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Property Keyed to Merrill
U.S. v. Miller
Citation:
317 U.S. 369 (1943)Facts
The United States took land from the defendants pursuant to its eminent domain power and provided the defendants with just compensation. By August 26, 1937, the Government was committed to using the area for the project. Between the date of commitment and the filing of the complaint, a settlement, Boomtown, grew and realtors came to develop the neighborhood. More than a year later, on December 14, 1938, the United States filed a complaint in eminent domain against the defendants and others whose lands were to be taken. Simultaneously, the United States filed a declaration of taking and made an estimate of the just compensation to be paid to the defendants. At trial, the court instructed the jury to estimate the fair market value of the property involved to obtain a figure for the just compensation. The defendants preferred the jury instruction that the fair market value estimation should be made as of December 14, 1938. Counsel for the United States argued that the defendants were not entitled to any increase of value that resulted from the U.S.’s commitment to the project; instead, the fair market value estimation should be calculated from the moment of commitment, which was August 26, 1937. The District Court for Northern California agreed and awarded the defendants just compensation based on an estimate of fair market value of the property on August 26, 1937.
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