JLC · APRIL 1988
Miscellany
Last June, the Supreme Court
handed down two important
decisions affecting the regulation
of land by the government. In
First English Evangelical Lutheran
Church of Glendale v. Los Angeles
County, the Court held for the
first time that landowners are
entitled to money damages for a
temporary regulatory taking of
their property. Or put another
way — if a property owner is left
with no reasonable use of his or
her property, then that owner
may recover money for the value
lost from the time of the "taking"
until the government either
purchases the property or provides
relief from the overly strict
controls on the property.
In Nollan v. California Coastal
Commission, the Court held that
requiring a beach-front