Property Law Keyed to Dukeminier
Penn Central Transportation Co. v. City of New York
ProfessorTodd Berman
CaseCast™ – "What you need to know"
Facts
Appellant owned the Grand Central Terminal, which was designated by application of New York’s Landmarks Preservation Law to be a landmark. Thereafter, the Appellant entered into a renewable 50-year lease with UGP Properties, Ltd., a United Kingdom company, under which the UGP agreed to construct a multistory office building on top of the terminal. The plans for the new office building were submitted to the Commission for approval, which was denied. The plans were in conformity with existing zoning regulation, but the Commission of Landmarks Preservation nonetheless denied the applications for certificates of “no external effect” and for “appropriateness.” The Appellants did not pursue any administrative remedies because none were available. The Appellants did not decide to submit other plans to the Commission, either. Instead, the Appellants filed suit in state court seeking a declaratory judgment, injunctive relief barring the City from using the Landmarks Law to impede the construction of any structure that might otherwise be lawfully constructed, and damaged for the temporary “taking” that occurred between the designation date (August 2, 1967) and the date when the restrictions arising under the Landmarks Law would be lifted. The trial court granted injunctive and declaratory relief, but severed the question of damages for a “temporary taking.” The New York Court of Appeals affirmed, and summarily rejected any claim that the Landmarks Commission had taken any property without just compensation because the law had not transferred control of the property to the city, but only limited the Appellants’ use. The Appellants appealed.
Only StudyBuddy Pro offers the complete Case Brief Anatomy*
Access the most important case brief elements for optimal case understanding.
*Case Brief Anatomy includes: Brief Prologue, Complete Case Brief, Brief Epilogue
- The Brief Prologue provides necessary case brief introductory information and includes:
Topic:
Identifies the topic of law and where this case fits within your course outline.Parties:
Identifies the cast of characters involved in the case.Procedural Posture & History:
Shares the case history with how lower courts have ruled on the matter.Case Key Terms, Acts, Doctrines, etc.:
A case specific Legal Term Dictionary.Case Doctrines, Acts, Statutes, Amendments and Treatises:
Identifies and Defines Legal Authority used in this case.
- The Case Brief is the complete case summarized and authored in the traditional Law School I.R.A.C. format. The Pro case brief includes:
Brief Facts:
A Synopsis of the Facts of the case.Rule of Law:
Identifies the Legal Principle the Court used in deciding the case.Facts:
What are the factual circumstances that gave rise to the civil or criminal case? What is the relationship of the Parties that are involved in the case.Issue(s):
Lists the Questions of Law that are raised by the Facts of the case.Holding:
Shares the Court's answer to the legal questions raised in the issue.Concurring / Dissenting Opinions:
Includes valuable concurring or dissenting opinions and their key points.Reasoning and Analysis:
Identifies the chain of argument(s) which led the judges to rule as they did.
- The Brief Prologue closes the case brief with important forward-looking discussion and includes:
Policy:
Identifies the Policy if any that has been established by the case.Court Direction:
Shares where the Court went from here for this case.