Eminent domain
Definition
Eminent domain is the government's power to take private property for public use, such as roads, schools, or utilities, as long as the owner receives "just compensation."1 Cities and counties can only exercise this power because the state has delegated it to them by statute.
Why it matters
The fight over eminent domain usually isn't whether the government can take the land, it almost always can, but what counts as "public use" and whether the compensation offered actually reflects the property's value. The Supreme Court's 2005 Kelo v. City of New London decision, allowing takings for private economic development, remains one of the most contested applications of the doctrine.
Seen in the wild
After the 2005 Kelo ruling let a Connecticut city condemn homes for private redevelopment, 43 to 47 states (depending on how reforms are counted) passed laws or state supreme court rulings within a few years restricting eminent domain for economic development, according to tracking by the Institute for Justice, which represented the original Kelo plaintiffs.2