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Lewis Rice Federal Takings and Rails to Trails attorneys Lindsay S. C. Brinton and Meghan S. Largent recently secured a $52 million award for Kotis Associates in a federal takings case involving property along a former Norfolk Southern rail corridor in Greensboro, North Carolina. This is believed to be the largest award ever issued for a property owner affected by a rails to trails conversion.

The affected sites included several high-value developments, including land planned for a Publix supermarket. “What should have happened is that the easement should have gone away, and landowners could have their land free and clear of any easements on the property. That's what should happen under North Carolina state law," Lindsay said. "But here, because of this federal program, that obviously did not happen and those reversionary rights were preempted.”

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.