Seider v. City of Malibu
Property rights on the line in family’s battle for beachfront signage
Dennis and Leah Seider simply want to alert beachgoers to where the public right of access to the beach ends, the Seiders' private Malibu property begins, and the way to the nearby public beach. Their best hope to protect their property rights and avoid potential confrontations with beachgoers would be a sign. But that hope faded when they learned ...
Pietro Family Investments v. California Coastal Commission
Builder battles the California Coastal Commission’s basement ban
When Chris Adamski, a Monterey County, California contractor, and his longtime mentor and friend Mike Pietro bought four properties in the county's Carmel Point neighborhood in 2014, they planned to develop two houses to sell, and then build one house for each of them—Chris for his large family, and Mike for retirement. The California Coastal Com ...
Barnette v. HBI, LLC
Taking tax-foreclosed property requires proper notice
In 2002, Walter Barnette was working in the Omaha suburb of Bellevue when he spotted an acre of land in a growing neighborhood. Though he lives across the nearby border with Iowa, he bought the property with the intent of one day building a home. Walter fell on hard times, however, and failed to pay his 2010 and 2011 property taxes—$986.50—to S ...
Shands v. City of Marathon
Government takes family’s land and uses gimmicks to avoid paying for it
The Shands family has owned Shands Key, a small Florida island, since the 1950s. Purchased by World War II surgeon and Mississippi hospital owner Dr. R.E. Shands, the island was originally zoned for residential use and could have been developed with at least seven homes. Today, however, government regulations designed to protect the environment pro ...
Donnelly v. City of San Marino
Holding local California governments accountable for banning “granny flats”
Accessory dwelling units, better known as "in-law apartments" or "granny flats," have long been recognized as a valuable and essential component of California's response to the state's worsening housing shortage. So essential in fact, state law establishes a right to build ADUs, severely limiting local governments' restrictions on new ADU developme ...
Wall v. Ainsworth
Family challenges government’s arbitrary, unlawful permit conditions
In 2018, the Wall family wanted to build a swimming pool next to their home on their property in Hollister Ranch, California. Like all land owners within the 14,500-acre, century-old working cattle ranch, the Walls needed a permit. Santa Barbara County approved the project; however, the California Coastal Commission denied the permit. The Commissio ...
Warren Lent v. California Coastal Commission
Massive—and unconstitutional—beach access fines threaten family home
In 2016, the Lents received the California Coastal Commission's first ever fine—$4.185 million—for blocking public access to the beach. The home sits 20 feet above the beach and, without stairs or a ramp, the public cannot safely get to the beach. The property originally included an outdoor stairway and a gate to block the large drop—both of ...
Freedom Foundation v. Washington Dept. of Ecology
State agency Scrooge violates Santa’s First Amendment rights
Each year around the holidays, Washington-based Freedom Foundation sends staff members to the lobbies of state agency buildings. These staffers—dressed as Santa—hand out leaflets that explain state employees' right to opt out of union dues. Allowed by most agencies, the Washington Department of Ecology in 2017 instead prohibited the leafletting ...
Robinson v. Wentzell
Race-based quotas in Connecticut schools are unconstitutional and hurt Black and Hispanic students
Hartford, Connecticut, runs a number of world-class magnet schools. Their success has led to the use of a lottery to decide who can attend. But under a state-mandated racial quota, enrollment must be at least 25 percent white or Asian. This means Black and Hispanic students are turned away if their admission would push minority enrollment above 75 ...