Maumee Ohio Legal Blog

Ohio residents who buy property expect to be able to use that land as they see fit. There can be limits to this use, though, such as when one becomes part of a homeowner's association. However, even in these circumstances an individual retains ownership of his or her property. Sometimes, though, the government can swoop in and take one's property either with the owner's permission or without it. The government's power to exercise this taking for the furtherance of public good is known as eminent domain.

Although the government has the right to take a private citizen's land, it can only do so for public use and after paying "just compensation." These limits are prescribed by the U.S. Constitution and cannot be avoided. The process of eminent domain usually starts with the government approaching the landowner with an offer. If the offer is accepted, then the property is transferred and the matter comes to an end. Oftentimes, though, disagreements arise as to what constitutes "public use" and "just compensation." This typically leads to court involvement in one of two ways.

Although many legal disputes in Ohio end with settlement prior to going to trial, some cases will ultimately require litigation. This is often the case when the parties are confrontational toward each other, as well as when the stakes are high for each side. Preparation prior to litigation is key to building a strong case. However, even after discovery is conducted, witnesses are subpoenaed and testimony is prepared, the actual act of litigating requires skill. How one party litigates can have a tremendous impact on the outcome, even if the initial trial is lost.

This is why it is important to appropriately and timely make and respond to objections. One reason this is important is because it can either limit the scope of the opponent's evidence, or it can expand your ability to get testimony and documents admitted into evidence. For example, hearsay, although generally not allowed, will be heard by a judge and jury unless it is objected to. Therefore, when one side successfully raises a hearsay objection, it disallows the other side from getting that testimony into evidence. On the flip side, successfully rebutting a hearsay objection will allow that evidence to be admitted.

Virtually every company in the Toledo area relies on contracts to do business. Contracts require all the parties involved to make promises and trust the other parties to live up to their own promises. When one of the parties violates that trust, that could lead to a lawsuit for breach of contract.

Not every small business that pursues breach of contract litigation has the same expectations, and there are options under the law. Specifically, there are three types of remedies to which a successful plaintiff may be entitled:

In perhaps the most important change to U.S. eminent domain law in decades, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in the 2005 case Kelo v. City of New London that government power to seize private property extended to transferring that land to another private party for economic reasons. Before this, the Constitution’s eminent domain power was limited to cases of more obviously public use, such as for roads or public utilities.

You may have read about the case at the time, but if you aren’t an eminent domain attorney, you probably don’t know much about the details of this landmark case. A new film based on Kelo called Little Pink House that recently hit theaters in the Toledo area may provide a good overview.