Description:
"Under the banner of economic development, all private property is now vulnerable to being taken and transferred to another private owner...Nothing is to prevent the State from replacing any Motel 6 with a Ritz-Carlton, any home with a shopping mall, or any farm with a factory...The Founders cannot have intended this perverse result."--Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, dissenting in the Supreme Court case Kelo v. New London
The Supreme Court's decision in the Kelo case created a firestorm of interest in protecting property rights. Through real-life stories and solid legal analysis, this book shows why property rights are the cornerstone of liberty and how they are protected in the US Constitution. It critically examines how courts and legislatures have diminished property rights and then lays out an agenda for protecting property rights in the future.
Brief description:
Timothy Sandefur is a staff attorney at the Pacific Legal Foundation, for which he represented the Bugryn and Pappas families in the Kelo v. New London case. He has written articles on eminent domain for the Washington Times, National Review Online, and Harvard Journal of Law and Public Policy. A graduate of Chapman University School of Law, he has received the Claremont Institute's Ronald Reagan Medal for his work in public-interest law. He lives in Rescue, California.
Review Quotes:
"For Tim Sandefur, property lies at the heart of every individual's personal identity and self-worth. Read his harrowing accounts of what happens when property rights are trampled here at home, and you see that the human dimension of property rights cannot be neglected in an ongoing debate that shapes the future well-being of our nation."
-- "Richard Epstein, University of Chicago Law School"