OCA Emeritus Member John Hamilton Convinces Kansas Supreme Court That A Tenant Is Entitled to Relocation Benefits Even If the Displacing Project Does Not Require The Filing of An Eminent Domain Action

John Hamilton, Owners’ Counsel of America Emeritus Member from the State of Kansas, recently prevailed in the case of Nauheim v. City of Topeka, No. 114271 (Jan. 25, 2019) in convincing the Kansas Supreme Court that a tenant who was displaced when the City of Topeka sought to acquire private property for a drainage project was entitled to relocation benefits even though the City did not have to actually file condemnation proceedings to acquire the property.  In a ruling that could have far reaching impacts, the Kansas Supreme Court held that K.S.A. 2017 Supp. 26-518 indentifies two distinct situations requiring the a condemnor to pay relocation benefits to a displaced person, even in the absence of federal funding, i.e. (a) when the acquisition occurs through negotiation in advance of a condemnation action, or (b) when the acquisition occurs through a condemnation action. Thus, when the commerical tenant was displaced based on the mere threat of condemnation, it was nonetheless entitled to receive relocation benefits. The court also ruled that whether a negotiation was in advance of a condemnation action under the relevant statute is a question of fact to be established by a preponderance of the evidence.

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