Success Stories
Representation To Protect Your Property
$70 Million Jury Verdict
An Orange County city recently wanted to take 11 acres of land without compensating the property owners and required the property owners to pay millions of dollars for the project. At trial, with our eminent domain attorneys, the jury awarded in excess of $70 million to the California property owners. After post-trial motions, the parties agreed to settlement in full for approximately $76 million.
$50 Million Settlement
A Southern California school district sought to acquire one of two adjoining properties owned by our client to use for public education purposes. In this eminent domain case, the California District’s initial offer of $28 million failed to consider the subject property’s assemblage with an adjoining property also owned by the client. During pre-trial negotiations with our eminent domain attorneys, the parties were able to agree to a full and complete settlement in the amount of $50 million.
Government Offers/Results Achieved:
- $0 – $76 Million
- $2.21 Million – $14 Million
- $300 Thousand – $2.4 Million
- $28 Million – $50 Million
- $0 – $770 Thousand
- $531 Thousand – $1.2 Million
- $354 Thousand – $7.5 Million
- $237 Thousand – $3.2 Million
- $5 Thousand – $1.975 Million
- $5.5 Million – $10 Million
Caltrans v. Newport Diversified, Inc. (Combined Initial Offer: $606,308.00; Result: $6.75 million PLUS)
We represented property and business owner of the Santa Fe Springs Swap Meet in a part-take action where Caltrans took temporary and permanent easements along the property’s frontage for the I-5 freeway widening project. Initially, Caltrans attempted to minimize the project impacts and damages of its takings by piecemealing the litigation into three separate actions over multiple years. After protracted litigation regarding entitlement to purported “temporary” losses, the matter settled shortly before trial for over $6.75 million, including replacement property rights.
Pomona Unified School District v. Gateway Triangle Development, LLC – (Initial Offer: $5.5 million; Result: $14.5 million)
We represented a property owner in a full-take action where the school district sought to take an urban infill site zoned for commercial use. The district initially offered $5.5 million but tried to deduct over $2 million of its original offer for alleged remediation of potentially hazardous waste. At the time of the action, the developer was in the process of upzoning the property for residential development. After extensive litigation regarding the probability of zone change, environmental contamination and remediation costs, and even an attempt by the condemnor to partially abandon the taking, the matter settled shortly before trial for $14.5 million with no offset for any future environmental cleanup costs.
City of La Mirada v. Majestic Realty – (Initial Offer: $93,000; Result: $2.3 million)
We represented a property owner in a part-take action where the city initially offered only $93,000 to take permanent and temporary easements along the perimeter of an approximately 6-acre industrial property. The case settled before trial in excess of $2.3 million.
Caltrans v. Mike Thompson’s RV — (Initial Offer: $192,000; Result: $1.6 Million)
We represented the property and business owner of “Mike Thompson’s RV Super Stores,” in a part-take action where Caltrans took temporary construction easements over an approximately 20,000 square foot triangular parcel for the I-5 freeway widening project. The triangular shaped parcel was part of a larger ownership of properties also owned in fee by our client and used as a storage/parking lot for recreational vehicles. Caltrans attempted to minimize the project’s impacts and damages of its takings by piecemealing the litigation into two separate actions over multiple years. After protracted litigation regarding the scope of the property rights being taken and entitlement to loss of business goodwill, we were able to convince Caltrans to buy the entire triangular parcel in the initial action. The matter settled shortly before trial for $1.6 million.