What Is Eminent Domain?

Eminent domain is the American term for a power generally recognized as belonging to the government in modern countries. In modern democracies and republics, this power is generally checked by certain procedures that restrict the government's ability to take private property.

Origins of the Term and Its Application

The term "eminent domain" is often traced back to its use by Dutch jurist Hugo Grotius in 1625, but the sense that the government or sovereign should be able to control over the ownership of property goes back at least to the Hebraic law, which limited the right of property owners to sell the land that had been given to them by God.

Evolving from this, feudal systems generally held that all land ownership is dependent on the indulgence of the king, who has the power to give or take land for any reason.

The first limitation of this sovereign right came in the Magna Carta (1215), which said that the king of England could not imprison a man or take his property without the "lawful judgment of his peers." By 1354, this had been adapted to the more modern language of "due process of law."

Eminent Domain in the US System

Protections granted to nobles under the Magna Carta were not necessarily extended to colonists in the New World. In fact, land grants in the New World were seen more like the feudal ones, being given by the king and capable of being rescinded for any and all reasons without justification.

Colonial governments also felt they had the right to give or take property as they saw fit. Public improvements were for the public good and benefited the land owner as well as their neighbors. Compensation was considered optional.

Then in 1777, the Vermont Constitution required compensation when private property was taken for public use. The Massachusetts Constitution of 1780 followed suit. However, when the Constitution was being written, state governments did not think eminent domain a good idea. Instead, it was inserted by James Madison who wrote the amendment, and tacked it on at the end.

Florida Law

Florida eminent domain law was initially based on the US Constitution, but after a monumental US Supreme Court decision (Kelo v. New London, 2005), Florida law was revised to ensure that private property was not taken to be given or sold to other private owners. It also ensured that owners received full compensation for their property.

Florida property law is very complicated depending on the specific situation of what kind of property you have and why it is being taken. To learn more about Florida eminent domain law, please visit the website of the Florida Property Rights Law Firm.