utenzi

Eminent Domain. Many of you will be familiar with this legal term. For those who are not, eminent domain is the legal way that the government can confiscate private property from individuals. Typically this is done to aquire property for the common good--to build roads on, airports, public buildings et cetera. Of course if it's your house or land that's been confiscated by the government you're going to be upset but if it's for the public good at least there's some sense of justice, albeit cold and distant. However recently there's been a twist applied to this practice of eminent domain. In June 2005 there was a Supreme Court ruling in the case of Kelo v. The City of New London, Conn that changed the way that communities could enforce eminent domain. According to the Supreme Court's 5-4 ruling the government can seize private property from individuals to boost a community’s economic development which means that seized property can be handed over to private...