​Staying ahead of eminent domain law is critical to clients having the success that they have come to expect with Sanchez & Polovetsky.  In part, that is why both Jennifer Polovetsky and Philip A. Sanchez have been named Super Lawyers for five consecutive years.
 
One of the ways the dynamic duo stays ahead is by attending conferences and networking with legal experts from around the country.   This week, the team visited Nashville, Tennessee to attend the American Law Institute Continuing Legal Education (ALI-CLE) “Eminent Domain and Land Value Litigation 2020” conference. The national conference examines the latest legal issues related to relocation, regulatory takings, inverse condemnation, and valuation issues. 
 
Always wanted to know what types of topics are being discussed at a legal conference in Nashville?  A few may even have laymen wanting to find out more!  Interestingly, many of these topics are stories that appear in the news on a regular basis and that we blog about.  They relate to Property Rights as Civil Rights, Passive Takings by Government Inaction, Creative Approaches to Solving Difficult Appraisal Problems, Establishing the Date of Valuation in Direct and Inverse Cases.
 
One of the more enjoyable aspects of this type of meeting is mingling with the faculty and other registrants, and sometimes even engaging in one or two healthy debates!  Of course, the team is also interested in absorbing some of the local Nashville culture and soaking in the city’s history, music and delicious food.
 
Stay tuned as what we learn this week might pop-up in next week’s blog post!

This week we blogged about Governor Cuomo’s announcement about a possible expansion of Penn Station.   The state would acquire a block south of Penn Station to increase track capacity which would affect properties between 30th and 31st Streets and Seventh and Eighth Avenues.  Eminent domain is being considered as part of the expansion.
 
Fox5 New York interviewed Philip A. Sanchez as part of a recent report on this very topic. Regarding eminent domain as part of the Penn Station expansion, Sanchez commented, “This is entirely possible -- and the governor is completely within his right to do that.”
 
Sanchez described eminent domain as the government’s power to take private property for a valid public purpose.  “This is most certainly a valid public purpose,” he said. As an example, Sanchez explained, “Where the New York Times Building on Eighth Avenue and 40th Street they took an entire block there as well.”

Sanchez reminds all tenants and commercial owners on the block that they can and should seek additional compensation for the sacrifice of their buildings, shops, and bars beyond what the state offers them.  What is the estimated compensation?  Sanchez estimates, “Hundreds of millions of dollars, easily, into the billions – no question about it.”
 
“(…Eminent domain is) The one power that the government has that people don’t realize how awesome it really is,” said Sanchez when talking about eminent domain and the impact it can have on all sizes of business.