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Brief Amici Curiae of NFIB Small Business Legal Center, Et Al, Love Terminal Partners, L.P. v. United States, No. 18-1062 (Mar. 15, 2019)
Brief Amici Curiae of NFIB Small Business Legal Center, Et Al, Love Terminal Partners, L.P. v. United States, No. 18-1062 (Mar. 15, 2019)
Brief Amici Curiae of NFIB Small Business Legal Center, Et Al, Love Terminal Partners, L.P. v. United States, No. 18-1062 (Mar. 15, 2019)
18-1062
In The
Supreme Court of the United States
-------------------------- ♦ ---------------------------
UNITED STATES,
Respondent.
-------------------------- ♦ --------------------------
On Petition for Writ of Certiorari to the United
States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
-------------------------- ♦ --------------------------
BRIEF AMICI CURIAE OF THE NFIB SMALL BUSINESS
LEGAL CENTER, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF HOME
BUILDERS, REAL ESTATE ROUNDTABLE, CATO INSTITUTE,
SOUTHEASTERN LEGAL FOUNDATION, AND OWNERS’
COUNSEL OF AMERICA IN SUPPORT OF PETITIONERS
-------------------------- ♦ --------------------------
Karen R. Harned Thomas J. Ward
Luke A. Wake* Devala Janardan
Counsel of Record NATIONAL ASSOCIATION
NFIB SMALL BUSINESS OF HOME BUILDERS
LEGAL CENTER 1201 15th Street, NW
1201 F Street, NW, Suite 200 Washington, DC 20005
Washington, DC 20004 (202) 266-8200
(202) 314-2061 tward@nahb.org
luke.wake@nfib.org djanardan@nahb.org
Ilya Shapiro Kimberley S. Herman
Trevor Burrus SOUTHEASTERN LEGAL FOUNDATION
CATO INSTITUTE 560 W. Crossville Road, Suite 104
1000 Mass. Ave., N.W. Roswell, Georgia 30075
Washington, DC 20001 (678) 269-4966
(202) 842-0200 khermann@southeasternlegal.org
ishapiro@cato.org
Robert H. Thomas
DAMON KEY LEONG KUPCHAK HASTERT
1003 Bishop Street, 16th Floor
Honolulu, Hawaii 96813
(808) 531-8031
rht@hawaiilawyer.com
Counsel for Amici Curiae Dated: March 15, 2019
THE LEX GROUPDC i 1050 Connecticut Avenue, N.W. i Suite 500, #5190 i Washington, D.C. 20036
i
Questions Presented
1. In assessing whether the government has effected
a compensable taking, may courts treat real property
as worthless simply because the owner was not
generating positive cashflow from the property at the
time of the taking?
2. In determining whether the taking of property had
any economic impact on its owner, may courts ignore
reasonable, investment-backed expectations that a
regulatory environment is likely to change and, in
fact, has been changed by the very law that effects the
taking?
ii
Table of Contents
Page
Questions Presented .................................................... i
Table of Contents ........................................................ ii
Table of Authorities ...................................................iii
Interest of Amici ......................................................... 1
Summary of Argument ............................................... 4
THIS COURT SHOULD PROVIDE MUCH
NEEDED GUIDANCE FOR ASSESSING
ECONOMIC IMPACT IN REGULATORY
TAKINGS CASES....................................................... 6
A. The Federal Circuit’s Approach Would
Defeat Any Takings Claim for a Property
That Is Not Yet Turning a Profit .................... 6
B. Review Is Appropriate to Resolve Conflict
Among the Lower Courts as to Whether
Prospective Economic Value Should be
Considered in Assessing the Merits of a
Regulatory Takings Claim ............................. 17
Conclusion ................................................................. 20
iii
Table of Authorities
Page(s)
Cases
Arkansas Game & Fish Comm’n v. United States,
568 U.S. 23 (2012) ................................................. 7
Armstrong v. United States,
364 U.S. 40 (1960) ......................................... 10, 15
Beyer v. City of Marathon,
197 So. 3d 563 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 2013) ........... 19
BPM Property Dev. v. Melvin,
198 Cal. App. 3d 526 (1988) ................................ 14
Bridge Aina Le’a, LLC v. Haw. Land Use Comm’n,
2018 WL 3149489 (D. Haw. June 27, 2018) ....... 19
Comm’r of Transp. v. Towpath Assocs.,
255 Conn. 529, 767 A.2d 1169 (2001) ................. 11
Del Monte Dunes v. City of Monterey,
95 F.3d 1422 (9th Cir. 1996) ............................... 19
E. Enterprises v. Apfel,
524 U.S. 498 (1998) ............................................... 6
Ganson v. City of Marathon,
222 So.3d 17 (Fla. Dist. Ct. App. 2016) ................ 8
In re Clara Welch Thanksgiving Home,
123 A.D.3d 1313
(N.Y. App. Div. 2014) .......................................... 12
In re Marriage of Joyce E. Schelmeske,
390 N.W.2d 309 (Minn. Ct. App. 1986) .............. 12
Jacobellis v. Ohio,
378 U.S. 184 (1964) ............................................... 7
iv
Interest of Amici1
The National Federation of Independent
Business Small Business Legal Center (NFIB
Legal Center) is a nonprofit, public interest law firm
established to provide legal resources and be the voice
for small businesses in the nation’s courts through
representation on issues of public interest affecting
small businesses. The National Federation of
Independent Business (NFIB) is the nation’s leading
small business association, representing members in
Washington, D.C., and all 50 state capitals. Founded
in 1943 as a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization,
NFIB’s mission is to promote and protect the right of
its members to own, operate and grow their
businesses.
NFIB represents small businesses nationwide,
and its membership spans the spectrum of business
operations, ranging from sole proprietor enterprises
to firms with hundreds of employees. While there is
no standard definition of a “small business,” the
typical NFIB member employs 10 people and reports
gross sales of about $500,000 a year. The NFIB
membership is a reflection of American small
business. To fulfill its role as the voice for small
business, the NFIB Legal Center frequently files
amicus briefs in cases that will impact small
businesses.
The National Association of Home Builders
(NAHB) is a Washington D.C.-based trade
1In accordance with Rule 37, amici state that no counsel for any
party authored this brief in whole or in part and no person or
entity other than amici funded its preparation or submission.
Both the Petitioners and Respondent have consented to this brief
and received timely notice of amici’s intent to file.
2
16But see Bridge Aina Le’a, LLC v. Haw. Land Use Comm’n, 2018
WL 3149489, at *10 (D. Haw. June 27, 2018) (holding that a
taking may have occurred if “no competitive market exists
without the possibility of a legal change permitting
development…”) (quoting Del Monte Dunes v. City of Monterey,
95 F.3d 1422, 1433 (9th Cir. 1996)) (alterations omitted).
20
Respectfully submitted,
Karen R. Harned
Luke A. Wake*
Counsel of Record
NFIB SMALL BUSINESS LEGAL CENTER
1201 F Street, NW, Suite 200
Washington, DC 20004
(202) 314-2061 (Telephone)
(615) 916-5104 (Facsimile)
luke.wake@nfib.org
21
Thomas J. Ward
Devala Janardan
NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF HOME BUILDERS
1201 15th Street, NW
Washington, DC 20005
(202) 266-8200 (Telephone)
(202) 266-8400 (Facsimile)
TWard@nahb.org
djanardan@nahb.org
Ilya Shapiro
Trevor Burrus
CATO INSTITUTE
1000 Massachusetts Avenue, N.W.
Washington, DC 20001
(202) 842-0200
ishapiro@cato.org
Kimberley S. Herman
SOUTHEASTERN LEGAL FOUNDATION
560 W. Crossville Road, Suite 104
Roswell, Georgia 30075
(678) 269-4966
khermann@southeasternlegal.org
Robert H. Thomas
DAMON KEY LEONG KUPCHAK HASTERT
1003 Bishop Street, 16th Floor
Honolulu, Hawaii 96813
(808) 531-8031
rht@hawaiilawyer.com