds, conservatives are likely to regret the precedent he sets.
Trump's Terrible Record on Property Rights
The President's recent threat to use "the military version of eminent domain" to seize property for his border wall is just the tip of a larger iceberg of policies and legal positions inimical to constitutional property rights.
What the Hell Is the 'Military Version of Eminent Domain'?
Whatever it is, it can't be good.
Laws Banning Organ Markets Kill Even More People than Previously Thought
New analysis finds that thousands more die every year because the law forbids purchase of the kidneys they need to survive.
Progress in the Struggle Against Exclusionary Zoning
Reforms in multiple jurisdictions could help loosen restrictions on development that infringe on property rights, inflate housing prices, and cut off large numbers of people from job opportunities.
Vermont Man Barred From Building on His Own Property Flips Off Government With Giant Middle Finger Statue
And there's nothing the town can do to stop him.
Minneapolis Strikes a Blow for Affordable Housing by Slashing Zoning Restrictions
Zoning rules that severely restrict home construction cut off millions of poor people from jobs and affordable housing. The Minneapolis reform is the most extensive reduction in zoning achieved by any major American city in a long time.
Mandatory Warrantless Rental Inspections Inspire Seattle Lawsuit
Institute for Justice to city: Show probable cause, guys.
Texas Court Rules Deliberate Flooding of Private Property by State Government in Wake of Hurricane Harvey can be a Taking
The ruling concerns flooding of property undertaken by the San Jacinto River Authority in order to mitigate the effects of Hurricane Harvey. Issues raised in the case are similar to those at stake in ongoing federal court litigation.
Strand Bookstore Owner Says NYC's Efforts to Preserve Her Building Could Doom It
"I'm not asking for money or a tax rebate," says Nancy Bass Wyden. "Just leave me alone."
Today's Supreme Court Oral Argument in Timbs v. Indiana Suggests Justices are Likely to Apply Excessive Fines Clause to State Asset Forfeitures
The Court seems very likely to rule that the Excessive Fines Clause of the Eighth Amendment applies to state governments, and that at least some asset forfeitures violate the Clause. Potentially a big win for property rights and civil liberties.
GM Will Shut Down Factory Built on Land Seized in Controversial 1981 Poletown Taking
The factory stands on land seized in a taking that forcibly displaced over 4000 people, and attracted widespread widespread opposition. The lessons and legacy of the Poletown case remain relevant today.
This Week, Supreme Court Will Hear an Important Case that Could Help Curb Asset Forfeiture Abuse
The case both addresses important legal issues, and could have substantial practical implications.
On Thanksgiving, Be Grateful for Property Rights
There's no reason to celebrate collective ownership.
Will Supreme Court Reargument of the Knick Takings Case Come Down to the Federal Government's "Klingon Forehead" Argument?
The Supreme Court has ordered reargument in a crucial property rights case. The outcome could hinge on an extremely dubious theory put forward in an amicus brief by the federal government.
Georgetown 'Tree Killer' Fined $53,000 for 'Excessive Pruning' on His Own Property
The homeowner was working to preserve a historic building
My Review of "Property and Human Flourishing"
A link to my review of an important new book on property rights by Cornell law Professor Gregory Alexander.
Two Brothers Want to Start a Christmas Tree Farm on Their Own Land. The Township Might Fine Them $450,000.
Gary and Matt Percy had to clear their land before they started planting. They neglected to get the government's permission.
Publicly Traded Companies Are Still Private Property
No matter what California legislators or Elizabeth Warren think
