Defined term

Inverse condemnation

Inverse condemnation is the cause of action a property owner brings when the government has effectively taken property without going through formal eminent-domain proceedings.

In a direct condemnation, the government initiates the proceeding and pays just compensation. Inverse condemnation is the mirror image: the owner sues to force compensation for property the government has already taken in effect, without the formal process.

Common scenarios: a flood-control project that repeatedly inundates private land; a road project that cuts off practical access; regulations that destroy a property's economic value. The remedy is the same as in direct condemnation — just compensation under the Fifth Amendment — but the owner bears the burden of proving the taking occurred.

Worked exampleAn Army Corps flood-control project repeatedly floods a Baldwin County farm. The Corps never formally condemned the land. The owner brings inverse condemnation in the U.S. Court of Federal Claims under the Tucker Act.

Statutes

U.S. Const. amend. V
28 U.S.C. § 1491 (Tucker Act)

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