Inverse Condemnation

The obvious government acquisition is the State, through its agents, knocking on your door and issuing you a notice of condemnation with a corresponding offer of just compensation. The more insidious acquisition is the State, through its agents, rendering your property worthless or significantly damaged without so much as a letter. When an authority’s decision, such as a zoning change or implementation of a floodplain, does not physically alter your property but significantly affects your property’s value, there is recourse available. In these instances, an Illinois landowner may bring an inverse condemnation suit to hold the government accountable for the limitations they have created on your property.