On June 24, 2019, the U.S. Supreme Court declined to review a Federal Circuit ruling that undermines the ability of property owners to obtain compensation from the government when regulations deprive their property of economic value. The decision was a setback for WLF, which filed a brief urging the Court to grant review. WLF argued that the ruling bars compensation under the Takings Clause in the many cases in which the regulated property’s precise value is disputed. The Plaintiffs were owners of an air-passenger terminal at Love Field, a Dallas airport. To aid a rival airport, Congress passed a 2006 law that prohibited the Plaintiffs from using the terminal for passenger services, thereby depriving the property of all value. WLF asserted that the appeals court misapplied case law in denying compensation; it argued that regulations that deprive landowners of all economic value are per se Takings Clause violations. WLF’s amicus curiae brief was joined by the Allied Educational Foundation.
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