South Dakota Landowners Awarded Compensation in Rails to Trails Case
South Dakota Searchlight reports that seven landowners in Bon Homme and Charles Mix counties have been awarded nearly $128,000 in a federal settlement for property taken along a former railroad corridor now being converted into a public trail. Lewis Rice member Meghan Largent explained that when private land is repurposed for public use, the government is required to provide just compensation under the Fifth Amendment. Meghan said, “If the government takes 10 feet or 10 acres, you should be rightly compensated."
The Lewis Rice Rails to Trails team represents several property owners affected by this conversion and notes that approximately 120 additional landowners along the same corridor may also be eligible for compensation. They have until August 18, 2029, to file a claim.
Lewis Rice's federal takings attorneys represent landowners throughout the United States pursuing takings claims against the federal government. One primary focus of the group is representing landowners in what is commonly referred to as rails to trails takings. Attorneys in this group litigate cases in the United States Court of Federal Claims on behalf of those whose property was taken by the federal government pursuant to the National Trails System Act, which authorizes abandoned railroad lines to be converted to public parks. The goal is to obtain compensation from the government for the taking of their land for the public recreational trail. The attorneys in the Federal Takings Practice Group focus on both proving the taking has occurred as well as establishing the value of the property that was taken. Their national work for landowners includes representing landowners coast-to-coast, including 11 states.
