This volume investigates property rights within the American constitutional system. Now in its second edition, it has been completely revised to reflect the major legal developments in the field of property rights since the first edition appeared in 1991. Particular attention is paid to the Supreme Court decisions which have enlarged the protection afforded property owners under the fifth amendment. The book also focuses on the increased intrusion of the federal authority under the commercial clause and the important ...
Read More
This volume investigates property rights within the American constitutional system. Now in its second edition, it has been completely revised to reflect the major legal developments in the field of property rights since the first edition appeared in 1991. Particular attention is paid to the Supreme Court decisions which have enlarged the protection afforded property owners under the fifth amendment. The book also focuses on the increased intrusion of the federal authority under the commercial clause and the important innovations at the state level, all of which reflect the increased political clout of the private property movement. Covering the entire history of property rights, this revised edition fills an important gap in the literature of constitutional history.
Read Less
I got this book because of the recent flap about imminent domain. I had the mistaken impression that the taking of private property and giving it to other private parties was a recent development. This book cleared that up very nicely. The Federal and State governments have been taking private property and giving it to other private citizens since the Republic began. An example of an early taking that was labeled as "public use" was the allowing of grain mills to build dams for power and flood your land without any reimbursement, for the good of the community. Voltaire wrote, in Candide, "private misfortunes are public benefits, so that the more private misfortunes there are the greater is the general good." Governments stealing from there citizens for "the general good" is nothing new.
![Bruce and Ely's Cases and Materials on Modern Property Law, 5th (American Casebook Series])](https://www3.alibris-static.com/images/elements/image_coming_soon.png)
