Articles

PLF’s constitutional challenge to Washington state’s shoreline buffer scheme is pending before the U.S. Supreme Court.  The case, Kitsap Alliance of Property Owners v. Central Puget Sound Growth Management Hearings Board (KAPO) , began over a half decade ago, when Kitsap County, acting under the mandate of Washington’s Growth Man ...

During the past week and a half, I have encountered seven separate instances of property owners stuck in seemingly intractable disputes with government agencies.  In each situation, someone is trying to use his or her property, but can’t because of some government action.  The experience of hearing people’s stories first-hand—and le ...

At the time PLF opened its office in the Pacific Northwest, Washington’s courts had adopted an extremely pro-regulation and anti-property rights stance toward regulatory takings law.  This was primarily due to the fact that the courts were operating under the notion that any regulation of private property that is designed to protect people f ...

Earlier today, the U.S. Supreme Court denied PLF’s petition for a writ of certiorari in the case, Kitsap Alliance of Property Owners v. Central Puget Sound Growth Management Hearings Board.  The petition asked the Court to consider whether a Kitsap County regulation requiring that shoreline property owners who seek building permits dedicate ...

Last week, the Supreme Court of Washington decided not to review the appellate opinion in Thun v. City of Bonney Lake.  The Thun case arose out of the city’s denial of property owner Karl Thun’s application to develop condos on his property in Bonney Lake, Washington.  Thun sued the city under the theory that the … ...

Today, the Fifth Circuit decided Bowlby v. City of Aberdeen.  In this case, Debra Bowlby sought and received a permit to operate a small sno-cone hut in the City of Aberdeen, Mississippi.  Then, a month after the City granted her the permit (and she began operating her business), the City simply revoked her permit.  Ms. … ...

Tomorrow, I will be speaking at the annual LSI Regulatory Takings conference about the doctrine of unconstitutional conditions.  This doctrine holds that the government cannot condition the provision of a discretionary benefit (e.g., a permit, license, grant, contract, etc.) upon a requirement that a person give up a constitutionally protected rig ...

Today, Division III of the Washington Court of Appeals issued an “Order of Certification” in a case called Lemire v. Washington Department of Ecology.  An Order of Certification means the Court of Appeals believes that the legal issues in the case are so important that the Washington Supreme Court should decide the case, bypassing Cour ...

Earlier this year, I wrote about the decades-long battle being waged between Nevada rancher E. Wayne Hage and federal agencies over his property and water rights. After receiving a mixed decision from the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals, Hage’s estate filed a petition for rehearing, demonstrating its commitment to preserving those rights tha ...